Coronavirus or Covid-19 is a major concern world over today. The virus that was initially seen in Wuhan in China has now spread across the world and has already been declared as a pandemic by the World Health Organization. The fast spread of the virus has given rise to concerns about overloaded hospitals and the health of people, especially the elderly. In this situation, it is not just governments that are dealing with this crisis but even private organizations. Business leaders who run companies are taking action in this regard.
What can a business leader do in such a situation?
There are many answers to this question. A business leader can look at the single most concern in Corona, which is the spreading of this disease. It is now known that the disease can spread by contact between people. It can also reside on surfaces where other people can contract. Using masks and washing hands thoroughly are advised but the best way to solve this problem is by restricting the movement of people for some time until the disease spread subsides. A business leader can take many actions to protect employees and customers.SMS Marketing can be helpful in this regard. This is a marketing technique that makes use of group texting to send messages to multiple people. It is used by marketers to reach out to customers. It can be used to promote the product, send updates to customers, and to run marketing campaigns through the use of SMS services. This is a proven method and preferred even by customers, who find it non-intrusive.
Business leaders can use this to address issues pertaining to Coronavirus. Let us review how this can be done:
1) Work from home facility
Where possible, a business leader can use the work from home options, where employees can complete their work at home and communicate through text messages and the internet. Only those employees who are mandatorily needed can come to the office. Information on this option and updates can be sent through SMS. Communication through customers is also easy through SMS. Most emails get caught in spam filters and a customer may not even read them. Text messages, on the other hand, always reach the recipient and almost 98% of people read text messages. This makes it ideal for communicating in such a scenario where one would like to avoid personal meetings.2) Avoid travel
Travel, especially to foreign countries must be avoided. Only in emergency situations, foreign travel is advisable in these times. These restrictions can be followed for some time until the situation improves. Especially, travel to countries that are severely affected by the Coronavirus must be avoided. Communication with employees and other overseas clients can be done using interactive text messages. Discussions that needed to be done face-to-face can be done through messaging. While this may not be the ideal way, in such a situation this is an option that has to be followed.3) Send updates regularly
Employees who work from home and customers waiting to receive products and services need updates. The organization must establish a proper communication system. This can be done effectively by group texting. This is especially helpful in areas where there is no internet connectivity, or where internet connectivity is limited. Messages will always reach the other person ensuring communication is established. Updates can be sent through mass texting and using texting software makes this easier. This will be helpful for large organizations that have thousands of customers. Sending messages to all the customers can be done with a single click of the mouse if texting software is used.4) Work with the community
Business leaders need to work with the community and support the fight against Corona. There are different ways to do this. Partnering with local governments and health institutions is one way of showing concern for society. Here again, SMS can be used. The company can use its text marketing software to help reach out to people. This can be used in the following ways:• Public databases can be linked to the software and messages sent to the public to provide information about the disease, prevention measures, and status updates.
• A survey text message can be sent to people asking them to respond if they have symptoms of Corona or if they have been to other countries. This will help health authorities easily trace people having symptoms so that they can be provided with health care assistance.
• Business leaders can also help in other efforts like the distribution of face masks, sanitizers, etc. Here again, SMS can be used to inform people about it.
Business leaders have a responsibility to society and they need to show it in such crisis times. Business leaders can use text messaging effectively to respond to this crisis as described above.
