How to reach your customers in the era of COVID-19?

The coronavirus pandemics have shaken the business world upside down. Some people already try to recover from the lockdown and enjoy sunbathing in their native lands’ sun.

Whereas others grimly predict the second wave of the coronavirus that will make matters even worse.

One cannot know the future for sure. What we certainly know is that it’s important to be supportive and learn the lessons already taught.

Let me share some observations on what impact the pandemics have made on online marketing and what strategy to take to minimize losses.

How advertising has changed with coronavirus

Many companies suspended their production and activities in March – April, sending employees into lockdowns.

Large businesses, from car manufacturing industry, oil and gas companies, tourism and entertainment, etc., suffered from depleting budgets, redundancies and simply closures. This has affected the ads market, but not as straightforwardly as one may expect.

Companies cut down on their advertising spending, with major media platforms like Google and Facebook ads expecting to receive much less as compared to the preliminary budget plans.

Meantime, some businesses have enjoyed an upsurge in interest. In the first place, these are healthcare and related goods and services, delivery services, and necessities. And over time, when people felt certain fatigue from the continuous quarantine, they started to need compensation for the distress.

The user behaviour has changed: in social distancing, people are more exposed to media, put off expensive purchases, and find new ways to occupy their time.

While some people are pulling the belt and stocking up a bit, others enjoy some spare sums, which they were unable to spend sitting at home.

In a situation as such, businesses competing online had to spend more on their ads because people are getting ads blindness, which means: I don’t feel like buying anything on Facebook now, just came in to say “hello, world”. And, with fewer conversions made the ads, in the end, getting more costly.

#1. What website-owners need to do to earn more users?

That’s it for being captain obvious, the question is:

If I am a retailer (or a service provider, or something that relies on online marketing) what should I do actually?

You’ve got to stay cool-headed and not to flush down budgets thoughtlessly.

#2. SEO vs PPC

Search engine optimization is a must-have at all times. Organic traffic comes to you from search engines when users look for keywords with a certain idea in mind, and your site serves this intent (and the search engine knows it).

Basically, you optimize your content and meta tags with keywords, optimize your URLs, ensure great on-page experience, gain valuable backlinks – and here you go! Sit and enjoy the audience flowing like fish from Google.

Pay-per-click, or paid search, is an advertising campaign when a platform like Google, or Facebook, or Bing, or whatsoever delivers your paid ad to the audience that they deem relevant.

It doesn’t matter whether you are a large wholesaler or a small self-run business: if you advertise in the niche, you will appear in Google Ads in the first line, even higher than the first organic search.

#3. When to run your advertising campaign?

First, make sure that you’ve exhausted all free channels to deliver your message to the target audience. So, SEO comes first.

Second, pick your best time for ads campaign. It is unlikely to have a successful online sales campaign in summer, unless you sell ice cream, of course.

There is hardly any significant influence of PPC on SEO. There can be some positive impact of SEO on PPC when users find your ads relevant and finally enjoy it instead of considering it annoying.

There can also be a negative effect when PPC cannibalizes your SEO. Which means you don’t need an advertising campaign for your top-ranking keywords that anyway bring you essential traffic.

#4. Tips for SEO optimization

4.1. Check your level of optimization.

If you are using a custom-tailored WordPress theme, you will find pretty much information right in the admin panel. Check for broken links, missing pages, duplicate content.

For a more professional approach, try the free SEO audit tool from Website Auditor [review here] with its powerful on-page optimization data.

4.2. Optimize your content with keywords.

There are dozens of free keyword research tools, from Google Autosuggest, Keyword Finder, or Rank Tracker.

For example, you can use Rank Tracker [review here] as a YouTube keywords tool: optimizing titles, descriptions, and tags of your video with keywords will boost it drastically.

4.3. Discover your competitor strategies.

With the help of Rank Tracker, you can find competitor keywords that rank well and embed them into your content.

You can borrow some of their tactics to win their backlinks and audiences. And you can track your most valuable keywords, whether they rank up or down in SERPs. Yes, that’s the battle in Google, no offence meant.

#5. Tips for advertising

5.1. Target your audiences accurately.

Do not forget that practically every platform allows fine-tuning your ads to be visible to the right person. Use Google Analytics to analyze your audience, and think of your immediate consumer. Consider sex, age, location, the day, and even the time of day when to show the ad to the person.

5.2. Use Google Ads A/B testing

You should use Google Ads A/B testing to check which advertising template performs better. Vary your titles, images, call-to-action-buttons, and finally, you will learn to make your ads remarkable.

5.3. Use keyword tools to optimize your ads.

Try the Google Keyword Planner tool that estimates the commercial value of this or that keyword.

5.4. Think the added value for the user

Researchers say that users expect brands to inform them somehow of developments in the situation of the pandemic. However, this isn’t just carrying news – the topic comes from every mobile phone, earplug, and vent exit.

Think about what additional value you can give because of the situation.

Maybe, you can offer a discount or partner program for someone affected?

Or you’ve invented an effective delivery scheme? Or you’ve found a convenient online platform, helping your services? Spread the news, probably it will help someone else.

5.5 Make your ads emotional and comforting.

And this is not only because laughter sells. Again, the situation of distress makes people more sensitive. Offer something encouraging and warm, people will appreciate it.