What better time than now than to spring clean some aspects of your business that have been …mmmm… dare we say “put off for a while?” Clearly the word procrastination is not in our vocabulary.
We get it. Sometimes things happen and you kick the proverbial can for a later date. But with businesses disrupted and the world turned upside down, you might be finding yourself with some extra free time on your hands, so let’s talk about how we can Marie Kondo the heck out of our businesses and come out of this situation more organized and more prepared to reignite the economy.
Whether it’s your logo, typography, or even color scheme, giving your business a brand refresh can help your business connect with new audiences or even inspire existing ones. Especially if the logo hasn’t been changed for 5-10 years, it’s worth considering if a newer, more trendy style is appropriate. If nothing else, a brand refresh could be a fun and engaging exercise for your team to flex their creativity.
Here, for example, is what we did last year at Hoverstate. Our old logo v our new logo was part of our recent brand refresh.
If you’re considering updating a logo for your business, keep in mind your audience and how they connect with your brand. In certain cases, even subtle changes can go a long way.
If you haven’t updated your website since the late 90s, have no fear! This task does not require a full on four-alarm redo. Start small and review things like content. Are the images engaging? Is the copy informative? If you like what you’ve got, you can dive in on larger-scale items such as architecture, navigation and performance. Take some time to poke around your site, or have your partner at home go through the experience and give you honest feedback. You could even shop around the interwebs for some creative ideas.
Aside from aesthetics, also consider looking at some new functionalities that might benefit your customers. Recently, we updated a client website with some really cool chat features including predictive chat text. There are lots of options based on how your customers interact with your site.
If your content has been around a while chances are your images are not rendering well on newer computers. All images should be in more updated formats like SVG for illustrations (look great at any resolution), and at least @2x versions of everything for high-resolution displays. If not, especially if your graphics have words in them, your images, banners, and assets will look blurry and out-of-date no matter how timeless their design might be.
Looking for a new way to send and track emails? Unsatisfied with your social media tools? Start by researching other platforms and learn about how different features could benefit your business. It’s also a good time to consider pressure testing current systems to see if these tools can withstand aggressive marketing campaigns and the like.
Internally speaking, you could also consider hiring a consultant to check the performance of ERPs or CRMs. You never know if there is a more beneficial or cost-effective tool.
Establishing a solid process no doubt saves time and money. How is your business currently structured, and have there been any recent lessons to make workflow better? Maybe the pandemic has exposed problems in communication or business operations or has forced teams into finding new and faster ways to disseminate information. Regardless of the cause or situation, there is always room for improvement in this proverbial department.
There are so many social media platforms out there, what with those crazy kids and their TikToks and Fortnites, but the staples still remain the same. However, the big networks like Facebook, LinkedIn and even Twitter update from time to time, and with those changes often come new strategies and best practices. Put your best marketing minds on researching how to get the most from these platforms.
Probably one of the easiest and, given the current times, most important improvement you can make as a business owner is upping the game on company culture. Some new or fresh ways to help your employees communicate, bond, and laugh. It’s much easier to successfully bounce back from adversity when employees feel connected and supported.
But it’s not just about happy hours and funny emails. It’s about cultivating an environment that’s motivating and uplifting. There is a physical and mental component to employee well-being, and the workplace is a large factor in determining how employees feel.
Using this time to clean up and clean out some old ways will help your business thrive once we’re past this season of uncertainty. While researching is a good place to start, don’t try to go it alone. Recruit the best minds within your business to capture ideas and solutions for improvement.
Remember, this too shall pass.