8 minute read
HOW TO GET AHEAD IN SELF-ISOLATION
Not words we ever thought we’d be writing in BPI News. But as the UK transforms from a nation of shopkeepers into a nation of home workers to combat the spread of Covid-19, we offer essential tips and tricks on how to run a business remotely – and seek to make a success of it!
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As someone who has been ‘self isolating’ for the past 16 years – what we more commonly used to refer to as ‘working from home’ – I find myself in the unusual position of perhaps being better placed than most to offer advice on how to build and maintain your own little empire from the back room.
With shops and places of work shuttered across the land because of the invisible threat, and the majority of retail shifted to online-only sales, we’re all making a major lifestyle adjustment in an alarmingly swift period of time. Particularly those of us now home schooling as well as trying to hold our working lives together – a tricky task indeed.
When we began to put this issue together the photo trade was hastily cancelling hotel rooms and re-routing product in light of The Photography Show’s abrupt postponement, only to be followed a week later by sending staff home and shutting the doors on their businesses entirely. It’s fair to say many of those in the trade we’ve spoken to over the past couple of weeks have expressed bewilderment – and while some have simply chosen to sit out the present difficulties, pressing the pause button on product launches and further promotional and sales activity until May or June – there are those, like us, who have chosen to keep calm and carry on. Or at least make the best of it. With bills to pay, many of us simply don’t have any other choice.
Firstly, any home worker will tell you that setting up and maintaining a routine is essential. To-do lists, although it sounds terribly grown up and boring, also prove invaluable. Otherwise you can find it’s 4pm and you’ve spent most of the day on Twitter. And, by having a list of essential tasks, and crossing them off as you complete them, there is at least some sense of pride in achievement, rather than crippling ennui.
Maintaining a positive attitude and good mental health is likewise essential. It’s always been said that working from home is not for everyone – but now it literally is, some selfdiscipline is required – especially when you feel it is a situation, like this one, you’ve been forced into, rather than chosen by choice, so there is extra stress involved. The division between home life and working life has been ripped asunder, so work quickly to establish your sense of order amid the chaos. Establish your working hours within the day and try and stick to them as closely as possible; even if working a straight eight hours when you’ve got kids at home may prove challenging, aim to establish some boundaries.
As mentioned earlier, it’s all about establishing a routine, and from that will naturally come a degree of self-discipline.
will be eyeing up the latest online camera deals, even as he attempts to grab the last Tesco delivery slot. Flash sales aside, you could even encourage local customers to continue to support their local business by delivering orders to their door locally for free – while maintaining the two metre distancing advice. They’ll hopefully remember the extra effort made when times are better.
A major benefit of engaging in online retail is also the ability to earn money in your sleep – literally, as you’re not restricted to regular high street trading hours. There’s nothing quite like the satisfaction of firing up the computer on E-commerce accelerates as Covid-19 effects felt far and wide The latest from industry watchers Futuresource states that, unsurprisingly, the effects of the Covid-19 virus are being felt far and wide, across all industries – while, on a more positive note, it echoes BPI News’ own sentiments and belief that, in such unprecedented circumstances, we are stronger together.
Understandably, as many consumer electronics are produced in and shipped from the Far East and in particular China, where the virus originated, even before our own lock-downs in the West, there was significant disruption to global supply chains, while domestic demand was dampened. Futuresource notes that, given the Chinese consumer electronics market accounted for 22% of a $1 trillion dollar industry in 2019, such ‘side shocks’ may considerably hurt vendor’s revenues. Constrained supply will affect the global market too, with global distribution inhibited and the ability of vendors to compensate for lost revenue in other markets affected.
While there remains a range of unknown and unknowable variables around the virus, the short and long term effects on consumer electronics will be ‘significant’, Futuresource believes. It’s looking like a poor performance in Q1 as a result, will easily extend into Q2 – making for a full year of decline – though, to look for a silver lining, it’s just possible that pent up demand when all this blows over may somewhat (if not quite completely) compensate for the difficulties.
As one would also expect, it’s the digital media platforms that are really benefitting from the crisis, with the populace confined to their homes. The report notes that digital video, music and gaming are all seeing spikes in engagement and retail trends towards e-commerce are also accelerating. Besides being a short-term effect, this could have implications in the long run as consumers are likely to continue engaging with these platforms after the virus is derailed. It also suggests that Covid-19 has further highlighted the risks associated with overreliance on Chinese manufacturing.
All the above has to also be set against a global economy already in recovery mode after the range of headwinds it experienced in 2019, including the Sino-American trade war, Britain’s exit from the European Union, and a wide-ranging slowdown in developed economies. Global stock markets have experienced significant volatility as a result of the spread ofCovid-19 into Europe too.
In a very short space of time, it’s fair to say the virus has had a disruptive impact on individuals, countries and major companies alike. How we recover and rebuild after this blight, time will tell. Maintaining a positive attitude and good mental health is essential. It’s always been said that working from home is not for everyone – but now it literally is for everyone, some self-discipline is required…” But don’t beat yourself up about it. In the present scenario, it’s all about getting as much done as we can in the time available – and, with health a priority, while we’re still safe and well. OPEN FOR BUSINESS 24 HOURS There will be many retailers and suppliers reading this who have been forced to shut up shop, send staff home and will be wondering if they have a business to return to in the weeks and months ahead.
While at the time of writing the government is attempting to prevent businesses firing staff and shuttering for good by offering to pay up to 80% of wages (up to a £2,500 per month limit) to prevent mass unemployment down the line, and deferring VAT payments for three months, along with further compensatory measures, retailers who have been forward-thinking enough to establish an e-commerce site at least have some means of keeping the business ticking over.
While nobody is going to pretend that you won’t still see a sharp dive in sales and revenue (unless, that is, you’re selling home entertainment equipment and tech; with Dixons Carphone claiming strong online trading since its physical stores shut on March 24th) your website is now, more than ever your shop window. So today is the time to populate it, revamp it, and – by way of promotion – dig out or reactivate that mailing list you’ve hopefully built up from prior customer interactions.
Though reports suggest printer and laptop sales are booming as people set up home offices across the land, this is conceivably a wise time to offer an extra incentive to buy. That usually means a sale, and even better if it’s a time limited one, thus encouraging your customers to act now, not tomorrow. We’ve had many emails and notifications through from retailers over the past couple of weeks hosting a ‘flash sale’ across their sites – and while, yes, many consumers will be watching their pennies in these unprecedented times, there will be others who will find the thought of grabbing a bargain within a narrow sales window impossible to resist.
Also, there’s a school of thought that suggests in stressful times (normally recessions) people continue to spend money on what makes them happy – so it’s not so odd to suggest a photo hobbyist a morning to be met with a list of sales notifications. Fulfilling these – if your access to stock or warehouse remains open – in turn provides much needed structure to your day and a continued sense of purpose. Chilling on the sofa with a glass of wine and the latest Netflix box set if you’re working from home may sound extremely attractive in principle, but the novelty soon wears off. Especially when there are money worries and bills to be paid, as there continue to be during this pandemic. Maintain the mindset that you are still running a business, even if the physical premises are on lockdown.
Who knows, you may even look back on this period, eventually, as a turning point; one that, while it may have forced you to fix a problem that hitherto hadn’t existed, nevertheless proves to be a personal change for the good. We certainly hope so.
