Probably no other topic has moved and changed the world in the past year as much as the new type of coronavirus. And without wanting to downplay the scope of the pandemic, we can state that moving closer together, the catalyst in digitization and, of course, the now manifesting vaccination progress also have their positive sides.
In this guide, we focus on the positive opportunities for marketing after the pandemic and the lasting impact that Corona has and will have on marketing.
A life after the pandemic - what marketing, advertising and customer relations will look like in the future
With incidence levels easing in the summer and vaccination rates soon to rise significantly in Europe, customers can once again look forward to more freedom. In some companies, too, the joy of finally having more colleagues back in the office will continue.
But marketing will have changed significantly in the next few years and the coronavirus has shown that even under difficult conditions and at a distance, it is possible to establish a closeness to customers. We have compiled the most important 7 changes and strategies for your marketing after the pandemic below.
1. Remote Teams, Remote Work and Home Office
In German-speaking countries, the home office has long been avoided like the holy water from the devil. This not only has something to do with the tendency to work in person in our latitudes, but is also due in part to miserable Internet speeds.
In this respect, Corona has shown itself to be a real driver of progress and has been able to initiate positive change. Many more companies have invested in better digital infrastructure and VPNs, and this of course offers opportunities for the future. With more flexible working models and globally distributed teams, work can continue without loss of efficiency.
In the future, the office will be wherever the employees happen to be.
2. The return of the suffering industries
Already now, marketing should be prepared for the industries that suffer and suffered particularly from the pandemic. Tourism, art and culture, gastronomy and the event industry simply could not continue their trade as usual.
Manufacturing companies naturally felt the effects as well, and losses rippled through all parts of society.
Now is a good time to re-establish these industries as brands and make customers want to visit. And it's definitely there, because now that relaxations are providing more opportunities and more and more people are vaccinated, they also want to get out the door again.
Crisis-tested marketing should focus on the event factor here and serve the customers' longing.
3. New possibilities, new opportunities
The waning of the pandemic is also an opportunity for local retailers. At last, customers can come back to the store and get personal advice. Online stores need not fret either, because of course everyone also needs the right equipment to return to when traveling, at the gym or in the club.
Consumers' budgets were probably also more limited during the pandemic. Many probably bought less due to short-time work and financial uncertainty. It is precisely there that marketing departments are waiting for customers' desire to do more again, to experience and enjoy.
4. Marketing automation for more efficiency
Of course, it would be short-sighted to assume that only end consumers and local businesses suffered from the financial consequences of the pandemic. Very large companies in particular were the beneficiaries of the crisis, while small and medium-sized companies often had to reduce their budgets for marketing.
Thanks to advancing digitization and the use of automation, marketing campaigns can also be continued at scale. This is not only efficient in terms of content, but also financially. This form of resource allocation should be preserved even after the pandemic in order to use budgets more wisely. The use of marketing automation systems opens up numerous new opportunities for marketers.
5. New closeness through social media
It has been evident for years that social media is becoming increasingly important for companies. During the pandemic, this effect was reinforced, because potential customers had more time to consume content on Instagram, TikTok and the like.
The proximity to brands and influencers will continue even after the pandemic. So if you continue to rely more on social media marketing in the future - which you should - focus on the channels where your target audience is active.
6. Gamification makes your marketing better through play
During the pandemic, different companies vied for the attention of their target audience in different ways. One of the best ways was gamification to attract users to newsletters or engage them with their brand identity.
Games don't have to be fancy, already point systems for loyal customers and those who follow your brand on social media are a good start. You could also offer a quiz on your best performing landing page, leading to your newsletter.
7. More focus on content marketing and SEM
It's not just SMBs that have had to go more digital in recent months; competing large companies have also invested more resources in search engine marketing and digital content.
This means that otherwise quite free niches such as podcasts, video webinars and guides are now also occupied by companies with larger marketing budgets. All the more reason to invest in quality and smart strategies and find the perfect niche.
Conclusion - creativity and consistency prevail
Post-pandemic marketing will reveal, above all, which companies have learned the right lessons from the crisis and which companies believe they can carry on as they did in 2019.
Only by learning to live with the changes and using them to your advantage will you truly future-proof your marketing strategies on the web and social networks.
