Digital transformation becomes a digital revolution

It’s no secret that consumers have been gradually moving their lives into the digital space, with B2C eCommerce revenue growth year after year throughout the latter part of the last decade*. However, the impact of COVID has pushed eCommerce to facilitate years of growth in just a six-month period. The importance of British businesses to adapt digitally is as technologically vital as during the Industrial Revolution, with the goalposts moving and consumer’s expectations with them.

This change doesn’t only apply to eCommerce, and it has considerations for all businesses to make (both in the B2C and, even the B2B world). Investigating where your audience is spending time in the digital space is important, and can be achieved by allocating some time towards simple demographic market research. It’s time to be creative, and think about the best way to connect with your customers and prospects.

Source: Growcode: Ecommerce in the UK Growth & Trends

Humanising your brand

Your brand is key for any business, but even more so with the changes that the world has encountered throughout 2020.

Consumers and clients have lost their ability to formulate opinions of an organisations’ personality outside of the digital world before engaging with them. Enormous train station billboards have lost their foot traffic, and stores have lost their shop-window audiences.

Following COVID, it has never been more important for organisations to build an online personality, demonstrate what makes them different, what they stand for, and to invest more in their digital shop-window.

Humanising your brand in a way that represents what your business looks like and stands for, and building messaging that echoes it, is absolutely paramount for the future.

Finding your purpose, and your niche

While adapting to digital changes is key for businesses, it’s key to consider that you won’t be the only organisation making these changes, and competition will become a greater consideration with it.

Let’s consider the food industry for a second. Small restaurants across the country have had the ability to utilise Deliveroo or Uber Eats to reach customers even with their doors closed. But, as every restaurant adapts to this change, it’s become more vital for restaurants to think about introducing new offers, higher-quality food, and external digital marketing to promote sales.

Your industry is no exception, and understanding your niche has never been so important. What really makes you different? Are your products more sustainable than competitor brands? Has your CEO championed a social cause throughout their career?

Ethical purpose-driven marketing has become a focal consideration for consumers all around the world, and as Generation Z get older, start working, and become a new key demographic of consumers, this will become increasingly vital.

Recent socio-economic developments including public attitudes towards climate change and the global Black Lives Matter movement have also served to significantly propel customer’s expectations from businesses. Now, it’s more important than ever before to discover what you stand for, and amplify it in the right way to stand apart from your competition.

Building your strategy

Lastly, it’s time for you to consider what your business’ post-COVID marketing looks like. Do you utilise an internal team? Or do you outsource this to an agency? If you're looking for marketing support, don't hesitate to drop me a message.

And remember, keep your distance, but don’t forget to keep connected.