![\"Communicating](\"https:\/\/www.arffinancial.com\/development\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ARF-Blog-04032020-1024x538.jpg\")
Communicating to Your Customers About the Coronavirus<\/h2>\nCommunicating to Your Customers About the Coronavirus<\/h2>\nAcross the United States, restrictions are being put in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Some states are mandating temporary closures of non-essential businesses, and restaurants often make that list. So many that have tried to weather the pandemic have ended up shuttering their doors due to lack of business, as people are self-quarantining and isolating to avoid contact with others. It cannot be said enough: these are unprecedented times.<\/p>\n
You may have noticed that what seems like every company you\u2019ve ever given your email address to is suddenly peppering your inbox with communications on how they are handling the coronavirus. It\u2019s common, but it\u2019s not entirely necessary. For instance, does it really seem genuine to send a COVID-19 email blast out to a customer who hasn\u2019t dined with you in 5 years? Don\u2019t jump on the bandwagon if there\u2019s no reason to. There are, however, legitimate business cases for emailing your patrons in the midst of this crisis. Here a few cases when communicating to your customers about the coronavirus is essential.<\/p>\n
Case #1: How Your Restaurant is Preparing<\/strong><\/p>\n One use case? Let\u2019s say your restaurant is considered an \u201cessential business\u201d in your area. You\u2019ve opted to keep your doors open because even minimal foot traffic is better than none at all. Alerting your guests via email about the steps you\u2019re taking to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus and keep your customers and employees safe is probably a good bet. Have you upped your sanitation game? Maybe you\u2019ve put hand sanitizer at every table, or moved your tables so they\u2019re farther apart from each other. Perhaps you\u2019ve opened additional seating areas to spread patrons out more. Customers will want to know what you\u2019re actively doing to keep health and safety at the forefront as they weigh their decision whether or not to dine out.<\/p>\n Case #2: Updates to Your Business Model<\/strong><\/p>\n What has become more prevalent is the pivot of restaurants from sit-down establishments to take-out and delivery only. Notify your customers of this change in operations so they don\u2019t assume you\u2019ve just shuttered your doors. A lot of restaurants are offering the option for patrons to order online or via phone, and once they arrive at the restaurant, someone will come out and put their order in their trunk. Still others are offering delivery and simply leaving it on the doorstep. And then there are those waiving minimum order fees. Regardless of what your business is doing, make sure to prepare your customers for what to expect when ordering from you now.<\/p>\n Case #3: Heartfelt Requests<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/strong>A lot of small businesses are hurting. What many are doing is pushing gift card sales for when times are back to normal. This brings in revenue but doesn\u2019t require immediate use, and it\u2019s a great way for customers to show their loyalty. Offering special discounts on gift card purchases is a way to sweeten the deal a bit. Don\u2019t feel too proud to reinforce how much customer loyalty matters at a time like this. A simple heartfelt email reaching out for support can never hurt.<\/p>\n These communications don\u2019t just stop at email, either. Post to your blog, update your social channels, and advertise in your storefront. The one thing to remember about this pandemic is that you never know how people are reacting to it, so it\u2019s important to take it seriously. Be sensitive to those who may be personally affected by the disease. Don\u2019t make light of a situation that is becoming increasingly more dire by the day. And remember that above everything, safety comes first.<\/p>\n From all of us here at ARF Financial, stay safe.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Communicating to Your Customers About the Coronavirus Across the United…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":34413,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[128,112,690],"tags":[398,402,400,399,443,386,555,548,550,549,535,220,553,213,538,345,116,173,536,117,516,493,401,224,222,172,226,142],"class_list":{"0":"post-34412","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-day-to-day-business-operations","8":"category-marketing","9":"category-restaurant-financing","10":"tag-affordable-business-loans","11":"tag-affordable-small-business-growth","12":"tag-business-expansion","13":"tag-business-growth","14":"tag-business-line-of-credit","15":"tag-business-loans","16":"tag-communicating-to-your-customers-about-the-coronavirus","17":"tag-coronavirus","18":"tag-covid-19","19":"tag-covid19","20":"tag-equipment-leasing","21":"tag-flex-pay-loans","22":"tag-hashtags","23":"tag-line-of-credit","24":"tag-mobile-app-for-your-restaurant","25":"tag-restaurant-expansion","26":"tag-restaurant-financing","27":"tag-restaurant-funding","28":"tag-restaurant-leasing","29":"tag-restaurant-loans","30":"tag-restaurant-trends","31":"tag-small-business-blog","32":"tag-small-business-expansion","33":"tag-small-business-financing","34":"tag-small-business-funding","35":"tag-small-business-growth","36":"tag-small-business-loans","37":"tag-working-capital"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n