Andrew Seeley: Take Your Small Business to the Next Level 

How can small businesses thrive during COVID-19? Why are PR and digital marketing indispensable even when your business is small? In this episode, Andrew Seeley, the Small Business Champion, shares his insights on developing small businesses through strategic marketing any small business can master. Listen for tips that will help you grow your business in no time. In this episode of the Social PR Secrets Podcast, host Lisa Buyer talks with Andrew Seeley, the Creatively Disruptive CEO. He and his team, who sometimes goes by as The Small Business Champions, help transform small businesses into money-making machines through social media and online advertising and marketing. When small businesses are struggling more than ever, listen to this episode to understand how small businesses can thrive, even amid a global pandemic. Small Businesses Under COVID-19 According to Andrew, small businesses are “where hopes and dreams are made.” To him, when small businesses do well, the country and the world seem right. But when small businesses are struggling, the country and the world seem wrong. And right now, there is a lot of hurt in the small business community. Andrew knows this better than anyone else because he works with eighty small business owners.  However, not all are having a hard time. Andrew says that the ones surviving, and sometimes even thriving, are the ones being flexible and thoughtful. When owners are willing to do things uncomfortable for them, that’s where the business can grow. One way to do that is focusing on online marketing, either with your strategy or by hiring experts like Andrew and his team. Small Business Success Stories Don’t get us wrong; being a small business owner right now is hard. But some are doing well. One example Andrew gives is his e-commerce clientele. Of course, now that the world has moved online, they get more customers than ever before. And with an effective marketing strategy, they will be sure to succeed. Another less obvious example is a gymnastics gym Andrew is working with. With the initial shutdown, they were forced to close down. But instead of giving up and cutting all costs, they doubled down on marketing. They hired Creatively Disruptive as well as a full-time salesperson. That way, the moment they were able to reopen, they bounced back. Andrew says the results are incredible. While the gym had lost 80% of its client base, they gained much more than that in new clients through marketing and sales. If you own a retail business, Andrew says there is an easy way for you to become the next success story. Get on it right now, and don’t miss the fantastic opportunity coming up: Christmas. He explains there will be a magnitude more of people online looking for presents than there ever was. It’s simple: “Christmas will be online.” His main tip when it comes to online advertising for Christmas? Stay local. Doing business online comes with a big perk: you can reach the entire country. But the main drawback is that every other company can also reach the whole country, so