Unless you've been living under a rock, I'm sure you're very familiar with Coronavirus and all the news surrounding it. Many cities across the globe are declaring a state of emergency and are encouraging people to stay home. While it's better to be safe and healthy, it does make doing business more challenging.
More Meetings, Less Time
At NMI, we are big advocates for web calls (we use Teams) as we work remote 90% of the time and have clients all over the world. A great way to keep your employees engaged and focused is by swapping that two-hour meeting for a few shorter meetings spread throughout the week. More frequent communcation helps to keep employees motivated and on task because it can be easy to get distracted working from home and it keeps people more engaged when they know that there is an agenda and only a thirty-minute period to tackle everything on the list.
Make It Fun
This is a scary time that is raising anxieties for a lot of people - try to bring a little sunshine to your team calls.
Plan a themed call where everyone can dress up - it doesn't have to be over the top but having people wear Hawaiian shirts, pajamas, ugly sweaters, funny hats, crazy hairstyles, is a simple way to lighten the mood and keep the culture that your team has built.
Have a lunch or coffee webcam date where you literally just eat lunch and catch up on personal things - no business allowed. It gives your employees a chance to still chat with their office pals and it keeps moral and culture positive.
Play a game with everyone - something like trivia or never have I ever is easy while people are in different locations.
Be understanding - of course, when you're working from home, you will probably do a lot more multi-tasking. Encourage it! Make a game out of it. Create a bingo card with household tasks like dishes, laundry, dog walking, paid a bill, ect and see how many employees got their work done and were able to complete some of their own personal tasks.
Bring Your Dog To Work Day
In person, this could create a chaotic, hairy mess but when you're working online, it could be a lot of fun and a way for you to show off your furry companion while bringing a smile to everyone's face.
For example: This is Whisky, the NMI dog. His motto is #HugsAndTug, he loves trail walks and peanut butter cookies, garbage day is his favourite because he gets to see the garbage truck, he insists on squeezing himself into the cat bed for naps and is terrified of small children. He probably made you smile a little...
Utilize Your Content
Since meeting face to face isn't an option right now, you have to explore new opportunities and ways to bring your content to your demographic.
Consider hosting a webinar or online event that folks can attend if your conference got canceled, create short videos filled with information that people can enjoy, make challenges or games, start conversations online, write blogs more frequently - provide people with extra and open the lines of communications.
Check In On Your Clients
Use Coronavirus as a reason to touch base with the clients you haven't connected with in a while. Shoot them an email or give them a call, ask them how they are doing and how COVID-19 is affecting their company, their industry and their everyday life. It lets your client know that you are thinking about them while seeming less sales focused and puts you top of mind for them again.
Times are tough right now and there are a lot of concerns but we do have each other and we can bring a little joy to our work even if we have to do so from a distance. Let us know how your office is dealing with COVID-19 and if any of our tips worked for you :)
Wash you hands!