5 ways small businesses can boost their sales in the new normal

If you are a small business, chances are you have been affected by the slump in sales brought on by the pandemic. COVID-19 has disrupted economies, and small businesses have been caught in the middle with no fallback plan to survive. We bring you five ways to cope up and survive this pandemic and emerge stronger as a business.

#1. Go digital

First things first. Customer behaviour has gone through a paradigm shift during the pandemic. It is time to adapt to the change. Say goodbye to cash management and hop on the digital payments bandwagon. Pine Labs AllTap is a mobile payment solution for small business owners looking to digitise their business in a cost-effective manner. It is a revolutionary yet simple mobile app that turns your Android smartphone into a payment acceptance device. The AllTap app is available on Google Play Store and can be downloaded for free. Using the app you can accept multiple modes of digital payments, including Tap and Pay contactless card payments, QR and digital wallet payments. You can also generate links and assign sub-users to facilitate payments for your door-to-door business. With over 100,000 installs, the Pine Labs AllTap is easy to use and has a digital onboarding process.

Yor customers have taken a fancy to Digital QRs primarily because they give the control of payment processing back to the customer and the fact that they are a contactless mode of payment processing. If you have a Pine Labs PoS, you can start accepting contactless payments through any UPI app thanks to our built-in digital QR interface. Make your counter clutter-free and use Plutus QR to accept UPI payments from your PoS machine directly.

#2. Plan well

There's a lot to ride for a small business in the event of unforeseen challenges, especially with threats of lockdowns looming large due to rise in COVID-19 cases. Don't let these difficult times overpower your dreams. Whether it is to expand your team or to venture into another vertical to make your business more relevant in current times, avail of collateral-free loans through Pine Labs. These loans are available through our network of NBFCs and require minimum documentation.

#3. Be customer-focused

The pandemic has been hard on your customers too. While inflation is rising at an alarming rate, their needs are more around present than of the future. When you give your customers flexible buying options of no-cost Pay Later EMIs, you tap into a large section of need-based customers and give them an option to manage their expenses and necessities better. You can offer Pine Labs Pay Later EMIs with AllTap and Plutus Smart PoS machines directly.

#4. Keep evaluating your business model

The pandemic has changed the way your customers have been shopping. Most of them now prefer digital payments and want to shop online without stepping out of their homes. It is high time you consider an omnichannel presence and launch your online business. You can cater to a large base of customers and can grow your business along.

#5. Communicate

Last but not least, keep the communication channel with your customers open. Let them know if there will be a delay in deliveries, if you need their support and what are you doing to keep your employees and customers safe. Your customers are going to be your brand ambassadors and they should be able to trust you. So, utilise your social channels to drive consumer sentiments in your favour. These are some of the ways to help a small business like yours boost revenues and mitigate losses during the pandemic. If you are exploring any Pine Labs payment solution, please write to us at getstarted@pinelabs.com