As an entrepreneur, you know the dreading feeling of slow seasons. When money is tight, your inbox is only crickets, and you’re wondering if you should prepare to close up shop for good (okay maybe a tad dramatic, but I know you know what I mean).

Slow seasons suck. There is no cherry coating it. And as we approach summer-time, when business is characteristically slow for most businesses, it’s time to reflect on how we can make the most of it.

Here are 10 things you can do to survive the slow seasons in business:

1. Use this time in your business to review your processes. Are there any improvements you can make? Make them now so when business does pick back up, you’ll be ready and better than ever!
2. Focus on the things you typically don’t have time for. You know the drill — when you’re in the thick of it and super busy in business, you probably wish you had more time to focus on marketing. Take this slow time to batch social media content, blog posts, newsletters, or even brush up on your ad-knowledge.
3. Review last year’s slow season’s KPIs and other analytics to compare to this year’s. Are there trends or anything that stands out you can use to your advantage? Maybe you notice last year that you had an influx in blog readers or newsletter subscribers during your slow season. Was there a reason you could duplicate this year?
4. Take the extra time you have to attend workshops in your industry. Take your new knowledge and relationships made into the fall, when business may pick up some!
5. Take a course. Learn something new and apply it to your business or client process.
6. Use this time to create your own virtual products. Virtual products are great for bringing in passive income, because you only have to create them once but can sell them multiple times. Create a downloadable or online course you can sell to your audience.
7. Audit your website and make changes as necessary. My favorite tool to audit my website’s SEO is SemRush. Deep dive into what’s working well and what isn’t and make changes as necessary. Optimizing your site makes it easier for clients to find you on the web!
8. Audit your competitors. SemRush also allows you to audit competitors’ websites. Simply enter their URL into the SemRush search bar and review what’s working well for them or what keywords people are using to find them on the web. This can give you insight into what may work well for you, too.
9. Survey your current and past customers. Now is a great time to focus on the clients you already have served. Ask them what you can improve on with a simple survey and then implement any changes they may mention as necessary.
10. Focus on YOU! As an entrepreneur, it’s hard to not put your self-worth into the health of your business. But remember that this slow season will pass and you will be okay. Instead of worrying, focus on yourself and fill your cup so you’re ready to come back with vengeance! Get outside, read a book, or spend extra time with friends and family. Surround yourself with things other than business that give your life meaning.

Slow seasons will happen to every business owner. As much as they may make you feel alone or like a failure of a business owner, remember that slow seasons don’t last forever. Use the ten tips above to survive the slow seasons in business! Have another tip not on the list? Leave it in the comments below.