The world is going through a very tough phase. Almost every country is now hit by COVID-19 and suffering its effects in every sector of life. While the most apparent changes can be seen on individual lifestyle and healthcare. The one that most nations are worried about is the fall of the economy.

And if you own a business, you know what I’m talking about. Since the world is in a lockdown, all business operations are shut. Especially, ones that are not classified as essential businesses by the government.

This has caused the economy to go into a deep recession that is believed to have lasting effects. Let’s take a closer look at how the businesses are affected since the onset of the novel coronavirus.

How has the coronavirus outbreak impacted businesses?

COVID-19 is considered to be one of the worst pandemics. Not only because of its dangerous effects on health but also because of how it has put a halt on every single sector of daily life. Along with the continuous rise in health risks, the economy of not just one nation.

But, the entire world has hit rock bottom. According to the United Nations, the global economy can go down by $2 trillion in 2020 due to the coronavirus outbreak. And it may take some time to rise back after such a fall. 

Revenue

While some industries like media, healthcare, food and medicine can still sustain themselves. As their demand is increasing among people locked in their homes. Other industries like tourism, real estate, airlines, hotels and agriculture are the worst hit and have experienced a decline in revenue.

For example, travel and tourism have estimated a global decline of 17 percent in their estimated revenue in 2020. 

Employment

As businesses are undergoing losses, people are losing their jobs. This is more apparent in small scale businesses than multi-million companies. This is because some companies have the resources to pay their employees and accommodate to the work from home setup. While others have no option but to shut down everything and let their employees go for unpaid leaves.

This has led to a sudden increase in the unemployment rate with more than 2.5 million people losing their jobs. And others, including government officials, have to experience pay cuts as a measure to save the drowning economy. 

What does this mean for digital marketing?

The sector of digital marketing is not immune to the effects of COVID-19. All of the industries that are out of business, whether big or small had been using digital marketing as a means of targeting new customers. So yes, there is some rise and fall in statistics.

But, despite this fall in numbers, digital marketing is the only source of reaching out to the customers right now. For brands to make a connection with their consumers, they have to use the only resource available to them. And this is why digital marketing has become more important than ever. 

We can confidently conclude that COVID-19 has moved the life of people online. People have started working from home. Now they shop for groceries online and even workout online. And all this has increased internet usage by 50 percent in some parts of the world. So one thing is clear that the world is on the internet, 

So, whether your business has stopped the services or not, it is time to make some changes in your digital marketing strategies that can prove to be a great help once the world heals from the pandemic. 

Since the world went into lockdown, a decline can be seen in digital marketing statistics. The pandemic has changed a lot in terms of the consumption of the population. Now people are more into essentials and things that can help them cut the boredom through the pandemic. 

So industries that thrived on the movement of people like airlines, hotels, tourism etc. have seen a major decline in their traffic and conversions. 

As for industries that are the need of the hour like delivery services, streaming platforms, news sites etc. are seeing a rising number in conversions and traffic. So the best thing to do right now is to follow a crisis plan. Do not sit back and stop working. 

Here are some tips to help you out.

Changes in keyword

Every person with access to the internet is searching for ways to tackle the lockdown and news related to the novel coronavirus. And this means that the search pattern is changing. Now the most common keywords would include words like ‘coronavirus’, ‘COVID-19’ or ‘Quarantine’. So you may have to change your keyword strategy. 

Along with the already existing keywords, try and include the new ones that are associated with the search related to your niche. And it is more than likely that it will be related to the current pandemic. 

Increase your social media presence

As I have already mentioned. People are now using the internet more than ever before. They have nowhere else to go but the internet. Especially social media platforms. So, make use of this time and increase your social media presence. Make it a time to set up ad campaigns and engage your audience.  Improve your content with relevant posts and try and provide a break to your consumers with interesting posts.

Try something new, like online interviews or walk down the memory lane with your existing products. Also, let your consumers know about your future plans. So that as soon as the world gets back to normal, you already have an expecting customer base. 

Make use of PPC services

As more businesses are experiencing losses, most of them are letting go of their paid services. And this has led to a significant dip in the rates of PPC services. So this is the best time to take advantage of PPC advertising.

Especially, if you are a small business. Since most people are online and most businesses are going offline. This is the best time to gather traffic and conversions as you’ll have less competition.

It is time to boost your rankings

Do not do the mistake of going offline. Rather, make sure that your business is online at all times. Also, keep working on your SEO strategies. Competition is less but number of people online is ever-increasing.

What more could you ask for? You can work harder on your SEO plan and rise above your competition. You’ll be able to boost your SERP rankings and as soon as the economy picks up the pace you’ll see a rise in conversions as well. And if you stop everything, you’ll suffer in terms of revenue as well as page ranking. 

Final thoughts

Remember, the coronavirus pandemic is on the rise. And the sad reality is that it will continue to affect the economy as the numbers increase in the world. So, if you own a business, you must not hide in the room and do nothing. If you do that, it may take much more effort and time to bounce back up.

It is true that e-commerce is affected and you may not see much profit for some time. But, all this will pass and soon everything will have to regain the pace. So all you can do is make use of the resources you have. Digital marketing can still be a helping hand for your business. Follow the points I have mentioned above and be prepared for when you’ll be back in the game.