10 Overlooked Ways to Increase Profitability During COVID-19

COVID-19 has upended life as much of us know it. From stay-at-home orders and mandatory lockdowns to the closure of restaurants, theme parks and bars, it’s safe to say that the pandemic had upended the typical retail landscape. As of this writing, almost 100,000 businesses across the U.S. have permanently closed during the pandemic, according to Yelp.com’s Local Economic Impact Report. The report further warns that more business closures may follow, depending on how long the pandemic lasts.

The pandemic’s impact on the economy has been uneven. While some businesses have failed, others are thriving during the pandemic. Retailers like grocery stores or big box stores have done well as consumers stock up on essentials or forgo multiple shopping trips in favor of going to stores where they can pick up everything they need in one place. While challenging, the pandemic offers unique opportunities to businesses to drive current or future profitability from these unexpected sources.

Ways to Increase Profitability During COVID-19

1. Wider Talent Pool – It’s no secret that many once-valued employees have parted ways with their former employers during the pandemic. Even workers who have been furloughed rather than laid off may spend this time looking for more secure employment opportunities. This means that your business could benefit from skilled workers who you would normally never have the chance to hire. Your business may also be able to hire them at a cheaper rate than before the pandemic. Good employees drive good results, so a pandemic might be the perfect time for a hiring spree.

2. New Opportunities Due to Remote Work – The increased prevalence of remote work gives businesses that are used to in-person work and client meetings access to new potential employees and, depending upon the type of business, potential clients. This is a huge asset to any business that manages to successfully transition to remote work, including finding new ways to engage with potential new employees and clients.

3. Invest in Employee Training – While investing in your workforce might not seem like the obvious move during a pandemic, investing in your employees can reap big benefits for your business. Not only are better trained employees more capable and better at their jobs, you’re also building employee loyalty. If the pandemic has increased the amount of downtime your company is facing, it might be the perfect opportunity to catch up on employee training or offer new training opportunities so that your business can become even stronger.

4. Increase Business Efficiencies – This is the perfect time to take a hard look at your business operations and identify redundant or inefficient processes and work to correct them. According to one report, business inefficiencies can cost up to 20%-30% of the business’s total annual revenue. Sometimes, increasing revenue isn’t just about making more sales, but also about better utilizing the resources you already have.

5. Reduce Supply Costs – Hand-in-hand with increasing business efficiencies is the second half of the equation—reducing supply costs. With a remote workforce, your business may be able to reduce spending on items such as coffee, office supplies, and housekeeping. You may also be able to negotiate a reduced rate from your suppliers, or possibly be able to reduce the number of suppliers to consolidate costs.

6. Consider Outsourcing – Outsourcing is another possible source of increased profitability for businesses to consider. If the workload for your business is reduced or has shifted as a result of the pandemic, it’s possible that your business could increase profitability by outsourcing some operations to third-party suppliers. When done correctly, outsourcing can save your business money while maintaining or even improving quality. But tread carefully because, done incorrectly, outsourcing can cost your business money while producing low-quality work.

7. Launch New Product Lines – Just like the pandemic has reduced demand for some types of items, it has also created demand for others. Consider all the apparel stores that now sell reusable cloth masks, an item that would have been almost unheard of as little as eight months ago. Other stores has reported increased sales of recreational items like bikes or board games. If your business can pivot to take advantage of these shifts in demand, or offer new products like masks, your business will be well-positioned to reap the rewards.

8. Focus on eCommerce – COVID has accelerated the trend toward eCommerce in a big way. With more consumers turning to eCommerce, businesses should do the same. If your company has never had an online presence, now is the perfect time to get started. Or if your business has focused mostly on brick-and-mortar sales, this is the perfect opportunity to shift gears and grow your online presence and sales.

9. Improve Your Website Search Ranking – Apart from direct searches, there are two main ways consumers will find your website online: organic search or paid search. Organic search refers to where your website or web pages appear in the search results pages on search engines like Google. While search engines usually keep their algorithms secret, there are search engine optimization (SEO) tools companies can use to improve where they appear on the search result pages.

10. Add New Payment Options or Website Functionality – Your website matters when it comes to online sales. If your website does not offer the functionality that consumers expect, often they will go elsewhere and not come back. Consider adding additional payment options such as PayPal, or new functionality such as allowing consumers to virtually try on cloths using their webcam.

About Us

CertiPro is a full-service technology solutions partner. We provide software solutions to our clients to address their ongoing pain points and optimize their operations. For businesses looking to benefit from better and more accurate inventory counts, we offer our Automated Inventory Cycle Count tool to manage cycle counting in Sage. AICC allows companies to identify problem areas in inventory faster. For companies looking to provide a better eCommerce experience for their customers, we offer E-Link, a Sage Magento integration that forms a two-way sync between Sage ERP and Magento eCommerce. Contact us today to learn how we can help your business grow.