The past few years have made adapting quickly to changing conditions the norm for businesses of all sizes and industries. The uncertainty and market volatility continues to grow. How can you build a flexible marketing plan to help you adapt quickly to real-time changes?

When we talk about creating a flexible market plan, we are really talking about a business's ability to be agile and make changes quickly, on the fly, to respond to quickly changing markets. Sometimes we refer to this as an adaptive marketing strategy.

The unknown is scary for most people and can cause a lot of anxiety and nerves when it comes to making business decisions. When things are in constant turmoil, it is important to develop a strategy and a culture where people can go with flow or change direction quickly.

With many companies opting to allow employees to work from home permanently, your online presence is even more important than it was before. Beef up your digital presence and self-service offerings. Make sure your products and services are available digitally and invest in providing best-in-class online customer support. Consider adding chat capability to your site and invest in AI. Use chatbots in addition to your live support to handle common, simple questions and processes. 

Above all, make sure your live person support is robust and can handle the increased call volume. Personal touch and personal service during times of volatility bring comfort, calm, and peace of mind to your customers, which builds brand loyalty and trust.

Make ordering and fulfilling orders on the web easier and more efficient. Consider adding in live order tracking or automating parts of your sales process.

If you don't currently offer a mobile app or mobile experience, add it to your marketing plan. Make your business as accessible as possible on as many digital platforms as possible.

Crises affect not only businesses but your customers as well. When situations strike, being able to adapt your approach is as important as the marketing channels you use. Your marketing plan should include training about empathy and compassion and recognizing emotions that either evoke actions or influence behaviors so you can focus on the emotions most likely to build trust and authenticity. During Covid, we witnessed the power of compassion and empathy and how that approach to sales and service helped certain brands rebound faster. Concentrating on your customer's needs and responding to needed changes in the process builds trust and loyalty- the one thing your business needs most during volatile times.

Track everything you do in your business, so you are constantly aware of what is working and what is not. Invest in innovative strategies that are working and ditch those that aren't showing any results. This is critical for your revenue and business continuity through turbulent times.

During periods of market uncertainty and volatility, it is also crucial to constantly re-evaluate your target customer so you can use your resources wisely. You may need to alter how you do business with some segments of your customer base depending on their needs. 

Try different forms of content, SEO optimizations, and various marketing channels. Find out what content your audience is receptive to and continually test and repeat.

These simple actions and steps can help you weather the ups and downs of a volatile marketplace. Embrace change because change offers excellent new possibilities and opportunities that you might overlook in a smoother, more predictable market environment.