NORFOLK, Va. — Small businesses all over Hampton Roads are trying to dig their way out of a hole during the pandemic.
Customers can’t go into many stores because of stay-at-home orders, and that’s resulted in a big drop in business.
But TechArk, a web development firm in Norfolk, is trying to keep them afloat.
“There’s been a lot of panic in a way,” said TechArk founder Pratik Kothari. “New messaging has to go up on their website constantly.”
Kothari is talking about the push to move business online. From healthcare to hospitality to professional services, companies can’t get by with casual web presence any more, and the shift happened almost overnight.
In the last two weeks, the firm has seen a surge of small businesses reaching out for help.
Some of them already had websites but needed tweaks to handle more traffic and e-commerce. Other organizations that were on the sidelines of web-based businesses are now rushing to get caught up.
“A church recently reached out,” said Kothari. “For six months they had a proposal, and they reached out and said they are ready because they want their sermons posted online.”
Support teams at TechArk are working around the clock to keep up with the demand knowing that the survival of our local economy depends on it.
In the meantime, TechArk is looking for ways to help area businesses. Kothari encourages them to visit the firm’s blog to find helpful information and tips.