4-ways-to-engage-customers-and-partners-during-a-pandemic

Amidst the current COVID-19 pandemic, in many cases, face-to-face communication is no longer a viable option. With bans on travel and social-distancing in effect, organizations are experiencing a high degree of uncertainty in several aspects of their business. One new challenge they are now facing is how to communicate with partners and customers, keep them engaged, and quickly provide them with timely information. 

With so many other new unknowns and changes an organization is facing, it is extremely important for organizations to efficiently communicate with their partners and customers. But how can businesses ensure the right information gets to the right people, as quickly as possible, especially when there is already an abundance of information circulating and possibly misinforming people?

While all hope of maintaining a clear and efficient communication pathway seems lost, there is a solution. With digital collaboration, everyone in an organization's ecosystem can stay connected when face-to-face meetings are no longer possible.  

Here are some tips on how to effectively and efficiently communicate with partners and customers, especially during times of uncertainty: 

1. Provide updates via a partner or customer portal. Customers are looking to be reassured and partners can stay updated on a day-to-day business. No one can predict the future, but showing that your organization is prepared to address any scenario that comes their way, will bring confidence to your partners and customers.
   Whether they need to see your business continuity plan or they need to know about changes with your products or services, updating partners and customers through the portal ensures that the right information reaches the right people. 
2. Create training courses to educate and prepare. Day-to-day, life is rapidly changing, and the best way to prepare partners and customers is through education. Ensure they have access to training materials that will provide them the skills they need for success. Bring customers and partners up to speed with the best practices by tracking and monitoring their progress to identify skills gaps.
   As working from home becomes the new norm, it is critical that the training material is easily accessible from anywhere, at any time, from any device. 
3. Listen to feedback and respond to concerns. Soliciting feedback from your partners and customers builds trust. There are lots of questions and concerns with any global crisis.
   Be prepared to communicate the latest updates with your partners and customers via the portal. Gather feedback in a centralized system to ensure the team is able to stay on-top of their concerns. 
4. Host events online and keep everyone informed as plans change. The epidemic with COVID-19 is extremely volatile. Event marketing can be the most effective channel for some B2B businesses but under current circumstances, in-person events aren’t an option. Pre-planned events are being rescheduled, moved online, or cancelled.
   
   It’s critical to keep partners and customers informed of these changes, as soon as possible. Customer and partner portals - where organizers can quickly make changes and notify guests with a click of a button - are an easy and effective way to ensure everyone is up-to-date with the latest changes. 

Communication is necessary, especially during times of uncertainty. Don’t assume information is being properly conveyed to the right people. Utilize the digital communication tools provided by a partner or customer portal to easily adapt to the ever-changing issues that follow a pandemic. Show partners and customers that your organization is resilient, prepared, and fully capable of handling any kind of challenge the world may face.

Learn how to boost customer and partner engagement as much as 50%.