The Coronavirus pandemic has changed the way a number of businesses operate on a daily basis. The change has led to some organizations like that of the social media giant Twitter announcing all of their employees can work remotely on a permanent basis. In the past, there are plenty of these businesses that would have had to close due to restrictions that local government has imposed. Technology has made it possible to limit human contact while delivering a similar quality product/service. Transitioning from brick and mortar businesses to online enterprise will come with growing pains. Not all staff at certain businesses will like the change but it is necessary, especially at this trying time. Below are client-facing industries that can transition easily to an online enterprise.
Healthcare
Healthcare has changed immensely with the Coronavirus pandemic with contact being limited. The fact that many people are worried to sit in a waiting room with potentially infected people has led to telemedicine exploding over the last few months. The convenience of virtual visits to the doctor cannot be matched especially for those people that do not drive. Traffic in certain cities is nothing short of a nightmare which is totally eliminated when utilizing telemedicine.
Virtual appointments make it far easier for a patient to reach out if they are having problems with a medication that they have been prescribed. There are plenty of other illnesses or conditions that do not require a physical examination. Remote monitoring allows a doctor to follow the vitals and foresee issues if a patient’s blood pressure has steadily been increasing.
Mental health professionals have also seen an increase in appointments set for therapy sessions. Text-based therapy is also seeing an increase in frequency due to some patients just needing someone to reach out to. Virtual appointments were once billed differently than physical appointments but this has changed with restrictions being lifted so they are billed identically. Look for more healthcare organizations to offer telemedicine services over the next few years.
Real Estate
Real estate has shifted in huge ways as people are not always willing to visit a property physically before buying. Before the Coronavirus pandemic there were rare occasions when a buyer would purchase a home for their primary residence without seeing it in person. The emphasis on video tour videos being of the highest quality and edited to allow a buyer to see the true flow of the home could not be more important.
The processes have also slowed in many sales of homes due to limitations on gatherings. The risks of allowing people in the home being too high without an offer on the table are far too high for many sellers. Steals on the market are going to be available for those willing to take the risk of not seeing homes physically. Most of the documents during the lending process are already signed virtually so not much will change on this front.
Fitness Professionals/Personal Trainers
Fitness professionals have adopted virtual training in the past but never to its current level. States like Florida are opening up gyms in the coming weeks with many fitness junkies hesitant to go back. The ability to have a top fitness professional from the other side of the world help you with a workout is extremely convenient. Trainers can give advice on form in real-time and many have adopted Zoom workouts as a part of their offerings.
Car Buying and Selling
The process of buying cars has not change in huge ways other than being able to see a dealerships inventory online. Most buyers still go in to drive the car to see if it meets their expectations. With guarantees that allow buyers to bring the can back within a few days this no longer needs to be the case. Buying cars during the time of the pandemic can still be done in a rather seamless way. Dealerships or websites might even consider bringing the car straight to your driveway.
How Other Businesses Can Improve Their Online Presence
The online presence of some professionals can be improved even if their businesses cannot be transitioned to an online enterprise. HVAC professionals and electricians are perfect examples of those that need to meet with clients directly to fix their issues. SEO for contractors needs to be done due to the local nature of these businesses with many areas having a limited number of potential customers. Managing review sites for these types of businesses is imperative as happy and frustrated customers flock online to express their opinion of their experience. Yelp or Angie’s list are considered staples of businesses in certain niches along with Google Reviews. Managing Yelp reviews for a restaurant or other client-facing business is a huge part of creating a great online brand. Lack of replies to negative reviews can look to other visitors. Social media is a great avenue for both national and local businesses to market online. Do not forget about the importance of search engine rankings locally for a particular type of local business.
The shift to doing business totally online is here to stay with the Coronavirus only making this shift more extreme. Look at your business to see if a shift can be made to interacting with clients totally online.
from Feedster https://www.feedster.com/online-business/client-facing-industries-that-can-easily-transition-to-an-online-experience/
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