How Has COVID-19 Impacted The World Of Digital Marketing?

Digital marketing has grown to be one of the most commonly used forms of marketing over the past few years. Expanding its horizons to the entire world, a single digital marketing software, as of 2019, was expecting $65.9 billion from mobile ads alone. However, after the world got hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, a lot of questions arose, including – “Will digital marketing survive?”

The pandemic was soon to hit all the world’s economy. By March alone, 1-in-6 Australian companies were facing the repercussions of the economy’s downfall. By May, Australia managed to see a 6.2%+ increase in unemployment. However, if there is any industry that has managed to get back on the ground during the presence of coronavirus, it’s the digital marketing industry. 

The new world – the digital world

As of July 2020, we’ve observed that every event, big or small, is moving to be on digital mediums. With Zoom as the crux of every office meeting, conference call or even a digital event’s management, everything in the world is currently moving to the digital sphere. Social distancing and nationwide lockdowns have brought about the need to be away from all friends and family, no matter how dear.

Although the process doesn’t seem all that difficult on the first go, at the end of the day, humans are social animals. We all need human interaction to stay and feel alive. Not doing so is capable of leaving you with mental scars from overthinking. The idea of moving minor office interactions to video calls is majorly done to allow all employees, be it the boss or the junior that’s just joined the company, to all feel comfortable and a part of the company. 

Digital media has been thriving over the time of the pandemic for this reason. At this point, all humans are dependent on digital mediums to stay in touch with their loved ones and reality. 

However, as we know, before we dive headfirst into the humane need for social gatherings, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs specifies how it’s much more important to meet up with the economic needs to even consider social needs. If an individual doesn’t have enough finance to stay in a safe and stable environment, they might not be able to survive for very long. 

This brings us back to our topic – the impact of COVID-19 on the world of digital marketing. Many businesses, be it local or global, have had to move the distribution of their products and services online. This includes businesses that believed they could survive on traditional means of marketing. 

As of today, traditional marketing now ceases to exist. Digital marketing has expanded its sphere of influence furthermore, reaching out to every local business or entrepreneur that needs help. For example, if a local retail outlet chooses to continue functioning through traditional means, not only will they end up losing out on all of their money but might also end up shutting down. A digital presence in the times of today is much more important than ever before. 

What you can do to stay in touch with digital marketing strategies today

Why do we emphasise on the need for digital marketing while there is a pandemic going on? Well, the simple answer is the need for survival. We want to help you grow both your company and yourself. Amidst the panic, it’s necessary to stay grounded and keep one’s mind free of distress. 

The pandemic has forced individuals to sit down and work from the confines of their home, restricting access to all activities that can be accessed from the great outdoors. This has left them with mainly their mobile phones and laptops, no matter what they try to get into. For news access, content, audio/visual content, games, etc. everyone, all over the world, is constantly streaming. 

Due to the sudden change in customer habits, it’s important to improvise and adapt to the current scenario if you want to survive. The benefits of digital marketing can only be realised after its implementation. However, to help you stay in touch with the possible pros and cons, we’ve built a list of recommendations that you could keep in mind while asserting a digital marketing strategy for your business, today:

• Before you dive headfirst into the implementation of a digital marketing strategy, you need to understand its purpose. Are you hoping to simply expand from traditional to digital marketing to keep up with the times? Or are you hoping to use this as an opportunity to grow?
• Evaluate your funds. Do not dive into the world of digital marketing without a complete understanding of how grand of a digital marketing strategy you can afford. Before you invest, it’s important to consider the well-being of your employees and your company. Besides, you need to stay updated with the current revenue trends, traffic gained, etc. If you don’t have visibility, you need to gain it now.
• While understanding the purpose, success and funding of your digital marketing strategy are quite important, it’s also important to sit down and consider what your company has to offer. During the pandemic, a lot has changed. Retail stores have gone digital, restaurants have initiated online deliveries and much more. It’s important to understand where your company stands within this particular spectrum.
  

If you are a clothing store that earlier held several retail outlets through the city, it’s time to shut down the stores and move your stock online. Reach out to the customers over the city that still wants your products but is hesitant to move outdoors. Similarly, if you are a restaurant that believes in providing an ideal atmosphere for all of your customers, it’s time to build that convenience within the delivery box. Take the extra step and add in some condiments or a special addition that sets your restaurant’s deliveries apart from the rest. It’s the time to ideate and form a solution rather than waste time on lost days.

• If you’ve been working with digital marketing strategies for a while now, you must be well-versed with the strategies and processes. However, it’s important to stay updated with the times. For example, if you’ve been focusing more on technical SEO, it’s time to change it up and focus on content marketing. During the time of the pandemic, the content consumption has almost doubled (if not more), worldwide. Understand the mindset of the audience and counter with measures of marketing automation, content marketing and social media marketing. During these times, these strategies are the crux of a well-knit digital marketing strategy.

At the end of the day, it’s important to remember that all of us are in this together. The misery that accompanies COVID-19 will pass soon and even then, we will stand with each other (metaphorically, of course!). This is the ideal time to work with digital marketing agencies that hold beneficial offers for all new clients and more. The times of today are not for profit, they’re for survival and working together. It’s important to be one for consideration and an open heart to truly be able to benefit during these troubling times. 

Guest article written by: Kiara McColl is a content manager at Clickmatix digital marketing agency, where she gets to do what she loves doing- writing and managing content with smart digital marketers in the company. She also has expertise in web marketing, search engine optimisation, social media, affiliate marketing. Her strong passion for technology always drives her to explore the changing trends in the digital industry and making people know about it through her blogs.