5 Ways You Can Strengthen Your Event Business During Coronavirus
The event industry has been one of the hardest hit by the Coronavirus pandemic, with nearly 100% of events either rescheduled or canceled. The first few weeks of the pandemic have been busy for all of us as we’ve handled our clients’ needs and reworked finances, all while taking care of our loved ones.
Now that we’re a little farther along, some of you have found that you have a lot more time on your hands, and I've been getting questions about what floral and event design businesses should be doing now.
Here are my top suggestions for putting your creativity to work in fortifying the health of your business during this unexpected time.
Photo by Larissa Cleveland
1. Review Your Contracts
As the Coronavirus has impacted the events you had on your schedule, you may be realizing that you’re missing some important contract language regarding payments, deposits, cancellations and rescheduling. When was the last time you reviewed your client contracts? Many business owners don’t give them a second thought once they are created, but a regular review of your legal documents is always a good idea.
How have your contracts been holding up in our current world events?
Are there changes you would like to make to your cancelation or rescheduling policies?
Have there been any big shifts in your business over the last few years that are not properly reflected in your contracts?
Work with an attorney to give your contracts a once-over and to be sure they are in great shape for the future. Don’t forget other important documents like employment agreements and NDAs!
2. Tune-Up Your Website
Your website is one of the most important pieces of your business marketing, but updating it often falls by the wayside. This is a great time to give your website a tune-up to be sure it’s reflecting your business as it is now, and not as it was when your website was first built. You would be amazed at what a difference some quick updates can make!
Update your portfolios with photos from recent events and remove old photos that look outdated or don’t represent your current standard of work.
What is the user experience like when someone visits your website? Is the content well organized? Is it clearly labeled? Are your products, services and contact information easy to find? Try to look at the site from your ideal client’s point of view and make sure you’re speaking to their needs and experience.
Be sure your site is press-ready, especially if you show up on the first page of Google. Editors are always looking for top-quality, expert resources so make it easy for them to reach out to you! Set up a press page once you have 3 or more press mentions and be sure to include a media resources area with the ability to download your logo, headshot, bio and any relevant press releases.
Is your website mobile responsive? Use Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test Tool to quickly check! The majority of internet browsing now happens on mobile devices so having a site that works well and looks great on small screens is a must!
This one seems obvious, but does your website have any broken links or typos? It can be hard to find these on your own site since you’re so familiar with its content, but small mistakes can easily slip through the cracks. Try teaming up with a colleague or business owner friend to proofread and link check each other's websites, or use a free tool like Grammerly to catch typos or grammar errors you’re not seeing.
3. Find Efficiencies
Are there parts of your business’s workflow that take longer than they should? Maybe there are processes that you have been meaning to improve for ages but just never have the time? This is a good opportunity to review your business systems for bottlenecks and make things more efficient for the future.
Here are some places to take a look:
Inquiry responses and sales email templates
New client on-boarding
Automations using your CRM or marketing email platform
Blogging and social media calendars
Following up with and marketing to past clients
Staying connected to partners in the industry
4. Learn Something New
Even if you have been in business for over 30 years like I have, the learning never ends! There are always new skills you could learn to help your business thrive. Here are some resources for great online business education for the event industry:
Pinterest Marketing - Cara Chace
Entrepreneurship & Creativity - CreativeLive
Business Planning & Finances for the Event Industry: Sage Wedding Pros
PR for your Wedding Business: OFDCollective
SEO for your Wedding Business: Sara Dunn SEO
My new online course - Eddie Zaratsian Masterclass: The Business of Luxury Floral & Event Design recently launched and it covers all kinds of business and design topics that I wish I had known when I was starting my career.
5. Rest and Renew Your Creativity
All work and no play isn’t good for the soul of any creative business owner. Find ways to enjoy your time off, even in the face of worry and stress. When business comes back it will come roaring back and downtime will once again feel like a foreign concept. Give yourself moments to play, have fun, make art for art’s sake. Rest and renew the creativity that led you to start your business in the first place. You, and your business, will be healthier for it in the long run.
Although the event industry is facing difficult times I can still see our entrepreneurial strength and creativity shine through everyday. In recent weeks we’ve come together for support, encouragement and great ideas, both in 1-on-1 conversations and in large online gatherings. It’s clear to me that the resourcefulness we bring to our clients is the same brilliance that we can apply to our own businesses as we all move forward!
Stay safe and take care of yourselves, We will get through this together!
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