There is no precedent for the type of business interruption we have now. It has hit virtually every business in virtually every business category. Supply chain worries have the talking heads prognosticating about things to come. Opening to soon or too late? So many questions.
The most important questions regarding your current business environment are ones you MUST answer. Every aspect of business as usual is now a big question mark.
The answer to the question that makes up the headline of this piece is one that might come as a surprise. So, who is going to save your business from the devastation brought on by coronavirus?
Salespeople! Really good salespeople.
The bad news is that when the economy is “opened”, your business will not flip back on like a light. Your sales organization may have let people go or furloughed them because you had to. Some may have found other employment because they had to. So what now? We can sell again but who will be most able to get the quick results in your sales that may determine your long term survival? Great salespeople. Those who have the drive, ability to persuade, and the sense to capitalize on the opportunities that do exist.
The good news is that there are more really strong sellers looking for new opportunities than there were 60 or 90 days ago. Your opportunity is to rebuild your business by rebuilding your sales team. An even stronger one than you had before. Additionally, all of the businesses both you and your competitors service have had an interruption in the relationship. So you must protect your relationships and at the same time try to generate opportunities with those potential customers you just haven’t been able to land. Odds are that they’re interested in making sure the provider they have coming out of the shutdown is the one most suited for them to survive long term. Sure you have to be able to deliver! But I’d rather be in the position of trying to increase my production to meet demand than trying to figure out how to pay the rent.