How can a business survive in the current uncertain climate with no knowledge of when they might be back in business? By being creative and offering something that others don’t.
The Old Thatch pub and restaurant in Wimborne, Dorset have been entertaining their customers on social media with online activities such as The Great Thatch Bake Off, a Spot the Difference quiz, competitions and a virtual Music Night! More importantly, their Mother’s Day lunch was turned into a takeaway service and they have also been catering for the community.
In another social initiative, the 17th century pub which specialises in serving traditional British pub food, have introduced #HomeschoolWednesdays. They have teamed up with local primary school teacher, specialising in Key stage 1 and 2, Miss Berry, to provide some fun tasks to keep children entertained at home.
The initiatives have been devised by Bournemouth-based social media agency South Coast Social. Founder, Clare Groombridge, says that the key to continued success is ensuring that businesses remain connected to their customers via social media: “It’s important to remember that this situation won’t last forever – it’s crucial to keep your social media audiences engaged so that when the opportunity is there to re-open your doors, they are willing and excited to support you.”
She continues: “There’s always something to say! And only a small percentage of your content should ever be sales related anyway, so now is the perfect time to get creative and think outside the box.”
Old Thatch landlord Nick Pestana, says the help they received from South Coast Social has turned their business around in what could have been catastrophic circumstances: “South Coast Social have been fantastic throughout this crisis with the ideas they have created across all our social media platforms – they sold out Mother’s Day without me having to open my doors.”
To find out more about South Coast Social, visit www.southcoastsocial.com
