Technology’s increasing role in work, play and staying connected has created new digital habits that will forever change the world’s economy. It is time to restart and think big to transform your business to meet these digital expectations.

Marketers must adapt to it to remain relevant and competitive in the changing landscape. McKinsey calls this the Next Normal. Our job is more challenging than ever because of the increased competition online, digital fatigue among our customers and their urgent need for real solutions.

Always start with the end in your mind

It can feel like everything is constantly changing. It would be best if you had a long-term strategy to tie everything together and enough flexibility to adapt to current events.

It was not an easy task to get from one end of the lake to another when I started learning to sail many years ago. The conditions could change quickly, so I had to move with them. From above, it may have seemed like my circuitous route was two steps forward and one step back. However, by trimming my sails and tacking right-left, I finally got to where I wanted.

Get to know your customer better

Over the past twelve months, there have been significant shifts in customer behaviour – including the adoption of remote work and schooling, video calling and online shopping for everything, from groceries essentials to garden supplies and even streaming our entertainment virtually.

Ask them. To get qualitative feedback on topics such as:

• What they do with your product or service right now
• What makes it work?
• In our current environment, what no longer works is irrelevant
• What other services can you provide?

Once you have this information, you can follow it up by sending out a survey to your larger email list and social audience. This will allow you to measure sentiment.

It’s all about the relationships

This is the right time to strengthen your relationships, regardless of whether you work in a B2B environment or B2C.

B2B marketers might use this to create a structured account-based marketing strategy or simply pick up the phone and check in with the people who are buying from you. Do not ask for a sale.

Consider how you could add value to your contacts. This is what you could do:

• Share headlines and research that you find relevant to your customer’s sector
• Invite your contact for smaller, more intimate events such as discussions or panels. They can ask questions and participate in the event.
• Short one-on-one conversations allow you to connect with thought leaders within the company
• Make content that addresses their concerns, and flags up new opportunities.

You can start to get to know your customers if you work in a B2C setting.

It takes time to make users friendly

Google’s Core Web Vitals the latest update to the search engine’s algorithms that prioritizes a user’s experience with your website. This May update will assess the speed, responsiveness, and visual stability your website. This will impact your search engine ranking.

This is the best time to start user experience work if you haven’t done it before. You don’t have to spend a lot of money to transform your entire online experience.

Take it one step at a. You can map out your ideal customer journey, and then monitor how customers follow it. To see how visitors navigate your site, you can use a tool such as Hotjar or Crazy Egg. Then ask them questions through a pop up survey to get their feedback. You can then fix it one at a time.