The World Health Organization has declared the Coronavirus Disease 2019 or COVID-19 as a global pandemic. People with confirmed cases of COVID-19 spike up every day, as well as the number of people who died from it. This outbreak results in a devastating impact on all sectors of the world, economic sectors being one of them.
Business owners are struggling with how to make a compromise with their clients in these grueling times. And while the number of confirmed cases continues to rise, graver effects of COVID-19 are to be expected. This article lists down how COVID-19 affected businesses all over the world and how they can cope up with this situation.
Loss of Revenue
The COVID-19 outbreak is difficult for businesses that are just starting out. Business owners may not be able to get their investment back anytime soon or until the situation gets better in the next few weeks or months. Based on reports, small business owners are most affected by this global pandemic.
According to Anushka Chrisitan of Glamaty, her business just began to gain more attention and momentum when COVID-19 happened. It was a difficult decision for her to cancel all her haircut appointments, events, and special classes.
Not only small businesses are affected. Freelance entrepreneurs also lost their sources of income as well. Madison Jaye of MadisonJaye.com shared that her speaking engagements are affected as this is one of her main businesses. She also said that the outbreak doesn’t just affect her, “[but] it also affects my bloggers who are based all around the globe and receive percentages off of everything they sell, which is unfortunate because there are some bloggers who have used the platform to help children across the world, including orphanages in Africa.”
Communication Changes
Customer service is one of the most important teams in your business. It is the direct connection between your customers or clients and your business. But with the rapid spread of COVID-19, safety measures must be observed by all businesses. Some businesses have already instructed their employees to work from their respective homes.
Changes in communication are now addressed to clients or customers. Businesses provide alternatives on how they can reach their customer service representatives. However, it will still be a challenge to both businesses and customers because the response will cause a delay as representatives need to attend to urgent matters about COVID-19.
Unemployment Rate Increase
Enhanced community quarantines travel bans, and social distancing is implemented in almost all countries. As pointed out earlier, these measures will cause a loss of revenue in businesses, and employers and business owners would have no choice but to lay off workers. Waiters, ushers, sales representatives, hotel staff, et al. are at risk of losing their jobs because all establishments are closed during this period.
In the United States, certain economists have predicted that 8.7 percent or about 8.5 million jobs would be lost by the summer. The bigger problem is that recovery from this global pandemic is not going to be fast and easy.
Do More with Outsourcing
In light of these events, some small businesses are thinking of strategies on how to keep their business alive during the time of the pandemic. They maximize online platforms to gain reach from their consumers and promote alternatives that have almost the same set-up as going to events and classes. However, it takes much of your time if you do the work alone in getting a wider reach online.
One of the best ways to run a business is by outsourcing parts of your business processes. This move is suitable for businesses because:
- It is cost-effective.
- It increases your productivity.
- It increases flexibility.
- It helps you focus on your business’ core competencies; and
- It grants you access to experts and the latest technologies.
If you think outsourcing is a good plan but aren’t sure where to begin, Prominent Outsource can help you with your woes!
Prominent Outsource is a Philippine-based virtual assistant outsourcing company that helps businesses reach out to their customers online through social media management and digital marketing. This company also provides for other administrative tasks such as bookkeeping. Prominent Outsourcing is one of the best ways to help your business flourish without leaving the comforts of your home.
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