2020 was definitely a transformative year. From changing consumer demands to ceasing business as usual… the pandemic forced the hands of many to digitalise. This, in turn, brought about a change in consumer behaviour and the way businesses operated. Moving forward, businesses have to keep nimble to adapt to the new normal where transactions will take place largely via cashless means. This holds true even for small business in the year to come and beyond.
To aid small enterprises this year, our team at CardsPal thought it might be helpful to share some of the tips and avenues that we use.
1. Manage your Finances
A good example will be to digitalise your finances using platforms like Aspire. Aspire helps modern business owners with a set of financial tools to manage their cashflow and working capital. They provide quick loans, low-cost international transactions and even provide cashbacks on marketing and SaaS spends. To simplify mundane financials, Aspire Business account has definitely been useful. Automating everyday business processes allows for entrepreneurs to allocate more time on their business which may result in bigger impact.
2. Get your name out there
To a business, exposure is everything. Getting in front of customers on multiple channels can pique interest in potential customers. It helps brands gain trust in this virtual world. Therefore, small enterprises should join the hustle and promote their business on every digital channel possible. For e-commerce entrepreneurs, this includes marketplaces and platforms like Lazada, Qoo10, ShopBack or Carousell. For F&B outlets, you can list your store on foodpanda, deliveroo or GrabFood for added exposure. Once your business has garnered a loyal following, one can think of alternative modes of delivery or tactics.
Another channel would be CardsPal for Business. CardsPal is a deals discovery mobile app which helps consumers search for the best deals in town. Users can find deals via location or through categories like food, travel and lifestyle. By listing their deals on CardsPal, small businesses will be able to reach out to more customers who are searching for good deals. In addition, deals are a great way to encourage trial as it reduces the fear of buying an inferior product or from a new brand. Singaporeans are known to love a good deal. What’s more? To help small businesses gain greater outreach during this (Covid-19) period, CardsPal is currently offering complimentary* listing. Check out CardsPal for Business.
*Listings are complimentary for a limited time only.
3. Collaborate
Nothing is more powerful than small business joining hands to help one another. Collaboration is key for survival for a new or small business in both good and bad times. Having your peers vouch for your craft is the ultimate validation. Some methods of collaboration include, leveraging on each other’s social media to cross-promote, co-creating a collection together or sharing resources in terms of logistics assets and physical space in order to maximise efficiency or capacity. Collaboration can come in many forms but it’s best when it is partnership that truly benefits each customer.
4. Be obsessed with your customers
There’s no better time to get re-acquainted with your customers than down time. If this pandemic has taught us anything, it’s the importance of being customer obsessed. To truly be fool proof, one has to be constantly putting the customer’s needs first. Without understanding the pain points of a customer, it’ll be difficult to innovate and adapt to their changing behaviour. In a world of more is more, we need to evolve as quickly as our customer’s taste, wants and expectations.
Some tools that can help with understanding your customers better includes, social listening tools like Google Alert, Hoot Suite and Buffer. Other platforms include rating and reviews on your business’ Facebook and Google page. We recommend speaking directly to your customer to truly grasp the essence of choosing you.
Conclusion
At the core of it, the ability to survive usually translates to one’s perceived value. Digitalisation helps amplify that. In the same vein, tough time don’t last, but tough (and evolving) businesses do.
