The coronavirus outbreak is now a daily concern, infecting tens of thousands of people across the world and forcing businesses to start counting costs and adapting to a limited or remote workforce.
Currently, worldwide businesses are developing a wide variety of contingency plans, but there is no playbook for an outbreak such as this. Many senior leaders are simply keeping a close eye on their operations and looking to follow any available advice on limiting disruption in their organisations.
Our reliance on digital communications will become ever-more apparent as the virus continues to spread, with lots of employees now being advised against visiting their clients, customers or retailers. But will this have an irreversible impact on the economy?
How do we continue to sell products and services?
Across the UK, we have been advised to avoid physical gatherings – including work, events and conferences. But rest assured, this doesn’t mean selling your product or service needs to come to a complete stop.
Over the next few weeks, we know that many corporate events, company conferences and product launches are set to be cancelled or postponed. But it’s at this point where businesses should be looking to leverage their digital platforms to connect with their trade channels to continue to drive sales and shift product at such a challenging time.
For the last 20 years, FMI has been designing bespoke platforms for its clients, which allow them to operate a holistic approach to brand engagement, with online programmes –supported by corporate events and physical rewards and branded merchandise. These engagement programmes (including reward and recognition platforms and training websites) have been specifically created to digitally connect channels and trade audiences from around the globe, allowing the brand’s field team to continue their work on the ground, driving sales and increasing brand awareness.
The benefits of a digital–first approach
One way to empower your sales development team or remote field force during these times is to instead introduce performance KPIs and targets based on online interactions and participation.
The engagement platforms we create are designed with a mobile–first approach – after all, millennials want to be able to access websites anytime, anywhere and on any device. We design and build bespoke websites and platforms where communities can form, training can be undertaken and rewards can be issued for good engagement.
As long as users have an internet connection, they can do what they need to do uninterrupted, be it sales training, reading product news or keeping up to date with the latest quizzes and competitions.
Receiving product training no longer has to be delivered face to face either. In fact, sales staff can interact with your brand even more frequently. Watching live product launches, referencing sales tips or engaging with incentive programmes – it’s all still possible with an immobile sales team with a shift to digital first.
Our services for events, marketing, incentives and engagement programmes can all be adapted so they predominately work online, for individuals who are isolated. These services are ‘always on’ so service cover is guaranteed and helps to keep a business running smoothly, in times of crisis like this.
With coronavirus likely to disrupt normal working practice for the foreseeable future, we’re happy to talk to any business about creating a bespoke online platform to keep their activity running smoothly. We’ll be working remotely, should the need arise, but will still be available to help you with a solution.
Contact us today on info@fmiagency.com to speak to a member of our team about the best digital platform for your business.
