pandemic – client k

Your Goals ARE Important

The world is a f*cked up place
right now.

There’s talk of a world war.
The pandemic continues to disable
or kill
people around us.
There are fires and floods
and a gazillion other things
happening.

What is the point
of building our businesses?
Do those goals and other goals matter?

Yes, they matter.
They matter to US.

We’re building businesses
and working toward our goals
because that’s important to us.

That’s one of the ways we’re changing
the world for the better.

And we have some control
over
the building of our businesses
and the achieving of our goals.

We have very little control
over
the other sh*t that’s happening
in this world.

Your goals ARE important.
Allocate time and energy and other resources
to achieving them.

Reduce Stress

The average adult
is extremely stressed.

According to the 2023
Stress In America report,
24% of adults
rated their stress
as extremely high
(compared to 19%
in 2019).

Stress levels are lower
for older people.

Only 9% of those aged 65+
feel extremely stressed.

In contrast,
34% of those aged 18 to 24
feel extremely stressed.

What does this mean
for business builders?

Our employees are likely
to be under a LOT of stress.

Our customers are also
likely looking for ways
to lower their stress levels.

If we can reduce stress
with our products, our services,
our management style,
we are more likely
to earn loyalty
from the people around us.

For Their Health

A buddy in the the travel business
told me
they are seeing an increase
in bookings for vacations
for ‘mental health reasons.’

The world is a mess.
People are under
a lot of stress due to that.

They are searching
for ways
to decrease that stress.

Does your product/service
decrease stress?

Does it offer an escape?
Does it take some of the workload
off people?
Does it make their lives easier?

Stress that
in your marketing material.

Encourage prospects
to buy your products/services
‘for their mental health.’

There’s a growing need
for that.

September 11th And The Normalizing Of Death

Mass death
has been normalized
during the pandemic.

Over a million Americans
have died
from COVID directly.

Doctors talk
about the death of the vulnerable
like it is nothing
that should be actively avoided.

It is no longer
a sad occurrence
for many people.
It is the cost
of doing business.

In the past,
I haven’t scheduled promotions
for my books (products)
before noon EST on September 11th
out of respect
for American customers.

This year,
I’m scheduling promotions
that morning.

I doubt I’ll receive
any complaints.

Mass death
has been normalized.

I don’t like that
AT ALL
but it IS reality.

Expectations have changed
and product marketing
should change also.

Starting A Business Has Always Been Hard

Starting a business
in today’s
pandemic, climate change,
and
fascist
stricken world
is
admittedly a challenge.

But starting a business
has NEVER been easy.

In one of my niches,
I started
before there was
a market for the niche.
I started with
a couple readers (customers)
and the same number
of competitors.

I would approach readers
one by one
in other niches
and sell them
on my niche
and my books.

Today,
the challenge is
the market for the niche
is TOO crowded.

But the market also
has quite a few readers (customers).
And I no longer have to convince
prospects
that the niche is worth trying.

Don’t allow
the challenges
of today’s business environment
to stop you
from making your dreams
a reality.

They CAN be overcome.
As different challenges
have been overcome
by others
in the past.

The Revival Of The Travel Agent

Four years ago,
many people declared
travel agencies to be
a dead business.

It was super easy
to book flights
and hotels
and other vacations
online.
There was no need
to pay a middle person
to handle that.

In today’s environment
of climate change
and pandemics,
wars
and strike actions,
that has all changed.

Many people would love
to pay extra
not to have to worry
about all of that.
They would pay
to have someone else
monitor situations
and quickly rebook travel
and accommodations.

The key words
there are quickly
and monitor.

But those two requirements
are made easier
with AI.
Alerts can be set up.
Alternatives can be offered.

Dead industries
aren’t always dead forever.

Consider basing a new business
on one of them.

Flexibility As A Selling Point

Yesterday,
I talked about how
the world is challenged right now
and flexibility will be
key to success
going forward.

Flexibility will also
be a key selling point
for products/services
going forward.

It WILL influence
more and more buying decisions.

Flexibility could look like…

Offering cancellation insurance.

Making it easy for customers
to rebook services.

Allowing customers
to change delivery times.

Giving customers
a credit
when they cancel.

Allowing customers
to switch from pick up
to delivery.

Accommodating customers
with last minute bookings
or changes.

Flexibility WILL be
a selling point.

Can you factor flexibility
into your product or service?

Flexibility Will Be Key

A loved one and I
were planning to go on vacation
soon.

This vacation will likely
be postponed
due to a strike.

We’ll be okay financially
as we had planned
for a possible delay.

We had thought that delay
would be
climate change
or pandemic (COVID or the next one)
related.

It was a strike,
something entirely different.

Flexibility will be key
to success
going forward.

Try to make your plans
as flexible as possible
AND
try to increase
your customers’ flexibility
when using
your products/services.

Things happen.
They will continue
to happen.
Plan for that.

Listen To The Warnings

A buddy
called me a doomer
a couple of days ago.
He said
he didn’t want to hear
any more negativity.

That’s fine.
I prefer not to talk
about possible challenges.
I would rather
talk about TV shows
and other trivial topics.

I shared those insights
because I’d feel guilty
if his already struggling business
failed
or he and his family suffered hardships
because I HADN’T warned him.

No one wants to tell you
bad news.
It is a total bummer
for the messenger.

We tell you bad news
because we care about you,
because we feel
you should know about it.

You don’t have to act on
these warnings.
But, at the very least,
listen to them.

It is a communication
of caring.

Change, Evolution And Survival

The entities
– businesses, species, other –
that survive
over time
change.
They evolve to shifting conditions.
They adapt to changes
in their environment.

This HAS to happen
or these changing environments
render them obsolete.
They go extinct.

What we’re seeing now
in the world
is more and more
people refusing to change.

They are refusing to adapt
to a changing climate.
They are refusing to
change their behavior
to survive a pandemic.

They are clinging to the past
and, if enough people do that,
humans WILL become extinct.

Business builders like you and I
are actively fighting that.
We are encouraging people
to change a little bit,
to try our new businesses.

And if they change that little bit,
they might change a little bit more.
That might make the difference
between the survival
and the extinction
of our species.

You’re adding value
to the world
with your new business.
Never doubt that.