As the pandemic blows over, many people have been forced to change the way they operate. Individuals are not the only ones who feel the effects of it; businesses felt it, too. They have been forced to cope with the rampant digitalization around them.
For many, it is a cut-throat scenario wherein companies have to become more innovative to survive the sudden shift to e-commerce. Many notable companies have even filed for bankruptcy in the last year, such as Chuck E. Cheese, Muji, and JC Penney, to name a few.
Although many companies struggle to keep up with the need to be present digitally, this has created better opportunities for ventures to rise. This is due to the fewer resources needed to establish a shop. For example, there is no need to rent a place to open up a shop. You can operate your business by yourself and have a better chance of succeeding with the proper social media exposure. Entrepreneurs are given the incentive to become more flexible.
What’s Driving These Companies to Fail?
Due to quarantine restrictions, people try to avoid going out as much as possible to prevent themselves from catching COVID-19. This resulted in people relying on online services for their goods and other services. As everybody says, every company these days is a tech company. That’s true because of the transition companies are forced to make if they wish to survive the pandemic.
For more prominent corporations, this was no problem. Transitioning from traditional physical stores to an online store was easy. However, for small to medium enterprises, this was a problem. It isn’t inherently about making their services available online; it’s more about the fact that they’re pitted against corporations that have digitally transformed themselves. At the same time, these SMEs are still stuck in an outdated business model, creating cut-throat competition.
How Technology Steps In
Businesses are now forced to be more creative and be more effective in their business models. SMEs can still bounce back by utilizing available technology that has tried to help companies streamline their processes. It’s said that 62% of SMEs have increased their internet use to grow their markets during the pandemic. The use of online marketing has increased significantly over the year as well. Despite the cut-throat environment, SMEs are fairing well as they transition from trade solutions to e-commerce.
Many have been using the Internet to make their businesses thrive, such as using social media to advertise or using management solutions certification to streamline and boost its reliability. The use of technology also provides access to their customers by creating more payment options, from cash to digital payments such as cryptocurrencies, cards, and other digital payments that could be made.
Data science and analytics can significantly help businesses thrive and create models that better target their market audience. Customer service is also improved with the help of technology. It lessens the queue and enables companies to be in touch with their customers better.
The Future Is Digital
The transition of businesses from maintaining a traditional model helps speed up the upgrade to a digitalized world. Companies learning to adapt to the digital world increases the chance of their companies to survive the new normal. It creates an environment where their services will not be obsolete because of the outdated models. This, in return, creates a more stable flow for the company and its employees.
The use of technology has also been hailed for its ability to increase productivity in the workplace. Tech solutions in business are often optimized so that it does the heavy lifting for the employees. It results in employees focusing more on revenue-adding tasks.
It is no surprise that many have encouraged companies to become digital as it holds more convenience and efficiency for years. The pandemic also proved the benefits of digitally transforming business even more. There is no doubt that the current situation has made an ultimatum to multiple industries: that you are bound to fail if you resist technological advancements.
While many businesses still close down and fail to survive amid the health crisis, it is an important lesson for new business owners to adapt to the times and become more flexible in running their businesses. While traditional shopping is still sought after by many because of the shopping experience, it is still unknown when people can go back to normal. As the pandemic continues, the new normal will likely rely on digitalization rather than reverting to its old ways of marketing.
