The world as we knew it is changing… It’s changed… Welcome. Everyone is preparing to go digital. And there’s no way of going back to the way things used to be. COVID-19 has disrupted global economies to the point where many nations have had their GDPs decimated. Businesses have been forced to restructure their finances, staff and their business models as a whole. Regardless of whether your business has been affected positively or negatively by “the new normal”, we cannot run away from the impending digital age. We simply have to face the fact that either we are preparing to go digital or go bankrupt!
At WritersHand Studios, we’ve just about heard it all, and we’ve also felt the brunt of our clients’ businesses falling apart and in worst cases, failing. However, that hasn’t stopped us from trying to innovate and create digital business solutions to help save and create as many revenue streams as possible for them. The first reaction we usually get when we put an idea forward is, “but our business can’t work digitally or remotely”. WRONG!! We’ve helped several ‘traditional’ businesses grow through other digital solutions and find their feet again. It’s not enough to just wait around and blame governments, civil society groups, your local community or a global pandemic. You were probably stuck in your business model for so long that nothing else ever inspired you or occurred to you.
How to go digital
Here are a couple of scenarios we’ve seen play out quite successfully:
The events company:
A former events and promotions company revamped their eventing and events directory (marketing) website, utilising their existing audience, to create online eventing and on-demand streaming website for viewers to watch and participate in online ticketed events. As specialists in creating and providing an online eventing platform, event managers and artists quickly worked with them and requested event management services as an additional billable service from the business. Problem… Sorted!
The restaurant business:
A fine-dining restaurant owner with a chain of popular restaurants converted their business to an online cooking network by creating a Facebook Group and communicating with their 4000+ patrons and fans to follow their new platform. By offering a “cook-it-yourself” takeaway box experience and combining that with basic online in-house recipes from former menu specials, they created a new dining experience that supports an online learning, online shopping and online dining experience. This way, you buy the box with the ingredients, you pay for the online cooking class for the recipe, and you enjoy an at-home fine dining experience with an old favourite of the restaurant that has been discontinued from their current menu. Problem… Sorted!
The tourism agency:
A tour operator who specialised in experience and historical tours has converted their passion for their experiences into an online listing platform for vendors and suppliers they previously frequented during tours. As the audience and the vendor list grew, the platform was further upgraded to create a unique niche marketing experience for online listings, making it easier for locals and tourists to engage with the experiences in a new way. The tour operator was then able to charge a listing fee on a subscription basis, offering additional marketing services to vendors, and was able to slowly revive their business again. Problem… Sorted!
The beauty spa and salon:
A salon and spa converted their previous holistic beauty business into an online beauty and wellness learning centre. All materials to learn how to do the courses were sold via their online shopping platform, and clients who enjoyed their bespoke range of skincare and massage products were able to shop for them online. They further created blog posts and online content to show customers how to recreate their favourite spa experiences at home. Their subscribers and fanbase went from 1,800 followers to 4,000+ followers in less than 2 months, and now have regular orders for consumable goods too. The online content marketed their product range in a great way, coupled with some sales promotions and rewards programmes, the business is growing steadily in its new model. Problem… Sorted!
These are just a few examples of how we’ve helped clients change their businesses to survive and thrive within a new business landscape that we find ourselves in. If we want to change our circumstances, we have to change our stance on our challenges. Contact WritersHand Studios if you need help taking your business digital or changing your business model. You’re running out of options and it’s time to go digital or go bankrupt.