It kind of feels like the world’s gone a bit crazy, hasn’t it?

People are fighting over toilet paper, the stock market has decided to take a plunge, and most worryingly, some experts are saying that peak panic might not even set in until May.

With small businesses everywhere feeling the devastating impact of the ongoing pandemic, many entrepreneurs and small business owners are struggling to figure out how to stay afloat during this time of crisis.

In the midst of all this confusion, I’ve been seeing a lot of businesses and marketers panicking and doing things like offering ‘coronavirus discounts’, or finding other ways to tie coronavirus into their marketing - some creatively, but others less so.

I’m not going to lie to you, it’s going to be a rough ride over the next few months at the very least.

But there is definitely a right and wrong way for you to go about taking advantage of the coronavirus pandemic. It is entirely possible for you to take advantage of the current pandemic in a way that actually supports your business and the people around you.

With that being said, let’s take a look at some of the ways you can positively take advantage of the current coronavirus pandemic:

Solve Problems. Don't Be One. Help a Fellow Entrepreneur Create Some Epic Content Learn How to Work From Home Upskill Like Crazy





Solve Problems. Don’t Be One.

You might have already seen the viral story that’s going around in recent days about the man from Tennessee who rented out a U-haul truck and travelled over 1,300 miles to purchase thousands of units of hand sanitizer, antibacterial wipes and masks with the explicit goal of selling them online at a huge mark-up.

Within a matter of days he was vilified online and accused of profiteering off the pandemic, had both his Amazon and eBay accounts suspended, and is currently being investigated for price gouging. Although it has been recently reported that the sibling duo will be donating all their inventory to the general public.

Local volunteers helping to remove items to be distributed to people across Tennessee. Image via NewsCenter ABC11

This is a classic example of what I’d consider a bad way to take advantage of the coronavirus pandemic.

Listen, I get it. On some level, I can even respect the ‘hustle’ behind it all. But is the short-term gain in profitability really worth the long-term consequences of such actions?

In the end, actions like these will inevitably cause more harm than good for the community at large, as well as to your own reputation. So I ask again: Is it really worth it?

Image via Choice

For small businesses and entrepreneurs, the real way to take advantage of the coronavirus is to find ways to solve problems that their customers and/or community might be facing.

Studies have shown that we react positively to companies and brands that choose to act altruistically in times of crisis. Adopting a policy of corporate social responsibility in a time like this will not only help the community around you, but perhaps more importantly, it will help you cultivate that all-important consumer trust and loyalty.

Take a step back. Think about what your customers really need right now.

Instead of offering 20% discounts, how about running a social media competition or giveaway for some Steam gift cards?

Instead of asking employees to donate their sick leave to each other, how about leading an initiative where employees go out and help their at-risk neighbors?

Instead of doing tone-deaf coronavirus-themed marketing, how about going directly to your customers and asking how you can help them?

The best way that businesses can take advantage of the coronavirus pandemic is simply to continue doing what you’ve always been doing: looking for creative ways to solve problems. Doing so will help you to insulate and protect the long-term survival of your business far more than any short-term profiteering will.

Love this post from Nadya Khoja, make sure to give her a follow! Image via Nadya Khoja





Help a Fellow Entrepreneur

With small business owners and entrepreneurs feeling the economic crunch from the coronavirus pandemic, many of us are wondering how we can possibly survive on our own as sales, profit and revenue continue to fall globally.

The short answer: you don’t have to do it alone.

While the entrepreneurial journey can often be a lonely one, don’t forget that there is a huge community of entrepreneurs and business owners out there that you can connect with. Right now you’re reading this article on LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional social network!

As a single individual, you naturally have limitations and weaknesses that you can’t overcome alone. As a group, however, you’ll be able to cover each other’s backs and help one other to continue growing.

Now, more than ever, is the time to reach out and help out a fellow entrepreneur. Not just for their sake, but for yours.

Although, perhaps in this case with less hand-holding. Image via CUInsight

Take a page out of Michael Lane’s (CEO and founder of Success Resources) book, and open yourself up to some joint venture opportunities with your fellow entrepreneurs..

Take a step back and seriously evaluate your industry right now. Are there any non-competitive brands out there that you can approach? I guarantee that there’s at least one brand out there with the exact same audiences as yours that you could be partnering up with right now.

Co-marketing is by far the obvious tactic to go for right now. A few years ago, Klientboost and Invoca formed a content partnership where Klientboost created a custom 94-page retargeting guide specifically for Invoca’s audience. In exchange, anyone who downloaded the eBook would automatically have their details shared with the other company.

It was an incredibly simple partnership, but one that was hugely successful as it brought in thousands of high-quality leads for each brand.

Image via Insane Growth

When it comes to joint ventures and partnerships, don’t be afraid to think outside the box. There are thousands, if not millions, of ways you can benefit from sharing your resources, expertise and capabilities with other businesses.

Perhaps there’s a local business out there who can help you fill that missing link in your supply chain. Maybe you can work on developing a new product together, or even offer each other’s audiences a complimentary product or service. The options are truly limitless.

Take advantage of the current situation by leveraging the hell out of your network. Your customers and your community will thank you for it.





Create Some Epic Content

With the current expert advice to self-isolate and self-quarantine in order to reduce the spread and threat of coronavirus, many people around the world are now finding themselves stuck at home with nothing to do.

Image via MarketWatch

As a content marketer myself, I can’t help but view this as a golden opportunity to create some epic content for your audience.

Already, we’re witnessing streaming services and content creators experiencing a dramatic rise in viewership, as more and more people look for ways to keep themselves entertained while quarantined.

According to a new report by Nielsen, we can expect a 60% increase in media consumption as we all hunker down.

If ever there was a time for you to publish that blog post, make that new video series, or start up a new podcast, now is the time to do it.

Right now you have the undivided attention of the world, and an audience that’s starving for content. Get to the forefront by creating content that you know your audience will love, and you’ll be staying at the top of their mind long after the crisis has passed.

It’s long been known that content is one of the key ways to develop customer loyalty and trust, as well as helping to establish your brand’s influence and authority.

Gong is already leading the charge by releasing timely and relevant content on their LinkedIn: they’ve started posting some behind-the-scenes updates on how their team is doing working from home, as well as hosting live online sales training for their community.

Image via Gong

Even if you don’t have the capacity or resources to create a whole bunch of epic content in a short amount of time, that still shouldn’t stop you from taking advantage of content marketing.

You can easily repurpose old content, or share other people’s content to get started. All you have to do is make sure that you’re constantly providing value to your audience.

For LinkedIn marketing expert and influencer Sally A Illingworth, the coronavirus hasn’t stopped her from engaging with her audience or posting new content. If anything, it’s even helping her connection with her audience to grow stronger than ever.

Image via Sally A Illingworth

But more than just posting some great content, don’t forget that this is also a prime opportunity for you to engage and connect with your community.

You probably have some free time on your hands now too, so why not put it to good use? You can take advantage of Gary Vee’s $1.80 strategy and start building a presence online, simply by leaving comments on other people’s posts, and actively engaging in discussions.

Image via Insane Growth

If the past week is any indication, a lot of people are going to be spending the majority of their time online over the next few weeks, at the very least.

It’s up to you to figure out how to capture their attention.





Learn How to Work From Home

With all the self-isolation going on, I can only imagine how tough it must be for those needing to suddenly adjust to working from home... Even more so if you’re a parent, and you’re scrabbling for creative ways to keep your kids entertained without risk to your personal sanity.

Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately?) I have no offspring to look after, so I won’t be touching any parenting advice with a ten-foot pole. However, I do highly recommend checking out this fantastic article and podcast episode on coronavirus and parents, from NPR.

But, children aside, I have largely been a remote worker for the past several years of my life - so I do have some advice to share getting you through the worst of working from home.

Image via Dave Gerhardt

When it comes to #WFH, I am a huge proponent of setting up the right ‘habit fields’ to help you maintain your productivity.

Coined by Jack Cheng, habit fields are all about manipulating the environment around you to help you develop and establish positive habits.

For example, I find it impossible to work in bed because my mind naturally associates my bed with sleeping and relaxation. On the flip side, if I hole myself up in the study, chances are it’ll be far easier for me to shift into ‘work-mode’, and smash out a bunch of tasks.

As you can see, however, my cat has absolutely no respect for my working space.

The key to taking advantage of habit fields is to associate a set of habits with a specific environment or item to make it easier to trigger the right mindset.

While it’s generally best to have a dedicated room or place for this, if you happen to live in a smaller space, you can craft habit fields around specific items instead.

Cheng gives his own example of having a specific chair (dubbed the ‘distraction chair’) that he sits in whenever he wants to procrastinate or unwind. As a space he’s specifically designated for the habit of procrastinating, he makes a firm point of never doing any work in that chair.

Similarly, a friend of mine has a specific pair of headphones that he only puts on when he’s working or doing something that requires his complete concentration. Not only does it help to put him in a productive mindset, but it’s also inadvertently become a signal to his coworkers that he’s in the middle of something and shouldn’t be interrupted.

Image via Made Simple Group

It can be difficult at first, but try your best at asserting a schedule and workspace that allows you to maintain your productivity. I promise it’s worth it.

Here’s another great article from NPR with 8 tips on how to make working from home work for you.





Upskill Like Crazy

Finally, the best way to take advantage of the coronavirus pandemic is to continue investing in your personal and professional development.

Unfortunately, in a time like this, there really isn’t any guarantee of job security - or if there’ll even still be a business waiting for you at the end of the road. I wish I could tell you there’s a way around it, but that’s the current reality of the situation.

And that is precisely why I strongly advocate you to use this time to polish your existing knowledge, or to even learn new skills entirely. Even though your job or business might not survive coronavirus, that doesn’t mean that you can’t continue growing as an individual.

At the very least, you should make it so that you can hit the ground running once the immediate crisis is over.

The great news is that there are hundreds of resources out there you can use to improve your knowledge and develop new skills. Some of my favorite resources include:

Startup Class by Sam Altman. Sam Altman is the former president of Y Combinator, and a personal investor/mentor to companies like AirBnB, Stripe, Instacart, Soylent and so much more. If you’ve ever so much as thought about starting your own startup, or just need a refresher, Altman has generously made available his full lecture series on how to start a startup, with 20 full-length video lessons featuring influential entrepreneurs like Ben Horowitz, Reid Hoffman, and Kevin Hale.

HubSpot Academy The go-to brand on all things inbound marketing, HubSpot also has an enormous library of free courses, covering essential marketing topics like Facebook marketing, content strategy, and even sales manager training. Better yet, each course is accredited, so completing a course will gain you a certification in that topic.

Design School by Canva. This has been my personal favorite of late, as I’ve always been keen to learn about graphic design, but have never had the chance to do so until now. While I’m a writer at heart, I’ve always felt that I needed to have at least an inkling of knowledge in graphic design to round out my marketer’s toolkit.

Digital Marketer Lab. Recently (and I mean literally just before I hit publish on this article), Digital Marketer announced that they’ll be making their entire suite of digital marketer courses free for the month of March. I’m personally a huge fan of Ryan Deiss and his team, and highly recommend that you check out their Paid Traffic Mastery and Optimization and Testing Mastery courses.

Of course, these are just a small handful of free resources out there that you can be taking advantage of.

Remember, investing in yourself is always priceless.





Key Takeaways

“You cannot control what happens to you, but you can control your attitude toward what happens to you, and in that, you will be mastering change rather than allowing it to master you.” - Brian Tracy

As business owners and entrepreneurs, it’s important to remind ourselves that there are ways to take advantage of the current coronavirus pandemic and help people at the same time. Let’s not forget that, at its most basic level, our mission is to change the status quo for the better.

To positively take advantage of the coronavirus pandemic, remember to:

Continue putting your customers first, and seriously think about how else you can be providing value to them.

Reach out to your fellow entrepreneurs to see how you can work together to overcome this crisis.

Double down on content marketing, as now is the time where people really crave high-quality content.

Carve out the right habit field for yourself so you can work from home without getting distracted.

Invest in your personal and professional development, as the skills and knowledge you gain will never fade.

What do you think of this article? How is your business positively taking advantage of the coronavirus pandemic? Let me know in the comments below!