social media ROSS HEWITT
‘Be Noisy & Visible’ With difficult times ahead, Nursery Today’s social media expert Ross Hewitt gives his advice
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ell, I’m more used to offering advice when a computer virus strikes…but this…jeez! It might be the case that by the time I have finished writing this and sent it off to our beloved editor that everything might have shifted and changed again, but let’s press on and have a think about how to respond to these uncertain days. We can start with a few facts… there are millions of scared people in the UK right now. There are hundreds of thousands of
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businesses that are on the brink of collapse and this is fuelling the fear in the population about job security and money. Combine all of this with that ticking time bomb feeling lots of us have about ‘when will I get ill?’ and it’s a right old pickle jar we find ourselves in. Fear can be a great motivator if you let it in, spend some time with it and listen and understand the effect it is having on you, your team and your customers. If you simply let fear be a driver then you will make a whole heap of reactionary mistakes which will rock your world and perhaps leave it damaged for a very long time. Take some comfort in the measures introduced by the government, whether it be no business rate payments, assistance with salaries for people you would have otherwise needed to lay off, personal mortgage ‘holidays’ and the other measures that will have been introduced after I have finished writing this. Try and put that big bowl of soup down and stop drinking the panic juice because if you let that consume you then your business will suffer badly. Focus on staying visible and staying helpful. When recessions have hit in the past (and this is bigger than one of those) the businesses that have suffered the most are the ones that run for cover. Do not hide; do not stop spending time and money on advertising and marketing and close your doors only as a super serious last resort (let me clarify that; you might have to stop allowing the public in but you can keep working). If you are running an independent nursery store, then you are most definitely an essential service.
N o cu rrently pregn ant coup les can take th e decis ion to po stp on e th e birth for a few month s until all of th is ‘blow s over ’. They st ill need th e advic e th at give th em w hen thyoeyu co me into your sto re an d th st ill need essentia l ey produc ts such as ca r sea ts an d stroller s.
I’m not sure if the government will ultimately class you as that, but you are. If you have children yourself then cast your mind back to your first pregnancy…it’s really scary. No currently pregnant couples can take the decision to postpone the birth for a few months until all of this ‘blows over’. They still need the advice that you give them when they come into your store and they still need essential products such as car seats and strollers. You might not be able to put a physical arm around their shoulder while we keep apart, but you can do it intellectually. If footfall has already suffered or if you know you will have to stop allowing customers in then take a look at your shop floor right now and work out where you can move
things around and create a pop-up video studio. It doesn’t have to be a Hollywood setting; just find some space, tidy it up and start planning the product demonstrations you’ve always known you needed to film but never got around to. Your website and social media accounts are where you can live and breathe as a business right now. Let’s go back to thinking about that pregnant couple – under normal circumstances, what questions do you always get asked? What key