Riding The 2020 Roller Coaster

Read while listening to: Love Roller Coaster

As we enter the final quarter of the year, which I can’t believe, I wanted to share how this year has played out for the Boombox team. As many of you know, we do a lot of work in the tourism and LGBTQ+ events industries. When COVID hit, all that work disappeared into thin air. Did we panic? YES, but only briefly. Here are a few things we did and learned that we hope will help you too.

Give To Get

One of the first things we did was establish a series of free design and strategy days where clients and friends could sign up for 30-minute to hour long sessions. During this time, we advised on marketing strategies, created graphics, helped name a new company, and even designed a wedding “postponement” invitation. 

The outcome? We created some really great work for fellow companies in need. And one day, they’ll have our back too!

Try New Things

During this period we explored different ways of staying connected. For the first few months, we did daily Zoom calls, later we cut those back to twice a week. We supported each other even on the days we felt like crap. We have examined processes and have been fine tuning things that needed improvement. We held our first-ever virtual retreat featuring a spiritual healer, a DISC team assessment, and a creative exploration around our preconceived perceptions.

The outcome? The team feels closer to each other, we’ve streamlined a few things, and we are continuing to learn and grow.

Focus On What You’re Good At

With tourism gone, other areas we specialize in are Strategy, Branding, and Web/UX. So we focused on reaching out to our close customers and asked for possible referrals in these areas. I don’t think I’ve ever had so many great conversations understanding other business owners’ issues during this time. We broadened our understanding of how we could help each other. 

The outcome? We are working on twice as many website projects as we were this time last year. And we’re hiring!

Support Where You Can

While I never felt like our ability to stay afloat was in question, there were definitely cost-cutting decisions that needed to be made. However, during the months that I felt cashflow was stable, as a team, we made donations to support movements and our community. Those donations included Black Lives Matter, House of Tulip, Black Trans Advocacy Coalition, Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund, Second Harvest Lake Charles, and Second Harvest Santa Cruz.

The outcome? We are proud to be a company that supports our community, friends and colleagues. Happy vibes are all that’s needed here. 

As a fun side note, we surveyed our crew in July about their productivity:
33% were MORE productive during COVID
33% were LESS productive
33% didn’t notice a change

What did you learn during this crazy period that helped your business?

(Did you notice I made it all the way through without saying pivot?)