There is little doubt that the past two years have been a massive learning curve for business coping with a pandemic. However, there have been three key themes that have emerged which businesses of need to learn from to ensure they emerge fitter and stronger from the worst excesses of the pandemic.
People and culture matter more than ever
It’s no great secret that it is currently an employees’ marketplace, which means companies need to be acutely aware that finding ways of keeping good staff should be number one on their priority list.
People spent the pandemic working from home and reviewing what was important to them – family, balancing work life, working for a company that does good things and cares and others.
Companies need to stand for something that matters to their staff, treat them well in all aspects of their involvement with the company and show that they care.
The second part is working twice as hard to make the company culture, as it now has to transcend not just the building people work in but ensure that remote workers still feel part of the club! No mean feat.
Proximity to clients is critical
We all got closer to our clients during the pandemic. We could see into each lives quite literally, and it changed the conversation and the nature of the relationship as well. It became more personal.
We worked better together. Hurdles became smaller and output got better. We have all now becomes used to a closer and more productive way of working.
As we move to a new hybrid way of working, it is important companies ensure that they maintain this level of client intimacy. Failure to do so will mean that clients will receive less high quality and personalised output.
There’s a new marketing equation
There is a new way of evaluating marketing which has been accelerated by the pandemic. When the world stopped travelling and driving, for a brief period, the waters of our planet ran clear and the air was fresh. We walked and we enjoyed the environment.
The penny dropped for consumers that sustainability and environment matter. A lot.
The old marketing equation was about return on investment. There is now a new part to that equation, which is “what is the impact on the planet”. We need to start thinking differently about how to evaluate marketing. Money matters for sure, but so do we.
Steve Mattey is managing director of HH Global Interactive
