A Spring Like No Other
With the advancing COVID-19 virus in full disruption mode across our industry, and an ever present threat to ourselves and our families, we have certainly changed the way we operate. Some of these changes include an elimination of face-to-face customer meetings, dealing with shuttered factories which have eliminated orders, and a reluctant push toward being on-line, on-screen and inside more than we may want to be. There is bad news in many places, and there is little clarity on when successful therapies- much less vaccines- will be available to combat and defeat this virus from which we are distancing ourselves.
While it is disheartening to consider the damage it is inflicting on our economy, it is also providing us the opportunity to recognize certain things which we hadn’t stopped to assign importance to in the past. Simple things, little things, common things. A face to face meeting with a customer in a lobby, for example, is much more than just a meeting: it can help break up my day; help me cross off a task; advance the performance of my sales funnel; allow me the chance to help someone; prove my value to my manager; interact with someone I appreciate; teach a customer on a product I have come to be good at selling; advise them on a better path to market based on data he couldn’t possibly know; and all while scheduling a golf game where I KNOW I am going to get the 5 dollars back he got from me last fall. Very few of those things are going to happen over Zoom, Teams, Houseparty, or any other method of putting another screen between you and your customer. If nothing else, this Spring has confirmed for me the necessity of face to face visits, in person meetings, and local presence in supporting our customers.
Within the next 2 weeks, we will be releasing our own plan on how we intend to Re-Start. Our commitment to the health of our team and customers will drive the decisions we make. Providing the necessary PPE; allowing for time and space for those of our team caring for sick or elderly; planning for health contingencies should they arise; being accountable through measurable health monitoring and data logs; identifying new behaviors our team will follow when returning from visits; and maintaining strict records on travel locations to assist in contact tracing. These are all part of our program assuring our Customers, our Suppliers and our Team that we intend to do all we can to keep us all safe.
From there, it’s clockwork- we work on the continued strengthening of our customers and distributors who we appreciate more than ever. Our purpose is unchanged- passionate advocates for improving our customers’ competitive advantage.
