The Small Business Pivot | The Yoco Guide

12th May 2020

For some, the COVID-19 pandemic has meant a business shift to focussing on digital, or delivery but for many small businesses in South Africa, the national lockdown has inspired an entire pivot. We recently told the story of a few South African entrepreneurs who accomplished this pivot early in the lockdown. 

However, the majority of South African business owners have no recovery plan. For them, the past few weeks have been in survival mode, doing what they can to secure relief funding, payment holidays, or loans. A phased approach to ending lockdown means that many of them will remain in limbo for months to come. 

From panic to progress

Evelien Griffioen, Head of Customer Insights at Yoco, together with a few other team members wanted to find a way to help these business owners.

Together they compiled this Small Business Pivot Guide to guide the businesses in limbo, unsure of what their world will look like after months in lockdown, to finding creative solutions. Their message to you? The only way out of this panic is to forge ahead. To clear a path where one doesn’t seem obvious, and start afresh. 

The Small Business Pivot Guide

The guide is an online slideshow that entrepreneurs and business owners can work through to develop ideas to reinvent their businesses in the new landscape. It helps businesses put down onto paper a plan for recovering and re-starting. 

Coupled with thought starters and activities, this comprehensive guide will help you to identify new opportunities and develop new business models. 

Be sure to share your progress in our community group on Facebook or in the comments below.

Don’t forget to register your business on our small business directory, Support Small

Evelien Griffioen

Evelien Griffioen is Head of Customer Insights and Experience at Yoco, with a background and global experience in strategic product design and innovation strategy. She is dedicated to helping small and large businesses succeed in a rapidly changing environment.