The coronavirus crisis: A catalyst for entrepreneurship

Throughout human history, crises have been pivotal in developing our societies. Pandemics have helped advance health-care systems, wars have fueled technological innovations and the global financial crisis helped advance tech companies like Uber and Airbnb. The present coronavirus pandemic will arguably not be an exception; entrepreneurs can be expected to rise to the challenge.

Businesses play a key role both in helping society get through an economic crisis and in creating innovations that shape society after a crisis. So one key question is: how will the ongoing crisis influence future society?

While it’s hard to predict the future, we can develop an understanding of what is ahead by analyzing current trends. Read more.

These Young Entrepreneurs Saw Covid-19 Coming and Changed the Way They Serve Their Customers

The COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting lockdown affected businesses in many ways. There were problems from manufacturing to distribution. Many brick and mortar stores saw sales decline. According to Yelp , about 98,000 businesses closed permanently.

This development brought many entrepreneurs back to the planning table to find better ways to serve their customers. Many B2B ( Business to Business ) companies have adopted the D2C ( Direct to customers ) model to reach their customers directly. At the same time, it seemed that some companies received the memorandum and did something different beforehand, allowing them to prosper in the crisis.

And it seemed that e-commerce brands were some of the biggest winners of the whole situation, along with remote interaction, online entertainment, e-learning, and health and fitness . So naturally, companies shifted their focus to better satisfy their customers and, of course, prosper. Studies show that during the height of the pandemic in May 2020, total online spending across the globalized world reached $ 82.5 billion, an increase of 77% year-over-year. Read more.

These Are the Opportunities Entrepreneurs Can Capitalize on in 2021

Across so many industries, opportunities arise during crisis, due to newfound problems that entrepreneurs set their minds out to solve. We asked a number of our entrepreneurship professors to reflect on where those opportunities currently live as we turn the calendar to 2021.

“Families are particularly positioned to take advantage of entrepreneurial opportunities. Business families have long histories to draw from when dealing with difficulties. Family businesses tend to focus more on relationships with clients as well as suppliers and others in their business, which become a boon in a crisis because they provide business families with greater levels of flexibility when making changes in order to adapt or innovate. Family businesses also tend to be more conservative financially than their non-family counterparts, which allows them to take advantage of expansion, growth, and even acquisition opportunities during downturns when other businesses cannot.” Read more.

7 SEO Digital Marketing Trends for 2021

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is one of the most crucial elements of an organization, providing it with the necessary visibility to attract more customers. A strong SEO strategy allows a company to position its website to attract more visitors, increasing the chances of turning these prospects into customers.

Businesses often forget why they are in business and who benefits from their services. They often give SEO a short shut-eye and move on to the next fad. This is detrimental to your online success. Read more.

The Rise of Empathy in Digital Marketing

COVID-19 is, in many ways, proving to be a disease of uncertainty. The disease isn’t a crisis in just one area of the world or plaguing just one section of the population — the new coronavirus is a tangible threat to every single person on Earth.

People everywhere are experiencing higher levels of anxiety and depression as their loved ones fall ill, as they lose their jobs, as they are forced into isolation and as the future becomes even more shrouded in mystery. Businesses, too, are suffering from the disease, as consumer spending plummets and most everyone is driven indoors and online.

During this time of fear and uncertainty, businesses have responded by investing heavily in digital marketing, hoping to capitalize on the throngs of people logging onto the web for work, school, and entertainment. However, not all businesses are investing in marketing to sell their products or services; many are simply producing content to engage with consumers — or to show their audiences that they care. Read more.

Personal Branding: The Key to Success in the Digital Age

The world’s richest man, Jeff Bezos, famously said, “Your personal brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room.” In this digital age, as a company or individual, you should audit your presence online to see what would come up when prospects search for your name. Maximizing your digital presence is essential for your company or personal brand as online sales, resources, education, and sales have all skyrocketed. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, expert, thought leader, executive, or business owner, maximizing your digital presence has proven to bring more connections, customers, and revenue.

Since the pandemic, the majority of executive meetings, sales demos, and business transactions are conducted online. Consumers are heavily researching online, looking for the right connection or right representative that they can trust and build with. Read more.

A Message from Acceler8Success Founder, Paul Segreto

I’ve been thinking about how things continue to change and disrupt business, and life as we knew it. Some entrepreneurs are already responding to challenges by adapting, innovating and creating to not only survive, but to thrive. Why? Because they know that pivoting in tough times is essential… thinking outside the box, acting swiftly and decisively, embracing change, remaining open-minded to possibilities and ultimately, capitalizing on opportunities. It’s a very logical approach and plan of attack. It makes perfect sense as doing little or nothing would be disastrous. So, this poses the question, What are you doing to ensure your future success?