With the disruption brought on by COVID19, there were many losers, winners, and some concerning, yet promising insights.
Our Worldcom Public Relations Group partners consistently deliver groundbreaking information to benefit brands worldwide. This month, they brought in an expert in tech and emerging media, Jeff Cole. Jeff is a research professor and director of the Center for the Digital Future at USC Annenberg School for Communication. As a master in media and communication issues globally, Jeff continues to serve as an adviser to not only leading companies but governments alike.
As many of us anticipate the next disruption or wave, Jeff and the Center of Digital Future have conducted deep analytic research to uncover how entertainment, sports, media, and banking will survive and how they will be affected. Beyond the discovered trends, the Center works one-on-one with industries to effectively create policies and implement the necessary changes to overcome challenges and stay alive.
It’s no secret that many industries lost revenue and momentum due to the pandemic. After much analysis of 2022 data and insights, Jeff highlights the biggest winners and losers in social trends, media, and products, coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic:
Top Winners
- Zoom brought schools and professionals a sure, safe, and fantastic way to continue life from the comfort of their homes.
- Labor restaurants and housekeeping offer great sign-in bonuses due to labor shortages. In addition, unions and automation have become the norm for many.
- Amazon became a lifeline for many people to receive their essentials and other items safely.
- Streaming platforms such as Netflix have been catering to viewers with new weekly and monthly content as if they were ready for a pandemic before it started.
- Telehealth now has a 75% utilization rate and an 85% satisfaction rate. People are opting for doctor appointments via webcam to prevent being stuck in traffic and avoid the commute and wait time, among other benefits.
Top Losers
- Cash: store clerks disliked accepting cash and checks, and some flat out would refuse it to prevent the spread of germs.
- Mental health had probably one of the worse outcomes. The pandemic forced people to be confined to their homes and deal with the subsequent feelings of loneliness and anxiety.
- In-person shopping took a deep plunge due to the mass fear and lack of hygiene.
- Facebook was also one of the losers, with its value plummeting to 70%. Facebook as a brand and how they do advertising are still not regarded as favorable.
- Business travel also took a plunge, transforming meetings and conventions that would usually be held in hotels into Zoom events.
It is also important to note some of the more prominent industry contenders, despite COVID-19 being taken into account, were electric vehicles, such as Tesla and chip manufacturers. The production of chips skyrocketed during the pandemic as demand increased, created for coffee makers, phones, computers, and cars — items that we all use daily.
Regarding employment and how we work, people nowadays want a 60% hybrid workweek despite bosses wanting their teams in the office. It is speculated that there will be many battles between workers and bosses and their new expectations. Even though 85% of people are satisfied with their jobs, 75% love the work culture, and over 65% want a new position in another industry. The pandemic was a time of great self-reflection and has shifted what people want.
To conclude, most people want to spend their time and money on traveling, new adventures, creating memories with their families, and continuing their education. All of these wants and needs must be reflected in their jobs and the media they consume.
As members of the Worldcom network, we have quick and unfettered access to the resources of more than 80 global partners in 49 countries and six continents to work together in designing and implementing communications strategies for all key stakeholders. Contact us to learn more about what our comms advisors can do for your business.
*This blog post was written by Laura Rentas Giusti, Senior Comms Advisor & Head of the Communications Practice at DuartePino.