GRA SSRO O TS MAR KETING
THREE WAYS TO MARKET DURING A PANDEMIC
By Miriam and Mike Risko
We all have marketing challenges on a regular day, but if someone had told us we would have to try to navigate marketing our small business during a global pandemic, we would have never believed it. And yet, here we are, eight months later, trying to make our way through these uncharted waters and stay afloat while marketing our music school and store. Our business, Mike Risko Music, is located in Westchester County, N.Y., one of the most hard-hit areas of the COVID-19 outbreak. In addition to worrying about the health and safety of our family and friends and how we were going to keep momentum going, we also had to come up with a plan to continue marketing our business and attracting new customers during what was about to be the darkest period of our professional lives. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo closed all non-essential businesses on March 22. We were already doing virtual lessons before the pandemic, so we quickly moved our entire lesson and education program online. Our main goal at that time was to make sure our current students were set up for their lessons, so we were primarily focused on lessons, which didn’t leave much time for marketing. Once reality had set in and we began to get used to our “new normal,” our creative juices began to flow again. We decided to take a positive approach to a very negative situation and adapt our marketing to this new changing landscape. Being faced with a disruption of this magnitude was going to really help us to get creative. So, we got to work with our team. We knew if we followed the general concepts of being flexible, creative and true to our business identity, we would be off to a great start. So how did we do this? Be flexible — The nature of this pandemic is that it is always changing. From one day to the next, no one is sure what is going to happen. Back in March, it seemed like we would be hiding in our homes forever, but every new day has brought a new development. We set up a marketing plan that has left the door open for changes, as we expect more things to go back to in-person and then possibly bounce back to remote. Pre-pandemic, we did mostly in-person lessons, but now we offer in-person, remote and a combo of both. However you market your program, keep that in mind 38
Mike and Miriam Risko show off custom face masks that promote their business and their band.
The Mike Risko Band demonstrates proper social distancing outdoors.
The Mike Risko Band performs singing telegrams at an assisted living facility on Mother’s Day.
The Riskos partner with a local dance instructor to promote their business via Zoom.
and think about what might be coming down the road. Now when we market, we are not just marketing one type of lesson, we are marketing three, which has increased business since we have so many options for people to choose from. Think ahead as you are marketing, and don’t just think about what you are offering today — think about how things may look a few months from now. Be creative — Now more than ever, your marketing efforts need to stand out. First, avoid any kind of hard sell (no one likes that approach anyway). We also believe traditional ads aren’t interesting and get passed over, so think of other creative ways to connect with your audience. We made Mike Risko Music masks, mask chains and hand sanitizers, which made for great social media posts that were clearly marketing our business, but not in an aggressive way. Also, make sure that your customers know you are still there and you are OK by creating online content that sends that message to your audience. We played a few socially distant gigs in the spring, and we were happy to share the pictures to show that we could still make music. Be yourself — Don’t change. During times like this, familiar is important. It is also important to be authentic and tell your story and share pictures. Everyone loves a good story, and this pandemic has created many new stories. Some even have silver linings. During the scariest part of the lockdown, we partnered with a local dance school down the street from us whose owner is also a Zumba instructor. We logged in on Zoom together. We played a song and he danced. We created a video that we all shared all over social media. Although it was only a one-minute video, it enabled us to partner with another local arts business, create connections with the community and let everyone know, without saying so, that we are still here waiting for them. It really hit the mark, and it was fun, too. Although there certainly are challenges to marketing during a global pandemic, there are many new opportunities to reach and connect with your community. Your community will appreciate all your efforts and will want to support you. We are looking forward to when the world goes back to normal and we will take all the new marketing lessons we have learned and continue to expand on them. Use this time to create something new and build back better! We would love to hear your pandemic marketing success stories! Email them to us at mail@ riskomusic.com. NOVEMBER 2020