The world will never be the same again. Covid-19 has been a complete game-changer, and nothing is what it used to be. As the world has been brought to its knees, the aftermath of the pandemic is now beginning to unfold as people try to adjust to the new remote reality of 2021.
The marketing industry has also been deeply affected. New changes to consumer’s mindsets and buying habits were born during these difficult times. How quickly marketers were able to adjust their content to match this new buying journey determined their success. As the remote reality becomes the new normal, marketers should adapt their content to guide their brands toward the future.
How should you adapt your content creation efforts to fit the remote reality of 2021? Here is how.
New Habits
Humans are hard-wired to stick within the safety of what is known. They like to operate within their comfort zone and follow the same habits day in day out. However, the new remote reality is forcing people to form new habits and embrace new ways of doing their everyday business. They prefer to do their grocery shopping online, they browse the internet for online clothing stores, and the option for home deliveries is becoming more and more significant. Every brand must now behave like an e-business, and marketers should treat their content as such.
How should you adapt your content creation efforts to fit with this new remote reality? Marketers must focus their attention beyond standard marketing strategies such as SEO. They must find a way to drive traffic back to their main site, and the site must allow them to complete their sales there without having to visit an actual physical store.
As lockdowns are enforced, and businesses are forced to remain closed, marketers must find a way to push sales forward through their content while physical stores are closed. A company with no online store, and no home-delivery option, will be left behind in the competition as buyers will swiftly search elsewhere for the product they need.
Social Distancing
Humans are social creatures. This new remote reality is forcing people to isolate themselves. Social distancing, while enforced at the beginning of the pandemic, is now becoming the new norm. People are wary of going out in public, and psychologists estimate that more people will develop agoraphobia. According to a Harvard study, more people are showing signs of this disorder even as lockdowns are removed.
In our inability to form real physical bonds with other humans, people will turn to remote relationships to fill the emotional void. This will accelerate the rise of virtual influencers. Virtual influencers are non-human alternatives to traditional influencers, and with the use of AI, these ‘personalities’ become alive and form strong bonds with your readers.
Savvy marketers have adapted their content to this new remote reality and create virtual influencers and characters who form strong bonds with their buyers. These virtual influencers are not extravagant personalities who dazzle your readers with their luxurious lifestyles. Far from that. The new virtual influencers are ordinary “people” who share your readers’ pain points, anxieties, and worries. They understand what it means to struggle emotionally, financially, mentally to make ends meet and survive another day in this era of uncertainty and isolation.
So how do you adapt your content creation efforts to fit the remote reality of social distancing in 2021? You study your buyers. You craft accurate buyer personas, and you turn your personas into virtual influencers whom your buyers can connect to.
Shift in Values
The new pandemic has brought a shift in values and priorities. Buyers understand how temporary everything is and how things can change from one day to the next. This has resulted in an existential crisis, an emotional shock, that has left people with an intrinsic and intense desire to be better and do better. Their desire to make a tangible difference in this world, become less self-centered and reach out to others less fortunate than themselves has left an impact on how they view brands.
Buyers are looking for brands that embody their new ideals, and they will trust a brand that is giving back to society. To adapt your content efforts to fit the new remote reality of 2021, you need to create content that adds value to your brand and shows that your brand has a meaningful and robust purpose that stretches beyond sales and profits.
Your content should show the humane face behind the brand. It should show that your brand is genuinely interested in the well-being of its consumers and is looking to relieve their pain points and add value to their lives while at the same time helping society bounce back from the aftermath of the pandemic.
Relevance
Now more than ever, buyers are seeking content that is relevant to their new remote reality. They do not seek joyful ads; they do not want to see extravagant videos; they do not wish to know how a trip to the Bahamas can make all your problems disappear. Let’s face it. None of us is sipping Pina Coladas on the beach, and creating content that sees the glass overflowing is a recipe for disaster. Buyer’s journey is not what it used to be, and you need to adapt your content for this new change.
When you try to adapt your content creation efforts to fit the remote reality of 2021, you must remember to remain relevant. Not pessimistic; relevant. You can stay optimistic and show your buyers that things can only get better without being overtly joyful and out of touch with how the pandemic has brought the world to its knees.
Final Words
The new remote reality of 2021 has changed the way content marketing was traditionally created. In order to stay ahead of the competition and push your buyers through the sales funnel, you must meet them where they are and not where you wish they were. This means you must adapt all your content creation efforts to fit this new remote reality. Treat your business as -commerce, create virtual influencers whom your buyers can connect to, show that your brand offers value to society as a whole, and remain relevant.