“THE ONLY CONSTANT IN LIFE IS CHANGE”
~ Heraclitus
COVID-19, a word that has literally changed the way humans live. It has changed the way we move, work, socialise, think, behave and do business. The whole world has been forced into rethinking their behaviours and their outcomes. This has resulted in some very major changes in our world.
We were increasingly getting drawn to the convenience of digitisation and the use of technology even before the pandemic but, COVID-19 has worked as a catalyst in turbo charging the rate of us doing so. The reason being that isolation of humans drew them to engage predominantly using digital media and technology, so much so, that at some points during the pandemic these social media and other digital mediums remained the only way of engaging with the outside world.
A lot of people in the business industry suffered due to this change particularly, the businesses relying on physical human traffic like brick and mortar stores, events, shopping malls and restaurants. On the other hand the people involved in the digital space like E-commerce saw this as a blessing as their revenues sky rocketed due a majority of people now using digital media and ecommerce for their shopping and supply gathering. Social media use is also at an all time high where we are keeping in touch with our loved ones from the safety and boundary of our homes. We are also consuming an unprecedented amount of entertainment content online.
Now, for a pessimist these might be tough times but, for a savvy entrepreneur these times bring on fresh opportunities and new horizons of innovation, a chance to thrive and have a louder voice than we had before by the means of digital and social media.
Many businesses around us had to close their doors because they were unable to sustain their overheads in these times but, the businesses that adapted and shifted according to the change in the world and consumer behavior, not only survived, but thrived. Even the big retail giants in Australia who are the likes of JB-HIFI, HARVEY NORMAN, KMART, MYER and DAVID JONES to name a few, only continue to exist because they had strong digital media presence and were able to continue selling their merchandise during these times by providing their consumers online shopping with their physical stores being fully shut due to the restrictions imposed by the government.
So how were they able to sell in large quantities? And what can we learn from them?
The answer is simple, BUILD A SOLID DIGITAL MEDIA PRESENCE. Use the traffic on these mediums to run highly targeted campaigns to reach your audience where they are and entice them to buy from you. If this seems like a lot then hire a web design agency to do it for you or learn the required skills yourself.
Following are some of the means these businesses leveraged to reach their target audience on a digital front:
- WEBSITES:
The use of highly optimized websites acted as shop front for these brands allowing their customers to continue to shop from their favorite brands. These websites were the last stop of their consumers after engaging with the brand through other digital mediums they were directed to the websites where they could see the available inventory and shop.
In this age having a professional website is critical to every business’s success but a lot of entrepreneurs tend to save money by trying to build their websites themselves. This is a fatal mistake as it results in non-efficient websites which is the equivalent of a bad shop. It is best practice to hire a web design agency to do this task for your business as they are experts in this domain and can give your business the look and feel it needs.
If you want to learn the skill yourself then try to create a beta or test website, never experiment on you own business.
If you’re looking for a quality web design agency Sydney, Australia we recommend you checkout: www.rumors.com.au
- Social media:
Social media marketing also known as content marketing is some thing the big brands have always focused on to build a connection with their target audience. By posting highly relevant and engaging content these brand were able to get the attention of COVID-19 struck people on their devices and using visually great and valuable content they were able to hook the customers and then use this attention to drive them towards their websites where the people were converted into customers.
Small businesses can use the same strategy to engage people and form a connection by posting content that resonates with their target audience and drive more sales.
Again, small businesses can leverage the services of a social media agency to accomplish such goals.
If you’re looking for a quality social media agency Sydney, Australia.
These were the predominant tools of success for these businesses in times of lock down.
One thing we need to keep in mind is that this is not temporary. During covid we have developed some habits which there is no going back from, the consumption of content on digital media and social media is one of them. This means that in a post Covid world it is mandatory that every business would need to have a rock solid digital presence to drive traffic, gain exposure and do sales.
The tactics could change such as Social media advertising , Search engine optimization, business listings and content marketing but the platform remains the same i.e Digital media.
~ Philip Kotler the father of modern day marketing predicted in a conference held in Italy in 2019 that “ 50% of business marketing revenue would be dedicated to Digital Marketing”.
This goes to show how important digital media is in building a business in this NEW NORMAL we have after COVID.
Australia is home to some of the worlds best web design and digital media marketing agencies that have created huge impacts for big businesses.
If you’re looking for to find one, then check outwww.rumors.com.au