Savvy entrepreneurs and business owners always look forward to what the future has held for them. The rising markets and new challenges imposed by the pandemic have also placed the businesses in a gloomy situation. But that has not stopped the bright leaders from pursuing their dreams and embracing the change. We are now in the second half of 2020, and businesses have started to accelerate with the combination of technologies and new strategies. The current year has been quite uncertain for companies because of the pandemic. However, people have started to convert the challenges into opportunities and began to adopt the new normal.
Staying on top of the trends has become critical for every business around the globe. The sudden transformation in the business landscape has affected the companies in different ways. Long gone are the days when businesses had to rely on traditional practices to get off the grounds. The technological advancement and challenges imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic have revolutionized the industries within months. The sudden shift now emphasizes technology usage, employee and customer safety, and many other factors. With that said, let’s discuss significant business trends that you should be looking for in 2020.
- RISING ONLINE RETAILERS
There has been a dramatic increase in online retailers offering contactless delivery to ensure safety from the pandemic. Business owners quickly shifted from the brick and mortar services to online retails. It is the distinctive trait of the business owners to adapt to the situation and define efficient solutions. However, different professional degree programs like master of business online train experts to adapt to the ongoing trends strategically.
Moreover, people are also taking advantage of these online retailers rather than the brick and mortar stores. It has become extremely crucial for businesses to maintain their online presence and provide the services online. Now with most people staying at homes, they would prefer to place orders on their smartphones.
- REMOTE WORKING
One of the significant trends that spread around the globe is remote working. As soon as the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 a global pandemic, many businesses rushed to discontinue the traditional office working and ordered remote working. The remote operation was crucial to maintain the social distance to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. Moreover, the government authorities also imposed lockdowns to contain the virus’s spread, which also motivated the business to shift their operations remotely.
On the other side, remote working has proven countless benefits for business owners too. Mainly it saves the workspace constraints for the business owners since the employees have to work from home. Those businesses that cannot afford the workspace can opt for remote working for the hired employees. Moreover, technology has also improved employees’ functioning with the availability of centralized server systems, video conferencing, and more. Even after the pandemic situation, it is expected that most businesses will prefer this norm due to benefits.
- ADOPTION OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Artificial intelligence has been the main topic of businesses in recent years. In comparison, its importance has increased even further in 2020. AI has proven to be the most reliable and affordable solution to businesses. Whether it is the adjustment in marketing or customer behavior, artificial intelligence considerably assists companies in making decisions. Not just that, but AI can also help in staying ahead of the competitors in the markets. Many businesses are using AI chatbots to communicate with their customers and analyze their data for better services.
- PERSONALIZED CUSTOMER SERVICES
2020 is the year of the internet. Now, most of the customers expect personalized customer services from their favorite businesses. The personalized customer experience is designed to improve customer engagement and retention with the company. For instance, if a customer visits your business’s website, he/she must be offered the content of his interests. Avoiding personalized customer content can increase the bounce rate of the site, thus lowering sales.
According to research, customer personalization can increase the digital business’s profits by up to 15%. Customers never like to spend countless hours searching for the right item on the website. The modern customers prefer those businesses which offer personalized customer services.
- USER REVIEWS
User reviews are still considered king in the digital world. However, the trend has picked up the pace in 2020. User reviews are one of the top factors for building customer-business trust. Whenever a customer visits the website, the first thing they look for is user reviews. Many reports have suggested that 92% of them hesitate to purchase zero reviewed business. Every business is required to strive harder for user reviews rather than spending resources on marketing.
FINAL WORDS
Technological advancement has reached global business and replaced traditional practices with powerful and improved tools. The current year was quite uncertain for many companies, but it also opened new opportunities for these businesses. On the other side, change can be hard at the start, but it is utterly worthwhile with time and planning.