COVID-19 has led to the rise of many unexpected trends in the business world. Some of these trends were always around, but many of us had not adopted them in our businesses.
Doctors have advised us to learn to live with the virus which has pushed us to align with the new ways of doing business. Here are some important things businesses should adapt to if they want to thrive in 2020 and beyond.
Work from Home
Governments placed lockdown measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus. This pushed businesses to have employees working from home.
Corona does not look like it is leaving any time soon. Many businesses have realized this and have started adapting to the new system.
Working from home saves businesses a lot of money as some office expenses have been cut down.
As businesses, we must make sure that all employees can work comfortably from home.
This is by equipping them with computers and WIFI, with some companies adopting a document scanning service to help share them digitally. Ensure that all workers have access to fast internet since many activities will be done over the internet.
Wireless Payment
There was an increase of about 20% in the number of contactless payments. This number was pushed by the fear of contacting coronavirus which can be transmitted through contact.
Many buyers now prefer using credit cards and other mobile payment methods to pay their bills.
Many businesses were not ready for this trend and had to undergo losses before they adjusted.
We as businesses should make sure that we have all the necessary equipment required to carry out transactions through credit cards and debit cards.
We should also have mobile bank accounts which allow customers to pay through their mobile phones.
E-Business
COVID-19 led to the closure of many businesses around the world. This was caused by government directives which required everyone to be on lockdown.
This pushed many businesses to test the waters in the online market. People still needed products and the only businesses available were on the internet.
It is now time we as businesses embraced the internet. We should have user-friendly websites which our customers can access with ease.
Ensure that all products pictures uploaded on the business website are visible and well described. Customers should also be offered various payment methods to make payment easy and fast.
Home Delivery
Currently, there are very many businesses battling to survive in the business world.
Businesses are now adopting after-sale services to keep their customers happy. The home delivery service came to prominence in 2020 as many people preferred ordering goods through the internet.
E-businesses deliver products to the address of delivery. This gave a challenge to brick-and-mortar businesses and many had to immediately adapt to the new trend.
As businesses, we need to have delivery vehicles and motorcycles which can carry any load of goods bought. It is also important for us to charge friendly fees and, where possible, offer free delivery to customers within our business location.
Advertisement
Research shows that about 70% of the world’s population is aged below 35 years. This generation is known to be on social media for the larger part of the day.
Many businesses were able to make use of social media to advertise their products in the last year.We as businesses should research the most influential people in social media.
These are the people who can help advertise our products on social media. Advertising on social media will enable us to reach a larger population compared to other advertising methods, and usually at a lower cost.
Smart Offices
COVID-19 made it very difficult for us to conduct our usual business meetings. It was very difficult for us to leave our countries and, at times, our towns.
This pushed us to create smart offices which allowed us to carry out our businesses as usual. Others may have to go through a similar process as time goes on.
Smart offices require us to have computers, cameras, and access to fast internet. We as businesses require to have all these pieces of equipment to carry out successful business meetings with clients from any location.
Employee Happiness
Research shows that businesses perform better when employees are happy. It is important to make sure that our employees are happy to improve performance and maintain business secrets.
We can do this by giving employees off days, allowances, and a better working environment.