Small service businesses are shutting their doors right now and it’s created a reactive rush to virtual platforms.
When this happens, usually the main concern is “how do we continue to deliver our product or service?”
As a customer though, what I’m usually buying is not just the product or service, but the feeling – the relationship that we have in that moment, that week, or that year.
Often, I’m buying into the brand, the affiliation, the network.
When we switch delivery methods then, it very quickly becomes not a case of “how can we deliver,” but “how can we see each other?”
The product or service delivery is a prequiquisite, and, integrating ways for your customers, tribe and team to be seen, to be heard, to contribute and to tell their own stories is a requirement.
Efficiency is one thing, connection is another.
Some things we can consider:
- Using platforms that require bottom up communication (when we are face to face, nobody can argue that comms have to go both ways. This is a good thing.)
- Delivering unique messages. When we are face to face, it’s easy for me to remember to ask about how your daughter’s first day of school went. When we are virtual, these individual messages are important – thank you notes, a direct message, a shoutout.
- Breakout groups – top down and bottom up interaction is fairly straightforward. Breakout groups allow sideways interaction, which is a key part of socialisation and affiliation with the group. A quick prompt can spur some great lateral connection before or after a main delivery session.
- Non-specific connection. The quick chat after class, the discussion over coffee – usually not related at all to the product or service, but a chance to tell stories, to connect and to humanise. This can be done with games, quizzes, or more open workshops.
It’s tempting to leave this up to chance – to expect it’ll happen “in the comments” or that it’s enough to simply deliver.
It’s usually not – we crave to be seen, and with a move to virtual platforms, this requires extra effort.
