Your Guide to Long-Term Business Growth Amid the COVID-19 Crisis of 2020


For any business, the events of 2020 have been a challenge and a surprise. Long term and short term business plans were shaken up as the country, not to mention the world, came to something of a halt as COVID-19 took hold.

The UK’s biggest department store Debenhams fell into administration only a few months ago, with huge labels such as Laura Ashley announcing permanent closures of major stores around the country. For the smaller boys in the game, for those running startups or small to medium sized businesses, the weight of the pandemic is still on their shoulders – and could be for some time to come.

But it’s time to look at the solution, rather than the problem. As Terry Goodkind once said: “If your mind is full of ways you can lose, you can not possibly focus on ways you can win.”. 

So let’s take a look at some real and effective ways you can continue to grow your business amid the Covid-19 crisis of 2020. 

Be ready to bin your strategy

An unstable economy and a vast space of the unknown in front of us – it’s hardly a surprise that many business owners feel tempted to cling to their strategies as a means of stability. But this would likely be a mistake. In an ever changing environment, you have to be willing to completely re-assess your business strategy. Be open to bigger changes than you expected. Be ready for a different end-of-year stock take. Holding on to old ideas may seem like the only thing you can count on, but it may be the most important thing that needs to change. 

Keep the right mindset

No matter what level of business you are operating, you are also human, and susceptible to letting this whole thing get you down. It’s crucial to keep a positive attitude and solid mindset, in order to keep things running efficiently at your business. The famous poem “If” by Rudyard Kipling states: “If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs” – it has never been more relevant. If you have staff and clients depending on you, it’s important to stay in a positive frame of mind, as it will also rub off on them, and ultimately, on your business. 

Embrace the digital world 

If you haven’t already, this could be the time to really embrace all things digital, and appreciate what an advanced age we are living in. Having your team work remotely throughout all this may have made you realise that they can, actually, work remotely in general. Go to sites like weandgoliath.com to find out more about virtual conferences and events you can hold, expand your social media strategy, look into different virtual collaboration tools, the list goes on!

The pandemic has swiftly pushed us all even further into the tech world as our communications are largely online. Perhaps it’s the push some of us needed in order to get into the modern world. One thing is for sure, a successful business of this age is one that embraces the digital world.

More on business growth during a pandemic

Wesley Young, Sales Director at AGM Services in North West England, says that the key to long-term business growth in a pandemic is “staying responsive not only to new and emerging government guidelines, but also to the capacity of the business itself and its potential for growth. With or without COVID-19, a business needs appropriate finance allocation and intelligent recruitment in order to grow. Of course, the uncertainty of our whole situation makes it difficult to strategise, but we have found a way around that with clear communication and taking things one step at a time”. 

He added: “We’ve also found that getting the most out of the digital space is a big help. Everyone feels uncertain about the future, so being active on social media helps to reassure customers and offer a platform for two-way communication”.