When it comes to American history, no era is remembered more for a booming economy than the “Roaring Twenties”. While there were a lot of reasons for the economic expansion that occurred in the America of the 1920s, an extremely important societal factor was the recovery from the 1918 Spanish Flu epidemic.
According to the CDC at the time of this article, Spanish Flu killed 50 million people worldwide and 675,000 in the U.S. Like the current Coronavirus pandemic, strategies like social distancing, quarantining, self isolation, and mask usage were key in fighting the virus. Printed material and accounts from that era show that social stresses, financial hardship, and widespread “cabin fever” were not much different than what we are facing today.
But by the early 1920s, with the pandemic over, America exploded into a nearly decade long celebration. The “Roaring Twenties” is still the go-to historic example of economic expansion, widespread prosperity, and cultural excess. After the hardships of World War I and the social restriction of the 1918 pandemic, people were ready to have fun again.
A New Roaring Twenties?
Fast forward to today. While things may seem bleak with daily Covid-19 statistics, social distancing, mask wearing, and the seemingly endless wait for stimulus checks and vaccines, we are moving forward. Like Spanish Flu, there will be an end to this pandemic too, and things will be good again. Especially for business.
Like the economic expansion and cultural eruption that followed the Spanish Flu pandemic, people are going to want to celebrate life again. They will want to be social and away from the home. Dining out, seeing a movie or a show, going to an amusement park – all of these things will be safe and desirable again. People will want to travel and have new experiences. People will want to spend money on things that make them happy.
Preparing for the Post-Pandemic Boom
We’ve written blogs and held seminars encouraging struggling businesses to retool for the pandemic. We’ve talked about how to develop new business strategies, employ new workplace methodologies, and leverage newer technologies.
It may be difficult to wrap your head around planning for a future business boom when things are still difficult. But there is great value in the exercise, several reasons for which we’ll discuss below.
- Don’t get caught off guard – again. Obviously no one could have known the depths of despair the pandemic was about to wage upon us, but now that it is here, we can look to the past for clues about what is next. Many businesses that have been barely hanging on throughout the pandemic, may find themselves in a boom that they neither expected nor are prepared for.
- Planning for positivity brings positive things. While this may sound like an airy platitude, taking positive action to grow your business will almost assuredly bring positive results. We talk to business owners and managers like yourself all the time – we know the toll that dealing with the business and personal hardships of the pandemic can take on your hope, your attitude, and your ambition. It’s like a negative feedback loop. But the end is in sight, so let’s start turning that feedback loop in the positive direction.
- Get Started Now. Here’s the big secret: getting your business up to speed in order to survive the pandemic isn’t much different than preparing for the possible upcoming boom. Either way it’s about creating a solid platform, developing a common sense strategy, leveraging technology to improve efficiency, and monitoring the results constantly to ensure that you are on track with your goals.
- Now is the Time to Find a Partner in Technology. One thing is clear about the post-pandemic business world: consumers are now more technologically savvy than ever before. If you and your business aren’t up to speed with newer ways of doing business, you’re not only leaving money on the table, but you may find many of your old reliable customers turning to the competition because they appreciate the efficiency and easy communication many of these businesses strategies offer.
The good news is that you don’t have to take a crash course in coding to get your business up to speed technology-wise. By simply partnering with a reliable and competent technology firm, a technological business strategy can be developed and the tools put in place that are most beneficial to you, your business, your customers, and your bottom line. The key is to find a firm that can handle everything from SMS marketing, to web development, to content and SEO. You want to explore all options yet be able to choose only those things that fit your needs and your budget. Contact Blink;Tech today to start preparing and keep your chin up: better times are ahead!
