Featured Archives » BLCK BRND

Communicate Your #Covid Christmas Plans

As the lifting of lockdown 2.0 looms, businesses around Ireland are asking themselves the same question: how and when can we reopen safely and successfully? Knowing the right time to reopen will depend largely on your industry and location, however, knowing and understanding your customers’ concerns can help inform your strategy. Communicating your solutions and strategies is key.

Marketing is all about knowing your customers, which is why it is crucial that you keep them in mind as you plan your reopening. Being authentic in your messaging will show customers how much you value them and their input. It’s inevitable that they will have plenty of questions right now, so here is how to address their concerns about the pandemic and the future of your business this Christmas.

What You Can Do Right Now

Maintaining consistent and relevant communication with customers while planning your reopening will be the key to maintaining their health, happiness and the profitability of your business. Until you have a clear date on which to reopen, your customers’ immediate needs should be at the forefront of your policy. Consider what would benefit them most right now, whether that’s a reduced service, discounts on essential products, or just regular updates.

Anything you can do to alleviate their concerns or meet their needs now, will help retain their loyalty for your eventual relaunch. A good way to get a handle on your customers’ needs is simply by listening. Ask your customers what they expect from your business in the coming weeks. Emails, surveys or a simple social media post can be used to gather ideas on what precautions your business can take upon reopening.

Prioritise Your Digital Communications

Once you understand what your customers need from you, you can plan towards a phased return. A return can look like a lot of things, ranging from increased deliveries to click and collect or to a fully reopened brick and mortar location. There is no one size fits all solution and you’ll need to form a plan that is unique to your situation, while also flexible enough to respond to changing guidelines. It’s important to remember that while some customers will be eager to ease up on social distancing practices others remain reluctant. Having a strong communication plan in place will help your business cater to all its customers.

People are more likely to engage with businesses they feel confident in, so by taking the time to empathetically address customers from all perspectives you can maximise business as you move towards reopening. Share exactly how they can safely do business with you right now, and the steps you will take towards ensuring their safety upon reopening. By sharing detailed information on social media, your website and through real-time communications, you can alleviate any uncertainty around the customer experience.

Stay Flexible

Reopening will be more than a restart; it will be a new era for your business. Businesses won’t immediately return to normal operations and what your customers may want from you going forward will not be the same as it was before the pandemic. Therefore, it is crucial that your operations, leaders and workforce remain flexible. Keep all social distancing options such as kerbside pick up, video calls, and deliveries operational for those who need it as you move towards a full reopening. Try to use this new opportunity to grow and evolve your business. Now is a great time to rethink and improve operations. Working on immediate challenges may even lead to better ways of doing business, the key is to embrace change and go where customer demand takes you.

On Reopening

Once it is time to reopen you should adopt a ‘people first’ plan of action. It is not enough to mitigate health and economic risks, you must also help customers and employees to feel emotionally secure about this next step. Start by detailing step-by-step what your new in-person customer experience looks like on social media, on your website, and on storefronts. This will help prepare customers and workers for the ‘new normal’.

Make a list of questions and concerns that you will need to address, communicate the answers online and brief employees on the correct in-person response. Announce your opening including a date, the updated hours, safety precautions and a contact number on all your communication channels. Lastly, do not forget to update your Google My Business profile.

For further advice on ways to let your customers know you’re reopening look to our other articles.

Get in Touch

The secret to a safe and successful reopening is putting your customers first. Practice clear communication and remain flexible to reinvention with the help of a professional marketing strategy. Please get in touch with BLCK BRND today for a creative and cost-effective marketing plan to boost your business recovery.

Get In Touch, Today…

Time To Up Your Takeaway/Delivery Service

At the moment, under COVID restrictions, many retail and restaurant companies are looking into food delivery either as their new primary or sole source of income. It makes sense, especially under social distancing restrictions and government lockdown, Version 2.0, Level Whatever.

However, there’s a few things you’ll need to consider if you’re going to find success in a very competitive market. In this article, we’ll outline a few of the things you’ll need to not just facilitate food deliveries, but to establish a customer-base among a captive audience and make a return on your investment.

Taking Orders

Processing a takeaway order isn’t as simple as it used to be. Gone are the days when you just needed a phone line, a pen, and some paper – companies like Just Eat and Deliveroo have normalised online booking, raising the standards and leaving telephone-only restaurants behind. Getting on Deliveroo, Just Eat, Uber Eats and so on is an obvious choice. Not only is this the preferred method of purchase for many customers, but it exposes you to new customers who might be browsing for a new experience, rather than looking for their already-established local.

However, taking orders through your website is another underused and undervalued option. Firstly, these third-party delivery apps can take a significant cut of your sale, anywhere from 20-30%. This is a significant cost, especially in an industry where margins are already fine. Taking orders directly means you can avoid these fees entirely. The benefits don’t stop there though.

Having an ordering system on your site also makes things as easy as possible for customers who might have Googled your business for more information or to see your menu, creating a smooth and effective sales funnel. There are a lot of options from third-party plugins to custom-coded solutions. Our web development team will listen to your exact needs and budget, and suggest a solution which is perfectly tailored for your business.

Getting the Word Out There

Whether you’re a new business or established and offering a new service, letting customers know you’re delivering is vital to success. Luckily, there are lots of effective ways to do so:

Print

Although the internet has changed the food delivery industry, print still has a fundamental place. Printing off menus and posting them through the doors of every home in your service area remains effective. Plus, because of the way print prices scale, getting 5000 menus or leaflets doesn’t cost much more than getting 100!

Social Media

As with all modern business, social media will play a fundamental role in your marketing plan. Through targeted advertising, you can make sure you pop up on the newsfeeds of everyone in your service area, without wasting money on those outside of it. Furthermore, once you’ve built an audience of established customers and would-be customers, you can post pictures of all your most tempting dishes and deals to make sure there’s only one place they are going for their Friday night meal. Social media for restaurants and takeaways is more simple than most industries in terms of getting attractive content, but it’s also incredibly competitive. Make sure your campaign is in the right hands to ensure a return on investment and speak to our digital marketing team today.

Email

Email marketing is only an effective option for established companies who have built up an email database, but if you’re a new company it’s something you should start working on straight away. Getting an email into the inbox of a customer at the right time will make sure you’re the chosen destination for their weekend order – especially if you attach an offer they can’t refuse!

Brand Your Niche

If you live in a fairly urban area and search for nearby takeaways, you’re going to find countless options. Another issue is that a customer will typically find one that they can rely on and stop trying elsewhere. The question is, how do you make sure they pick you? It’s all about finding your niche. Of course, you may be providing a type of food that doesn’t have a lot of direct like-for-like competition, but you’re still just one place in a sea of other restaurants and food providers.

Other than word-of-mouth, branding is the only thing that will set you apart from competitors. Let’s face it, the majority of takeaway branding hasn’t changed since the 1980s, and it’s a great time to be offering a modernised, sleek, and up-to-date option for customers looking for something that bit more special. Your logo, design, printed materials, website, social media content, and anything else with your name on it is what will set you apart from the competition – our designers have helped a number of food and drink brands, from producers to the service industry, to stand out. Speak to us today about how we can help your restaurant to shine.

There Has Never Been a Better Time!

The vast majority of businesses have suffered severely during recent disruption, but takeaway and food delivery services have thrived. Now is the time to invest in marketing to make sure your business doesn’t just survive, but thrives during lockdown. It’s up to you to organise your kitchen and drivers for a smooth service, but BLCK BRND will take care of the marketing giving you one less thing to worry about. Get in touch and let’s have a chat – there are enough customers out there, and we’ll make sure they find you.

It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like #Xmas2020

The holiday shopping season is typically the busiest and most profitable time for many retail businesses. From Halloween to New Year’s Eve is when most E-commerce stores make half or more of their annual revenue. It is therefore crucial that retailers start planning now as we could be facing a very different peak period this year. 2020 has been unprecedented in many ways but here is how your E-commerce business can properly prepare for high season.

Key Dates

The first step in properly planning for peak season is to know what dates you are planning for. Festivities kick off on Halloween (October 31st) and the Christmas rush soon follows after. While Halloween is not a key Christmas shopping date, if your products align with the celebrations (think make-up, home decor or fashion) then this is the perfect time to kick your marketing and seasonal discounts into high gear. The same applies to Thanksgiving (26 November) while not directly relevant to Irish brands and consumers, if your business has customers across the pond you may want to factor it into your plan of action.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday haven’t always been significant in the Ireland, however, in recent years the last week of November has been gaining an increasing foothold outside of the United States. The growing trend is making November a much more important month for consumer spending in general. Rapid E-commerce adoption in 2020 means that for Cyber Monday discounts will be more compelling than in previous years. To stay competitive opt for category-specific sales, have a promotional strategy and optimise your site performance. If you require responsive, user-friendly web design or an innovative, cost-effective marketing plan get in touch today. At BLCK BRND, we can work quickly to ensure you are all set to take advantage of the extended shopping period.

Stay Competitive

Peak shopping season comes to a head from Christmas Day right through to New Year’s Eve. In the Ireland Boxing Day is when businesses would typically offer their biggest discounts. This is prime time to boost sales and attract new customers for the year ahead, however as competition will be fierce, brands need to shift to smarter discounting. By personalising, revising and implementing more precise offers in real-time, your business is more likely to survive uncertainty and thrive in 2021. For help in protecting your profitability, planning intelligent discounting and optimisation reach out to our team of creative and technical problem solvers.

Be Prepared to Scale

Shopping habits have permanently changed in lockdown. Since COVID 19 began there has been a huge growth in online shopping in Ireland resulting in a long term shift in consumer behaviour. Two-thirds of adults now say they will continue their current levels of digital spend (66%) while 26% said they would increase their level of spending online even once the restrictions are lifted. We are now entering a new era for retailers, so E-Commerce stores need to be prepared to scale if they are to succeed. Invest in scalable technologies to prepare for spikes in online business and hone your supply chain ahead of time. Take the time now to identify potential inventory problems and obstacles to conversion so that you can leverage this shift in consumer spending.

Targeted Campaigns

Many E-commerce stores now drop snippets of their sales long before Black Friday. To prevent a frenzy come November, start building your campaigns now. Use social media, email platforms and social advertising to your advantage. Offer teasers, early access, price alerts and push notifications to keep customers interested. Aim to be consistent and develop your multi-channel offerings to ensure that you are creating a genuinely helpful experience for your customers. Lastly, don’t neglect your post-purchase marketing, this will help with customer retention going into 2021. Now schedule and sit back and relax as the hard is done.

Contact Us

As the country emerges from lockdown, customers will remember the brands that provided a seamless shopping experience and sought to create a real connection with their communities. No matter what your E-commerce store sells, there are always opportunities for stabilisation and growth, even in a pandemic. Don’t be afraid to speak to your customers directly, ask them what they would like to see from your store and work to fulfil their expectations. For a smarter, more personalised marketing strategy this holiday season browse our range of social media and web services today.

The Future for Events

Future exhibitions and events won’t be able to solely rely on attendance, they will need to adapt if they want to target and attract the lucrative ‘virtual attendee’.

During these challenging times of lockdown and social distancing, more and more businesses that are dependent upon exhibitions & conferences – whether as venues, organisers or exhibitions contractors (and, of course not forgetting exhibitors themselves) – are now looking at hosting and branding virtual events in order to maintain profile and business continuity as well as expanding their organisation’s audience and reach.

Of course, this is not new tech that’s been created because of the lockdown, many successful business events are already run online and have done so for quite some time. However, lockdown has forced more companies to recognise the flexibility of the virtual event. From the local networking event hosted on Zoom through to the international conference that provides access to downloadable content, streaming podcasts, video training, etc.

Make An Exhibit Of Yourself

No doubt, long after lockdown is over and business & social interaction once again becomes socially acceptable, real world exhibitions will become commonplace once more. inevitable, however, you will see these events are also being set up and made available for virtual attendance too. And, the ‘virtual attendee’ will become the new target audience for event marketers.

More and more seminars & conferences will be live streamed as standard, with speakers presenting from remote locations and virtual audience participation & engagement through digital Q&A and break-off rooms.
Attendees will be able to attend multiple seminars at one time should they wish via existing multiscreen solutions.

Physical attendance at an exhibition itself is inevitably going to change, and you would expect exhibitors to set up ways in which they can attract the virtual visitor. For example, via on-stand access via video link. Those who choose not to attend in person can still visit the show and, specifically visit each stand via the video link.

This means that whilst physical footfall will reduce (which will, in turn, lead to an increased demand for smaller venues), virtual accessibility will open the up the event to a wider, global audience. Attendee numbers via virtual footfall will dramatically increase.

With the visitor able to attend the show virtually, it is expected that attendance time per visitor will significantly decrease with many just virtually ‘popping into’ the show for a moment. Here they can attend that single conference or meet with a single exhibitor, and then leave.

Of course, for those events that have a fee to attend, this can be applied to virtual attendance too. Either a one-off fee or, perhaps better set at a cost per minute. The longer someone attends, the higher the value.

But this then incentivises visitors to stay for shorter periods and not hang around like they may if they were physically attending an event. And that means lower revenues.

Revenue From Virtual Visitors

This is where premium content comes into play. The virtual event can be set up to provide premium access (eg. a ‘closed’ seminar or deeper access to an exhibitor, such as a ‘meet the buyer’ session). Add on ‘products’ like these can be bought through a click of a button, thereby increasing event profitability.

In terms of marketing, those creating exhibition websites will need to adapt to the virtual attendee – adding links to multiple exhibitor hall cameras as well as to each individual camera (or ipad) set up on each exhibitor’s stand. The virtual attendee will get to see what is on offer on each stand, to meet with the company contacts and to quickly get access to the premium content (via pupil movement perhaps).

All About The Metrics

This all leads to much improved metrics. Because virtual attendance is digital, event organisers and marketers will have access to a wider range of data than ever before: how many people ‘virtually attended’, who attended, how many stands did they ‘visit’, how long did they stay on a stand, what information did they take, etc.

And all of this and more, is highly valuable to the exhibitor who can then modify and personalise their brand message to deliver exactly what their audience actually requires.

The future for exhibition agencies and especially design agencies will also focus on branding virtual events and ensuring that the virtual experience provides the same (if not a better) brand experience as it would if you were there. For both the event as a whole and also the individual exhibitor. Ensuring they have ongoing brand visibility will be the key to virtual event marketing.

Ask Us For Help

As a branding agency with many years experience in branding exhibition venues & events, the future for virtual attendance certainly looks interesting. When exhibitors, conference organisers and marketers have access to the global visitor as well as the specific virtual attendance metrics, it is going to be an a very exciting time for exhibitions.

We certainly already have the capabilities and infrastructure for events to also become virtual events now. But, whether they will, we have yet to see.