On New Year’s Eve 2019, the ’20s sounded like a promising new chapter, and we all planned to start with 2020 vision and clarity. When the COVID-19 virus came along—and impacted all of our lives and careers. While many businesses were forced to close temporarily or permanently, not everyone was negatively affected by COVID-19. Many companies overcame obstacles to not only stay in business, but find opportunities for growth.
How has COVID-19 affected new businesses?
According to Startup Genome’s global survey in April of startups, 41% of startups were in what they call the “red zone,” defined as having three months or less of cash runway left. While 29% were in that situation already before the pandemic, the COVID-19 crisis tipped many more over the edge.
Since the beginning of the pandemic and the effects of the shutdown to their businesses, 74% of startups have had to terminate full-time employees, sending millions of people into unemployment. More people without an income means more have to be frugal with their spending habits, which causes a cycle of lost revenue opportunities for local businesses.
Which businesses are overcoming Covid 19?
1. Zoom
Zoom was just a vaguely familiar virtual meeting software back in 2019. It was seen as an intriguing tech company that was only used at cutting-edge companies for meetings when a professional remote video chat call was appropriate. Once the world adopted social distancing and working remotely, Zoom became an essential platform used worldwide to keep people connected for both professional meetings and personal social uses. Daily downloads of the platform grew 30x year-over-year and Zoom has consistently been on the top downloaded apps of Apple iOS.
How successful is Zoom since the start of Covid 19? The company recently published its earnings from the Q1 2021 year, reporting a 169% YOY growth. Their cash flow increased from $22.2 million last year to $259 million this year per quarter. This incredible growth of the platform is, in a sense, due to the luck (as much as one can call a pandemic ‘lucky’) but the company has continued to improve safety and encryption measures with the new spotlight from COVID-19.
The key takeaway? Zoom was given the spotlight due to incredibly unique circumstances—and rather that flounder under pressure, they managed to leverage it into a new chance for growth.
2. Canva
Canva, a graphic design and innovative collaboration creative software, is experiencing immense growth due to widespread COVID-19 shutdowns. The pandemic caused many businesses to turn to social media as their only way to connect with their customers—which turned many business owners into their own graphic designers. Canva allows people in all professions, from teachers to construction workers to boutique owners, to easily build their own social media graphics, business cards, presentations, and more on a platform that incorporates thousands of pre-populated templates.
How successful is Canva since the start of COVID-19? The startup has received much recognition in the industry from investors and recently announced $60 million in new funding led by their previous investment company. The investment values Canva at a total of nearly $6 billion, almost doubling its previous value of $3.2 billion set in October 2019.
Canva’s takeaway is that finding a digital way to help others (with your product or service) is bigger and faster than in-person could ever be.
3. Local Bike Shop: Outspokin Bicycles
Our favorite local Tampa Bay and Clearwater bike shop, Outspokin Bicycles, is finding success in 2020 during a time when biking and outdoor sports have become a popular options for exercises while gyms remain closed. For Outspokin, demand has unexpectedly exceeded supply, due to the fact that factories are not running at full capacity and a scarcity of bike parts.
While Outspokin was seeing unprecedented growth, they also saw that their local Tampa Bay community was being affected negatively by COVID-19. They took this as an opportunity to support their neighbors by hiring people who lost their job during the pandemic. Outspokin Bicycles is a great reminder that giving = getting.
How can your business overcome COVID-19?
Whether your revenue is down or your industry is struggling to get back to its full pre-pandemic pace, you can still market your brand and find innovative ways to overcome COVID-19 and succeed. For example, social media marketing and search marketing are two digital tools that every business should be investing in.
As a digital marketing team, Digital Neighbor is committed to staying cutting-edge and neighborly, which means we provided our clients creative ways to stay successful—because we care. Send us a note and we’d love to grab coffee with you (virtually or at our favorite outdoor cafés)!
