Digital Marketing is the only way that business use to promote their service and products during COVID-19 Pandemic. Now because of the market and its requirement change, there is a change in the face of Digital Marketing Trends After Covid-19 Pandemic.
The Covid-19 Pandemic has put everything in major disarray. And while the health consequences of a once-in-a-century pandemic have been devastating, to say the least, the economic consequences of this raging diseases have been felt quite severely as well.
The origin of it all
It all began initially as panic buying and scurried shopping in reaction to the outbreak and subsequent lockdown imposed by governments across the world on its citizens. India also followed suit and locked down its 1.3-billion-strong populace for close to three months, before gradually allowing some sections of the economy to open up. But the effects of this lockdown were massive and long-lasting.
Did you know that India recorded a whopping 120 million regular online shoppers in 2018? With an expected CAGR of 28 per cent, this number was expected to rise further and reach more than 200 million by 2025. However, with the Covid-19 Pandemic taking over our lives and lifestyle decisions, everything has changed for the foreseeable future.
Businesses have been hit hard by this unprecedented disaster. With the advent of the digital era, many businesses which were earlier operating on a brick-and-mortar only model were finally shifting to online mode. So, were many other businesses planning their launch in a strong consumer market like India.
But all their plans were forced into the accelerated mode. Considering how we saw an almost 100 per cent increase in online sales in India due to social distancing norms, lockdowns, and fear of contracting the virus, businesses began to realise that the shift to digital will have to happen sooner than later.
Digital marketing trends for a digital world
The rise and growth of the digital are now inevitable. And now as more and more people turn online to shop even for their basic, daily need, the focus of marketers will also have to shift more to that space for the future.
Right from groceries, to clothes to consumer electronic products and more, the need to visit a store physically is slowly diminishing. Because now, everything has been forcefully made available online so that people don’t have to go out and come in close contact with anything or anyone. And now that we are witnessing a massive shift in consumer behaviour, the traditional marketing techniques will also see a paradigm shift. Digital marketing agencies, and professionals, take note because this is going to be very important for you now.
Emerging digital marketing trends: Integrated digital approach that does more
Considering all these big changes happening around us, here are some of the emerging trends that all of us can expect from the world of digital marketing.
Today, digital marketing cannot function in isolation. There is a growing clarion call for the need for integrated marketing where brands are fully aware of the dynamic needs and evolving consumer purchase patterns. This necessitates that marketers are always in the know of tools and techniques that will help then thoroughly analyse and understand their consumers at every step of their purchase decision.
And while traditional marketing models only offer advice from generalisations, digital marketing techniques will have to factor in a lot of data and trends to gauge consumer sentiment accurately, and then base their campaigns on those insights. ‘Personalised’ will become the new buzzword of this post-Covid era, and the experience will have to be designed in a way that caters to everyone’s whims and fancies.
Hence, marketers, both new and old, along with marketing agencies in India will have to start thinking about all the technologies that will help them not just lure customers, but also save money in the process. This is necessary given the reduced spends of consumers during COVID. Companies can’t afford to spend all their money on marketing like before, because the guarantee of conversion is significantly lower now than it was before COVID. However, with simple and relevant marketing techniques, the desired results can be achieved even in a limited budget. That’s the only way to transform brands and businesses and thrive in this new era.
Now if one were to take a look at the traditional brand funnel structure that has been used since time immemorial to understand consumer behaviour, it starts from where the consumer realises the need for a specific product to search, and finally the purchase.
However, when it comes to the new-age digital market, this is not helpful. There are so many products in the market now that the consumer may not even be aware of all of them. This is where, as a marketer, you will have to employ predictive analysis tools, and ads and then place them on social media channels or next to their related searches on e-commerce sites. Even getting them to see online reviews can drive the ultimate purchase. But the need of the hour is definitely to adapt to these changing needs of consumers.
Emerging digital marketing trends: ROI, ROI and only ROI
As mentioned earlier, ROI is key to driving business growth, especially in these testing times when businesses need everything possible to be able to survive, and then thrive as well. And the best way to generate the most return on investment, even if you choose not to decrease your marketing spends is to go the digital way. Digital agencies in India, and everywhere else are now choosing to invest in tools and channels such as SEO, programmatic advertising, and audio marketing, and more to drive as much high an ROI as possible. It’s time you do it too!
Emerging digital marketing trends: Become a well-versed digital marketer
The current demands of the world have necessitated the emergence of many things. Reports suggest that the process of shopping itself shift completely into the virtual space. In 2017, a study stated that the need for digital marketers was at 56 per cent, while those able to meet the needs of the market were just at 24 per cent. And now, with the acceleration of digital, this need will only grow more.
This means there will be a need to have a savvy generation of digital marketing experts, who will be able to showcase their proficiency in digital optimisation. There is much-untapped talent in the country, and with many populaces set to graduate in the coming years, this demand for digital experts will also be met soon.
This was one shift that none of us had ever anticipated, but now it has come knocking at our doors, and it is up to us to embrace this fully and make it part of a growing business of the future.
