Are you there?
That’s the underlying question behind every Google search I type lately.
I recently moved to Florida, which is — surprise! — a tricky place to safely navigate at the moment. Stores and restaurants around me have flip-flopped between open and closed, and policies about curbside pick-up and mask requirements and whether anyone is even there have changed continuously.
Like in most small towns, many businesses here have a slim web presence with sparsely updated social media. But before I mask up and leave my house — for a bagel or a library book — I want to know: Are you there?
And even if you sell ideas, not bagels, I think most of your customers are probably wondering the same thing.
There’s a lot of noisy chatter online right now, but even in such a loud time, it can feel eerily quiet when we’re looking for insight from people we actually know.
Are you there?
Do your customers, prospects, and friends know that?
And if you are there, the bigger questions are: What are you thinking? How are you handling These Uncertain Times? What are you working on? Has your work changed? Has your advice to your customers changed?
It’s tempting to be quiet right now. I know that’s been my easy instinct. There’s so much to take in and process and think about and, honestly, worry about.
But at the least, we need to show each other that we’re here.
So wherever you show up online, make sure you’re still showing up. Show you’re there, that you’re thinking, and that you’re ready to keep the conversation going.
I’ll be here.
