Over the past year, the pandemic has posed many challenges for businesses everywhere. Small businesses have been hit hard at times, given that losing a customer or a single deal can have a major impact on their operations.
And some health-tech and healthcare IT solutions startups have been dealing with a looming fear that their sales will falter as organizations hold back on extra spending during these tight budget times.
However, the pandemic has led to the prosperity of many Health-tech and healthcare IT companies, by changing some strategies, which I will mention in this article:
5 Practices For Your Small Tech Business To Thrive During The COVID-19 Pandemic
Here, I summarized five key points that small tech companies may find helpful:
1- Don’t panic
It’s natural to feel fear and panic about your company’s health during these turbulent and volatile times.
There are so many unanswered questions and worst-case scenarios to consider: What if specialized technology and software are not at the top of organizations’ concerns right now? What if we lose major clients? Are we going out of work?
One way to gain some hope is to look at the facts. Fortunately, the truth is that many healthcare facilities are still actively looking for new technology solutions and products and are ready to purchase it, not only despite the pandemic but because of the pandemic.
The pandemic has accelerated digital transformation around the world to varying degrees, thanks to the fact that the number of people who work from home (remotely) has steadily jumped.
This has led to more and more reliance on technical systems and platforms that provide solutions to manage teams remotely.
2- Reframe your products and services
Now more than ever, it is imperative to show your products or services as a specific solution to a particular problem, and it is clear that the current problem is the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic for the business sector.
It is important to think about how your product or service offers a unique solution to the challenges that the pandemic is creating for healthcare facilities and/or healthcare consumers.
With that in mind, it is important to launch a digital marketing campaign for your health tech company solely about the solution that your product or service offers in light of COVID-19.
You can do this with new content marketing strategies, search engine marketing campaigns and social media campaigns, and maybe even new product (service) changes if you have the time and capacity.
3- Focus on website optimization for search engines and content marketing
Did you know that 75% of people never skip the first page of search results when they search for something on Google?
That’s because potential clients find companies (websites) that appear on the first page of search engine results more credible and reputable.
Given that 61% of internet users search for products online before purchasing, it is imperative for small tech companies to invest in efforts to improve their site’s visibility in search engines.
Not only does content marketing help your company’s website rank higher in search engines like Google, it also represents an invaluable opportunity to show your company as an expert in its niche.
Your company can create lots of different types of content that can help optimize your site for search engines, such as blog posts, white papers, customer case studies, videos, webinars, and other types of content.
4- Take care of existing clients
If it is difficult to secure new sales deals during the pandemic, it is imperative for you to make sure that your existing customers are satisfied, and to make sure that they renew their existing products or buy others from your company.
Check with your customers to see how much they like the product (service) and if they have any questions.
Offer them free training and discounts on other services that you can provide. And create an incentive program that encourages current or former customers to write reviews to try their products on your website or on other review sites like Capterra, Google My Business, or Amazon.
5- Be patient and persistent
The selling process is usually a lot slower during a pandemic. Sometimes expectations that are close to buying are suddenly put on hold because a stakeholder has contracted the COVID-19 virus, for example, or interested buyers are forced to reassess their budget and come back to you. The list goes on and on.
However, this does not mean that the sale has completely stopped. Being patient and persistent while taking expectations into account can pay off in the long run.
Set reminders in your calendar to check-in with sluggish expectations every two weeks or monthly. Give them a chance to sign up for your company’s newsletter (if you don’t have one, now is the time to start this project) so they can stay up-to-date with the latest product offers and deals.
Another great way to recover distracted or skeptical expectations is to offer free trials or money-back guarantees.
This assures prospects that your company is confident in their product and wants them to have a good experience. Once potential customers get deep into the free trial, they often feel better about investing in the full product.
The Conclusion
Running a health-tech startup or a healthcare IT company during a global pandemic is daunting – there’s no doubt about that. Many of the same challenges will pose, but remember that your business is not straight for failure.
Technology has become an essential component of our work structures and lifestyles. If you can use some basic strategies to take advantage of this new reality, you may find that your health-tech startup or a healthcare IT company not only escapes the pandemic but finds new ways to grow.
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