Thinking differently and acting differently as a data-driven organization.
The new year will be a turning point. 2020 will forever be the year where industries, economies, and livelihoods were turned upside down. But 2021 is a bittersweet opportunity for businesses to reevaluate fundamental technological, marketing and software perspectives. COVID-19 effectively negated most forecasts for 2020, rendering carefully predicted expectations essentially null and void. The non-medical shockwaves of the pandemic will continue to reverberate this year into next, with shutdowns and store closures all but guaranteed to continue until a vaccine is widely available. The only thing certain is to expect more uncertainties. But retailers must meet this new year, and new challenges, with new tools.
Consumer behavior has changed over the course of the pandemic in ways that will become the new normal. In fact, 35 percent of Americans plan to avoid traditional in-store shopping altogether, and the concept of browsing will continue to shift to a more transactional approach that mirrors e-commerce convenience and directness. But that doesn’t mean that people have stopped shopping. Despite a potential economic turnaround in 2021, the National Retail Federation estimates retail sales will actually rise to $656 billion and online sales to jump to $117 billion.
The biggest challenge for brands in 2021 will be maintaining and creating digital brand loyalty while leveraging ecommerce technology to optimize conversion. This requires a full omnichannel experience. As consumers will tend to engage with brands across a wider variety of channels and devices, online and IRL experiences become more similar.
While solutions like buy-online-pick-up-in-store and curbside pick up have become de rigueur, the digitization part should have been part of the game plan already. Just four years ago, 75 percent of U.S. retailers said there was already a dire need for digital transformation — it’s the latter selling to consumers that will be the most difficult to capture.
Brands will have had nearly a year to overwhelmingly digitize their preferred consumer experiences across omnichannel platforms, which boils down to digital marketing investments and brands overtly becoming technologically savvy consumer data-driven organizations to market to and sell to consumers. As always, with a new year comes new trends, yet in the past this has always skated by on at least being able to project based on previous years.
In 2021, what worked in the past won’t necessarily work in the future. The new year will need a new set of tools at a retailer’s disposal to optimize conversion.
RevTrax’s Offer Management Platform will allow brands to automate the creation and distribution of their promotions while also providing a unified view of consumer data and mitigating fraud with patented security solutions. To capitalize on this year, RevTrax AI capabilities will help brands correctly target much-needed consumers to right the ship, automatically delivering each consumer the lowest offer amount needed for conversion; while incorporating Predictive Purchase Data can comb previous behaviors resulting in a rise in new business, repeat customers, engagement, and other desired metrics. The most innovative tool, at least from RevTrax’s perspective, is the newly announced Universal Mobile Coupon for CPG brands and retailers that makes it easier for brands to track individual consumer engagement, protect against fraud and deliver a safe, seamless and contactless consumer experience.
The continuing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic will be felt throughout the new year. It’s nearly impossible to predict what happens next, or to get a peek around the corner. While the uncertainty of 2020 forced brands to become agile in embracing ecommerce channels, brands will have to continue that speediness to roll out new technologies and better ways to meet a shopper’s needs once the new normal just becomes normal again.
The bottom line for 2021: RevTrax’s real-time solutions and AI capabilities change offer-values across consumer segments with various engagement levels, ultimately driving sales for brands that they need to thrive.
Interested in learning more? We would love to help with your promotional marketing needs. Learn how RevTrax’s solutions can help your brand prepare for 2021 by speaking with a specialist today.
