There’s no doubt that the impact of the pandemic will be felt for a very long time for advertisers. Many brands are afraid of doing much with their advertising dollars. Major advertisers have already announced how much they will be losing due to the coronavirus, those numbers go well into the billions.
As time goes on, brands are starting to come back out and spend some of their money again, but in a very different way. The crisis has already altered consumer behaviors significantly, prompting shifts in how people use technology, e-commerce, live streaming, e-learning, gaming and online grocery shopping.
Here are a few predictions on how advertising will change after the pandemic is long gone:
In-housing will change to hybrid working
In-housing has been one of the biggest trends of the last few years, and brands are increasingly turning to consultancies for help building teams successfully. After the pandemic is long gone, we should expect to see this trend continue to rapidly grow. Companies will begin working more with agencies than in house experts.
Digital and Social Media Advertising will expand
Digital and social media marketing was accelerating quickly even before the pandemic started. Businesses and companies are now utilizing these tools a lot more and we can expect to see this trend expand even after the pandemic is long gone. According to a BBC article, “Advertising executives are now working out where to spend their limited budgets online – not easy when the explosive growth in apps like TikTok means there are more and more places to spend what money they have. But there is one added bonus – it seems likely that older generations have used the lockdown to increase their use of the internet, and can therefore be targeted more effectively online.”
Brands will become more Customer Centric
Now more than ever, the world knows how important it is to remain close and connected to everyone in order to avoid extreme seclusion. This trend is said to continue long term. As consumers, we have all been isolated, quarantined and working from home for several months now. Many people are going online to connect with family, friends, and even colleagues. Facebook has reported a 70% increase in video calls using Facebook Messenger since the start of the outbreak. Brands are now aware that they need to be there for their consumers in order to make them feel safe, connected and supportive. After the crisis, advertisers will continue to increase their budgets in social media and community building. More money will be shifted from TV to digital channels.
Whether brands like it or not, the advertising space has changed as a whole since the pandemic started and the way things are looking, it will continue to change as time goes on. For the future, advertisers will need to carry on with finding new ways of brand building and adjusting to the current needs of their consumers.
Author: Laci Johnson
