In the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic in Belgium, it is the view of EFMP Partner IMPACT Sales and Marketing, that no company or industry has been immune from the effects of COVID-19. They maintain that the virus has challenged us all to restart and rebuild operations in a safe manner. There has been much talk of resuming business operations as quickly and as safely as possible as some of the European countries slowly move into ’post-lockdown’ mode, and as everyone hopes is the case, the devastating effects of Coronavirus diminishes in the world. It is only natural after a disaster of these epic proportions to want everything to ‘go back to normal.’
“But can we actually go back to normal?” questions EFMP Belgian partners, IMPACT Sales and Marketing, “Shouldn’t we rather be moving forward to the NEW normal?”
Because of this point of view; at IMPACT Belgium, they have taken the challenge to “move forward to the new normal”. Their aim was to push themselves to adapt their services in order to meet the requirements necessary so that they could resume business operations safely in these unprecedented circumstances.
With service to their clients in mind, an additional element to their business was created under the name “Safety-Zone”, which takes their business operation to another level. They developed a web page, and set up advertisements and a social media campaign, to launch their new service-solutions, which involved the following:
BUSINESS START-UP
They designed a business start-up package to help companies get ahead and be in a position to implement Corona Guidelines. An online, interactive Safety Academy was introduced to inform and guide their employees as to what the ‘new normal’ entails. In addition, they offer customized safety material on an ongoing basis to transform the workplace and to ensure a healthy and safe environment.
EMPLOYEE GIFT PACK
COVID-19 has led to more and more employees working from home. Though this new way of working was embraced by most companies, IMPACT Sales and Marketing feels that, for the business going forward, there is a need to retain team cohesiveness and company culture. With this in mind, they created an employee gift pack, in cooperation with some of their clients. Their “ Thanks for being a Corona Warrior” box contains product gifts; personal messages to engage employees; tips on how to work safely from home; and fun challenges to encourage them to connect with their colleagues remotely by using the various social media digital platforms. They are hopeful that these small signs of appreciation will go some way towards showing their employees that they are valued, while also maintaining corporate culture and interconnectedness.
SAFETY STEWARDS / XL SAFETY POINT
Slowly but surely lockdown restrictions are being lifted so that businesses may resume. However, IMPACT are of the opinion that it is necessary for employees to be certain of what the guidelines for working on location at the workplace now are. It is also their opinion that it is equally important to inform visitors to their areas of business, of the required safety protocols. This is where the Safety Stewards come in. These are recruits, who are trained by the IMPACT Safety Academy, to welcome visitors and to guide them seamlessly into the new business ‘normal’. IMPACT Belgium also offer fully- equipped XL safety point units on location, which can be set up at shopping centers, in the city, at sports centers, or in theme parks. The ultimate goal is clear: To bring people together again, but to do so in a safe and responsible manner.
BRAND SUPPORT FOR HORECA
As IMPACT Belgium have some leading beverage companies as clients, they felt that it was important to understand the need to facilitate a Horeca comeback, as they are the major organization representing the hospitality industry in Belgium. The idea was simple; to give support to Horeca owners by offering them branded material such as hygiene points and table dividers to facilitate the safe re-opening of their businesses. The IMPACT Belgium team of Horeca brand- promoters handed over these gifts, which, to the delight of many, enabled the re-opening of the popular Horeca Bars and Restaurants. As a result of this initiative, Horeca benefitted and so did the beverage companies, which now had an additional sales outlet.
IMPACT Belgium have embraced all these measures and innovations in order to move forward with their business. It is their opinion that pursuing new opportunities will undoubtedly generate change. However, they maintain that if these changes allow you to keep your business running they are worth it.
So as they, for the sake of expediency, embrace the ‘new normal’, IMPACT Belgium have some words of encouragement for other businesses emerging from a situation of Coronavirus imposed lockdown: “Don’t hesitate, innovate, but do so in a safe and responsible manner!”