What's your current situation about Covid 19 virus ?
I’ve seen lots of people sharing their thoughts and opinions on the current situation.
But I haven’t seen many people talk about what they’re actually doing. www.cnponchotowels.com
So in today’s email I want to share with you how I’m responding to the current situation.
1. I’m preparing for a new normal
I know things seem crazy right now.
In fact, things ARE crazy right now.
But there will come a time in the near future where things get back to a “new normal”. A normal that’s similar to how things were before.
Restaurants will be full.
Football games will be sold out.
And people will search for things that they’ve always searched for.
So yeah, things are far from normal now. But you can use this time to get ready for when they are.
For example, here are a few ways that I’m preparing for when things get back to normal:
I’m working on a new piece of “big content” for later this year
I’m doubling down on building my email list (more on that later)
I’m learning new business skills (UX design and PPC)
I’m improving old content (mostly replacing old visuals with new versions that are a lot nicer)
I’m creating systems for hiring and onboarding contractors that we bring on
2. I’m putting a temporary pause on publishing new blog content
To be clear:
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with publishing right now.
So if you have a blog, YouTube channel, or podcast, I think you should stick to your normal schedule.
The issue isn’t “publishing”. It’s “promoting”.
It’s a tricky time to promote content. The world’s attention is elsewhere.
And considering that the Backlinko team and I spend 30+ hours on every post, I don’t want that effort to go to waste.
Which is why I decided to put a temporary pause on publishing new content on the Backlinko blog.
But I’m not just sitting around.
Instead...
3. I’m taking advantage of opportunities
There’s no doubt about it: this situation sucks.
But if you look hard enough, you may find a handful of opportunities.
For example, last week a friend told me that Facebook CPMs are down 75%. He also said that Google Adwords is 50% cheaper than a few weeks ago.www.cnponchotowels.com
The flip side is that people aren’t buying like they normally would.
But they DO want content. In fact, content demand has probably 5x’d in the last few weeks.
Which means that now is a great time to build your audience and email list with ads.
In other words: sign ‘em up for content. And sell to those folks later when things settle down.
I’m tripling down on Facebook ads right now. And I’m seeing dirt cheap CPMs.
4. I’m improving our process
Now is the PERFECT time to do the sort of boring stuff that makes your business more efficient.
For example, Backlinko’s content calendar right now is a giant mess.
It’s a Google Sheet that’s strung together with duct tape and bubble gum.
Yes, it technically works. But it’s far from ideal.
So we’re using this time to create an organized system in Notion. That way, we can move content from “draft” to “ready to go” much faster.
5. On a day to day basis, it’s business as usual
Two weeks ago I made a video for our core staff. The gist of that video was:
We’re in a fortunate position. The business is in a good spot. In fact, this crisis shouldn’t change the work that we do all that much.
So yeah, besides the pause on publishing, it’s more or less business as usual here at www.cnponchotowels.com
I’m writing blog content.
Lloyd is improving Backlinko’s code.
Ines is answering customer support questions.
Sasha is editing course videos.
Matt is designing visuals.
We’re actually hiring a few contractors to help us expand and scale up. And, like I mentioned earlier, we’re also running more ads.
But other than taking advantage of a few unique opportunities, not much has changed in terms of day to day operations.
6. I’m giving back
I’m in the fortunate position where I can do a little something to help us get through this challenging time.
I’ve made a sizable donation to help health care workers on the front lines. I also recently contributed to a non-Covid cause to support people that are making the world a better place in other areas.
