Hello, 2021 World!
Our old ways of thinking, living, working and traditional marketing have gone, leaving a new way of managing our lives and businesses during a global pandemic. Covid-19 has come and, in its path, has left everyone learning to adapt to new ways of everyday life. For the consumer and business owner, it has left them with an understanding that the old traditional ways of shopping and marketing have changed from the traditional ways of the past. The new wave has come and is creating the path for the future and leaving a new “normal way” of day-to-day life and conducting business.
Our traditional dependencies have relied on the newspaper, radio, and television as forms of communication to educate, inform, and advertise. Today, those traditional ways of communication and marketing still remain, however, the one main form has changed. That one main form is the internet also known as the digital world or the World Wide Web. The traditional way of communicating with your target demographic is no longer the usual day-to-day “comfort zone”. That traditional “comfort zone” has changed. The “norm” has changed.
Consumers have come to rely on the digital world for all of their answers and for all of their needs. With just one click of a button their groceries, clothing, children’s toys, educational materials, books, movies, gym equipment, and home essentials can be delivered to their front doorstep. Consumers do not even have to leave the comfort and safety of their own living room to perform their daily activities or tasks. Even virtual classrooms are at their fingertips! Everything they can possibly want or need is just a search away on a new internet tab.
For most consumers, their new way of gathering information or finding out about new products or services is through Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, emails, Google search and now Amazon Alexa; which directs them to different companies’ websites, articles, or applications and allows them to shop, purchase and deliver in the comfort and safety of their own home. Individuals have grown accustomed to reading articles, viewing content, or watching videos to show them what they want in various parts of the world. They can view all the options available with the click of a button and have every opportunity to search and find out what is best. We now live in a world where we constantly have to be concerned with our proper reputation management and marketing on the internet – not just as a business, but also as individuals. The internet can either be your most powerful ally or your weakest link. How you portray yourself as a business and as an individual on the internet has become one of the most important factors in everyday life. Companies use it to search for their new employees, individuals use it for dating, and consumers use it to search customer reviews; which has become a “make it or break it” for most businesses.
The world has entered the digital age, and it is here to stay and evolve. Just as in the times of the past, we have learned to adapt and change with it to grow and prosper for the future. Today, we are doing the same – learning, adapting, and evolving in new ways of presence, content, and marketing through digital media on the internet, and boy, what an incredible journey we are on!
