What Will Be the Legacy of the Covid-19 Pandemic?

At this point in the pandemic, there are two distinct types of people in sales. First are the ones who are doing their best to adapt to a new way of working. These people, who I will call Type A (for adaptive), may or may not be finding success, but they are trying. They know that the aftereffects of this virus can last for months or years and are ready for the long haul. 

Then there are those in the second group, who I call Type T (for the towel they have thrown in). Type T individuals have decided that they can't work, or I should say, they can't sell, in this environment. Either they can't see the people they need to see, or their clients are no longer buying (because they are closed for instance), or they think the virus is going to go away and they'll be doing business as usual very soon. You can tell the Type T people because they have nice yards because they're mowing, raking and fertilizing while the rest of us are trying to work. Maybe I should have called them Type HGTV.

Given that much of the country is wanting to get back to work and the business community is clamoring for a grand "re-opening", I think we will be back in business soon. I also think that business won't be as robust as it was a few months ago. This is because Im not confident that the consumers are all on board. Sure, I see beaches and parks filled with people returning. These are things that don't cost a lot of money. But will customers be flocking to malls and movie theaters? Will people spend money on vacations and buy expensive cars? 

In my opinion, there will be a comeback of sorts, but we have to remember that millions of people are out of work, and logic dictates that many of these good Americans are also going to be behind on their bills. Bear in mind that just because a shopping center opens up, it doesn't mean that people will shop. They could have been shopping on Amazon for the last few months. Are consumers going to buy a new phone or try to pay off the credit card they have been living off of?

No matter if you sell cars, homes, insurance or anything else, you will probably continue to see numbers that are decent, but not what you had in mind when you purchased your 2020 planning calendar. There will be buyers, but not nearly the number you would have had if there had been no Coronavirus. 

I'm not a big fan of predictions, but I do like to use some common sense (despite what my friends and family say). My informal discussions with people lead to the following conclusions:

• A good number of businesses will re-open to limited success, mostly due to health restrictions.
• Many consumers will continue to make purchases in the same way they have for the last few months, including no-contact delivery and limited "in person" shopping. 
• Video conferencing will become more acceptable and may even replace person-to-person sales in some industries.
• The medical and health industries will create more products and services that cater to seniors until a successful vaccine or treatment is approved. 
• Social media will continue to be divided politically. 
• It will be imperative for sellers to use sites like LinkedIn and Alignable to find prospects.

Don't hold my feet to the fire if some of these don't turn out the way predict. But I would suggest you try to figure out what changes you could be in store for in your industry and if those changes are here for a while or the long term. In the meantime, stay healthy and keep plugging away.

Chris Castanes is a professional speaker who helps sales people succeed through workshops and humorous presentations. For booking information, click here. He's also the president of Surf Financial Brokers selling life and disability insurance in several states.