3 Ways COVID-19 Pandemic Changed the Media Advertising Industry

When a major crisis or dramatic event occurs in the world such as the COVID-19 pandemic it impacts the core of the advertising field.

Here we bring you a few of the major changes that occurred over the past year which forced a fast shift in advertising strategies

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1. The major shift in customer behavior

The way people purchase has changed dramatically since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic due to people’s safety concerns regarding their health. These concerns meant consumers adopted new standards and preferences for physical shopping, taking into account their distance from stores and the density of people within it. This has also affected customers’ brand loyalty; people that stayed loyal to their favorite brands for many years suddenly found themselves without their usual products when looking to purchase them in local stores. This encouraged customers to try new more available brands and possibly shift their loyalty altogether. People’s new ‘stay home’ lifestyle also meant that they were now spending a major chunk of their time online. According to emarketers report regarding the Coronavirus impact on users digital activity- “This year, the numbers of live video viewers, video game viewers, and subscription OTT users are growing faster than we expected.”

People’s new lifestyle leads to them seeking more convenient ways to shop without leaving home, resulting in a major increase in online shopping. According to Ali Amarsy, SVP of global product strategy at Publicis Commerce at Google “ COVID-19 has catapulted us into the future. In 2020, global e-commerce sales growth jumped three years in the first three months of stay-at-home mandates, with a share of overall retail matching 2023 predictions. In the U.S. alone, more money was spent online during April and May than the last 12 Cyber Mondays combined”.

2. Embracing digital advertising

The change in people’s lifestyle during the pandemic meant that people are exposed more than ever before, to online content and advertisers needed to adapt quickly and shift their ad buying to the digital world. The new reality encouraged businesses to adopt the digital world and realize it will be leading the advertising future. In order to increase sales, many businesses have adopted strategies such as ‘live chat’ and video calls, two strategies that emerged as significant ways to close deals during these pandemic times.

3. Advertising strategies changes

While some advertisers continue to focus on brand awareness, many others have developed a preference for direct purchase campaigns that increase sales a foreseeable move during financially uncertain times. Another change in strategy has been noticed in the type of advertising messages. In the past, many advertisers avoided news related content within their ads. However, the pandemic reality became so significant in everyone’s day-to-day lives, causing advertisers’ content to change accordingly and focus more on current events and combine those into advertisements. Here are examples of some of the best digital advertisements which relate to the COVID-19 pandemic:

The type of products consumers are buying nowadays has also changed, affecting advertising campaigns. During these days people want products relating to their new lifestyle, meaning a large number of purchases are for household utilities, food and hygiene therefore advertisers are promoting these types of products more than others.

To sum up. This year has impacted people’s lives in many ways, we have learned new things about ourselves and our coping mechanisms, and discovered that challenging times often bring a surge of creativity which has definitely been adopted by advertisers this year. We have had to adapt quickly, as individuals and as professionals. I believe some of the changes we’ve seen this year such as the rise in digital use and e-commerce are here to stay. The pandemic has forced an incredible digital transformation that would have otherwise taken years, reminding people that there is more than one way to communicate, shop and do business.

SelectMedia is a full-stack technology solution that provides a holistic solution for publishers that makes direct deals easy with a simple setup. Established in 2012 by a veteran team of digital advertising professionals, SelectMedia partners with the industry’s most respected publishers and advertisers and is widely considered one of the most trusted videos and mobile technology platforms globally. We are always improving our technologies and focus on delivering the right solutions for our clients.

This article was written by Julie Nevo, Project Manager and Technical writer professional at SelectMedia.

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