Here at Purple we are so incredibly lucky that as a business we are able to continue running and work from home easily. Although we must admit, we are all missing the company of our team, lunchtime walks around the estate, and the divvying up of brew making and washing up! Last week, we all packed up our PCs, phones and CAT5 cables before heading home to run the business as usual - only from the comfort of our dining room tables and makeshift offices.

All of our technology is cloud-based, so we can access our emails, server and development platforms from home, meaning we can completely run as normal - website launches and all! Our VoIP phones also allow us to continue communicating with each other, as well as our clients who don’t even know the difference when they ring the office phone number! We can still get you connected to whoever you want to chat with and give the great level of service that our clients are used to, and we pride ourselves on offering.

We are all aware that Covid-19 has had and will continue to have a big impact on every single business - everyone is having to be much more conscious about their staff wellbeing, the provision of their services, and their finances, so businesses may not want to put their money towards new services or initiatives. But, the fantastic thing about social media is that it is free, anyone can use it, and thanks to technology, it can be done almost anywhere! The rapid escalation of the coronavirus has sparked a huge jump in social media use too, meaning people’s attention is on platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter more than ever. There are plenty of things you can do to keep up your brand awareness and perhaps brighten someone's day with your content! Here are some of our top tips for things you should and shouldn’t be doing with your business’ social media for the time being.

Keep Up to Date

There’s nothing worse than seeing fake news on social media, or things that are no longer relevant or true. It’s so important to make sure your business’ content is kept up to date with the latest news, and what's going on. This is always key when it comes to social media, but it is even more important during the current situation with frequent changes and updates to the government’s regulations. As things continue to change and impact your business, make sure you keep your followers and customers up to date, whether that’s changes to your services, reductions in working hours, or even just letting them know what steps you’re taking to keep your employees safe.

Be Thoughtful

If your business is fortunate enough to be able to keep trading, in whatever way that may be, then you are one of the lucky few. So many businesses up and down the country have had to completely stop trading and can no longer generate income. If you can continue trading and offering your services, please make sure you are being sensitive about it, be aware of others and be kind. It’s also important not to profiteer off the current situation, it can be tempting to try and capitalise on a sudden surge in demand for your services but this is a short term win and businesses seen to be doing this will feel the repercussions long after Covid-19 is under control. Instead, Twitter advises businesses to consider how they can be useful within the crisis, and how they can lead by example.

Are You Able to Help?

In some cases, it’s just not possible for businesses to keep trading, and it doesn’t seem appropriate to post as normal promoting your services. Instead, try to find a way that you and your company can help, in the community and offer your support. You can utilise this for your social media content to offer out your support and let people know the things you’re doing instead of running the business as normal. Some of our favourite examples are The White Swan in Gilling West who are now working with Age UK to provide meals for the most vulnerable, Hannah Russell and Little Alf have been dropping egg boxes on doorsteps to people to brighten their day, Fairhurst's Catering have launched a delivery service of ready meals for the local area, and one couple has been using their daily outdoor exercise allowance to spread some love during the lockdown - by salsa dancing in the deserted streets of Richmond!

Here at Purple, although we can continue business (almost) as normal from our desks at home, we thought it very important to share positivity in our community during these uncertain times and make the most of our platform. To create a positive space to share these fantastic acts of kindness, we’ve created a Facebook Group - The Power of Positivity. In the space of just a week we have been completely overwhelmed by the number of wonderful things that we have heard about from businesses and individuals alike, and we are continually impressed by the kindness of our community. Please feel free to join our group and help us to spread positivity!

Brush Up on Your Knowledge

If you feel there’s nothing you’d like to go out on your digital channels, but want to do something extra, then this is a perfect time to brush up on your knowledge, skill, and do some ‘social media admin’. Now is a great time to sort out those little nagging issues that keep bothering you or set up an account on a platform you’re not using yet but have been meaning to do for months! While the world is collectively slowing down and adjusting to our new normal, it’s an ideal time to closely look at your social media efforts, and review or redefine your online marketing strategy. It’ll keep you busy and give you a sense of direction in these crazy days and will give you a competitive edge once normality resumes!

If there’s anything specific you’d like guidance on, please let us know! We’re hoping to curate more video content for our social media with quick and easy guides for you to follow along with at home - like how to add roles to your business Facebook page and how to make sure your Instagram is a business page along with free resources you can use to learn completely new digital skills. If you’d like some more personalised support, our team is still here to help no matter where we’re working from! We’re still just a phone call or email away and, as always, we are more than happy to simply chat to see how we can help you.

If you want to get started but aren't sure how, Emma our Digital Marketing Executive has popped some of her top tips together below!