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Post-COVID-19 Survey H2: The New Normal

COVID-19 has led to unprecedented changes in socio-economic conditions globally. Organizational priorities have reformed across the board, with key objectives and focus areas being re-strategized for the post-COVID-19 environment.

 

Management Events sought how the COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect the European business community and what restrictions have been implemented for the second half of the year to ensure business continuity. These surveys reflect the views of almost a thousand EU delegates and solution providers that joined us in transitioning from physical to virtual events due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Here are the responses.

 


 

The results show that at least 70% of the respondents will not be attending any external or physical events, despite companies not setting a clear policy.

 

As the health crisis continues, studies predict an increased demand for virtual event platforms. At Management Events, we strive to broaden your network by connecting your business to 20,000 top decision-makers and 2,500 solution providers. Join us at our upcoming virtual events.

 

 

Blanket bans among the EU Member States against international traveling have been in effect since the first half of the year 2020. The survey results show that over 80% indicated their organization placed restrictions against international business traveling. Consequently, ICAO estimates a record-breaking -62% decline in world passenger traffic.

 

 

Interests in international traveling increased as the situation seemed to improve in September. However, the infection rates rose again, resulting in a dip that is consistent with the resurgence of cases. Employees are encouraged to work from home as much as possible and only meet physically or work from the office on crucial matters.

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Business Continuity: How Industries Are Adapting To A Post-COVID-19 World

As countries ease restrictions and lockdowns, organizations are taking strategic steps to recover their business and revenue streams.

From the high adoption of virtual reality by the property industry to the increase of AR in retail, companies are accelerating change in many aspects of their business as part of their business continuity plan.

But first, what is a business continuity plan?

 

The Basics of Business Continuity

Every organization has a framework called business continuity management, or BCM, which identifies potential external and internal threats that can threaten the company.

Consisting of disaster recovery, crisis management, contingency planning and business continuity planning, BCM enables the company to effectively respond to an event and ensure the operation of critical business functions.

Business continuity planning (BCP) outlines protocols and procedures that ensure the continued functionality of the business during and after a crisis.

BCP often gets mixed up with disaster recovery, but the two are quite different. Disaster recovery involves the “recovery or continuation of technology infrastructure, systems and applications” while BCP covers all aspects of the business, including human resources, infrastructure, technology, contracts, and communication.

Designing a business continuity plan requires extensive steps, from business impact analysis and recovery strategies to plan development and testing. For examples of building a BCP, view this template by Sitel or Lumiform’s business continuity plan template for IT.

 

Recovery Steps After The Outbreak

Many businesses are still reeling from the effects of the lockdowns. But most are tackling the challenges by implementing innovative changes, which may become permanent fixtures of their processes.

  • Digital Transformation In The Property Industry

The real estate and property industry faced a big blow due to the coronavirus. Not only were there bans on open houses and limited viewings, there were also less people buying properties due to the economic situation.

“Market activity will be lower in the next couple of months. I won’t be surprised if sales activity could be down 30% or even 40% in the next few months.”

– Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist of the National Association of Realtors (NARS)

in Yahoo Money

Still, the sector is taking things in stride, shifting to online real estate transactions and digital closings.

For instance, New York real estate companies set up remote closing processes, including electronic notarization, e-signing, live video conferences, and money transfers for their transactions.

In Hong Kong and Singapore, virtual tours and viewings have become “a megatrend” that is accepted among buyers and agents alike. In fact, Hong Kong’s largest property agency, Centaline Property Agency, stated that virtual reality property videos helped to generate HK$100 million in April.

Additionally, online marketing is seeing more emphasis in the industry with the rising utilization of digital marketing automation, chatbots social media, and email marketing.

  • The New Manufacturing Normal

According to Statista, manufacturing shares the spot for the topmost coronavirus-impacted sector with the travel industry, seeing a severe impact on personnel, operations, supply chain and revenue.

On the upside, COVID-19 is the impetus that’s pushing traditional manufacturing ecosystems to be more agile, flexible and digitally enabled. As mentioned in a Forbes article, the sector is expected to experience five years of innovation in the next 18 months with high adoption of technologies.

Automation is set to be a top technology investment as manufacturers look to move their productions on-shore or near-shore. While off-shoring provides low labor and productivity costs, IndustryWeek believes that the advancement of robotics and automation “have drastically increased productivity across a number of manufacturing processes [which] can be easily reshored and deployed domestically].”

Aside from manufacturing processes, automation is also being utilized for task and order processing. For instance, IBM used an automated order management system to help a global manufacturer of contact lenses to maintain its supply chain continuity during the outbreak.

Internet of Things (IoT) is another manufacturing technology that is predicted to gain traction with a projected growth of up to USD 136.83 billion by 2026. The rise in IoT will in turn bring higher demand for a faster, more stable network, such as Vodafone’s Mobile Private Network (MPN) solution.

  • Digitized Retail Sector

The retail landscape, on the other hand, saw a boost in e-commerce and digital marketing as movement restrictions drove more retailers online.

Retail giant, Majid Al Futtaim, accelerated their online strategy by launching the e-commerce channel, carrefouruae.com. With more than 250,000 products, the online marketplace saw a ten-times increase in sales over a period of 10 weeks with average daily orders of 1,300.

China alone recorded online retail sales of $360 billion in the first four months of 2020, an 8.6% increase compared to the same period in the previous year. It’s evident that the upsurge of sales is not just limited to online grocery sellers, but expands to non-food e-tailers too.

“[T]here will be a further acceleration in the digital transformation of the retail sector, with the pandemic encouraging more people [to] experience online shopping.”

– Hou Yi, Freshippo CEO & Alibaba Group Vice President,

in FoodNavigator-Asia

Another expected post-COVID-19 retail trend is the use of augmented reality (AR) and artificial intelligence (AI), with the latter predicted to record $8 billion investment within the retail sector by 2024.

Shopify is a prime example of successful AR implementation, which saw a 250% increase in conversion rates after allowing its sellers to add 3D models. As for AI, My Beauty Matches uses algorithms to simplify consumers’ shopping experience by suggesting items from 400,000 products based on their past searches and purchases.

Other retailers, including ASOS, are also maximizing the benefits of these two technologies to thrive in the post-coronavirus world.

  • Online Security Concerns

As companies extend remote working to ensure business continuity, security risks have shifted from the fortified corporate landscape to the more vulnerable off-site areas. And cybercriminals are using that to their advantage.

According to a survey by Barracuda and Censuswide, among global businesses that are working remotely:

  • 46% have encountered at least one cyber security scare
  • 51% witnessed a rise in email phishing attacks
  • 49% expect a data breach or other threats in the coming month

However, contrary to expectations, cyber security spending is forecast to drop for the rest of 2020. Gartner, which predicted an 8.7% growth in cyber security for 2020, revised the value down to 2.4% while Barracuda revealed that 40% of surveyed businesses have cut their cyber security budgets to save costs.

Chief Technology Officer of Barracuda, Fleming Shi, calls the cost-cutting measure a bad move, seeing as more than half of the workforce is not properly trained to handle cyber attacks.

On another note, Gartner foresees an increase in cloud security, which is in agreement with Barracuda’s finding that 53% of businesses are moving their data to cloud-based models. Unfortunately, almost 85% of IT professionals expressed concerns about the vulnerabilities of remote cloud environments.

In an interview with Digital Journal, Chris DeRamus, the Vice President of Technology, Cloud Security Practice at DivvyCloud by Rapid7, mentioned that “Nearly 50 percent of developers and engineers bypass cloud security and compliance policies,” citing Zoom’s bypassing of common security features as an example.

To strengthen cloud security, he believes that engineers should “tackle cloud security flaws earlier in the build pipeline”, and further states that cloud identity and access management (IAM) will see a greater emphasis in the near future.

The above are just a few examples that show the beginnings of major shifts in various industries as organizations strive to recover from the outbreak effects and ensure business continuity.

As the year moves into the second half, there will undoubtedly be more innovation investments ahead, and more companies will be looking for better and more sustainable solutions.

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Creating Lasting Impressions with CxOs: Closing Sales in the Digital Space

As digital transformation is solidified, business leaders and salespeople are making the best of both virtual and physical spaces for their professional dealings. In fact, HubSpot found that 63% of sales leaders believe that virtual sales meetings are just as or more effective than face-to-face meetings. On the customer side, 75% of B2B customers prefer remote sales interactions over face-to-face, according to McKinsey.  

So, while the age-old skill of reading body language to gauge interest levels and finishing a meeting with a firm handshake can still play a part in your in-person sales meetings, the virtual space holds just as much promise.  

McKinsey predicts that hybrid sales strategies will dominate by 2024, meaning that salespeople need to continue honing their in-person skills while building up further virtual communication capabilities to ensure success.  

As a salesperson, how can you leverage the best of both worlds to make a lasting impression with CxOs and successfully close deals in a digital space? 

1. Network

The fundamental tool of any salesperson, networking has evolved in recent years to encompass both physical and virtual events. The refinement of virtual networking has rapidly solved the issue of distance for many professionals, enabling the creation of vibrant digital communities where people can make connections, work together, and share knowledge regardless of location. 

Getting involved in different LinkedIn groups, for example, can be beneficial when trying to establish a network of people in specific industries or shared interests. They’re already in the same space, ready to connect with you. This greatly increases the quality of contacts you can make and allows the easier establishment of relationships.  

Virtually networking also presents a larger opportunity to network with executives who are farther away – allowing you to break into newer markets – and communicate on the go. The digital space gives salespeople the opportunity for a more targeted approach to networking.  

Having said that, it’s important nowadays for salespeople to learn how to bring digital connections into the real world. For example, you could attend in-person networking events and connect with prospects that you’ve already linked with online. Meeting face-to-face after establishing a virtual connection is a great way to strengthen that professional relationship. The same can be done and vice versa – where you meet a prospect in-person and continue to strengthen that relationship in the digital space via LinkedIn or follow-up emails.  

Adopt a multichannel approach to networking. 

2. Be Active in Insights Sessions

More and more businesses are offering online events now that allow participants from across the globe or a specific target region to come together in a virtual space. From panels to forums, trend discussions, and knowledge sharing by experts – these are all excellent spaces for salespeople to not only keep up with the latest trends in their market but also to meet prospects.  

Of course, there’s no point in attending these virtual events if you’re not going to participate and be heard. As a salesperson, you need to make an impression. When you’re in a virtual space where you are either a tiny little box on someone’s screen or not even visible in the session, the only way to stand out is to speak up. Ask questions, offer insights, and talk about your own experiences where relevant. 

Being engaged in insights sessions with prospects is a surefire way to get yourself noticed. This will translate to prospects remembering you and therefore being more open to talking to you. That’s a foot in the door. From there, you’re free to work your sales charm and get a meeting! 

This can look like connecting with other attendees on LinkedIn who were vocal during the session by commenting on their questions or insights. Share your thoughts on what they said and start building a relationship with potential new prospects. 

3. Be An Excellent Listener

Once you’ve connected with a prospect and secured a meeting, you must continue bringing your A-game. As a seasoned salesperson, you understand the value of listening during a sales call. Online, you won’t have the ability to properly read body language. This leaves you with the alternative of clear and precise communication which can only be achieved with active listening. When you listen to your prospect with empathy, you will be able to ask the right open-ended questions to generate better discussions in your sales meetings.  

At the end of the day, people want to buy from those they trust and who they feel care about their well-being, understand their pain points, and actively seek to alleviate their concerns. This is the same both offline and online. Work at creating a lasting and memorable impression of yourself as a valuable business asset to your clients, not as a salesperson. 

Once you learn to effectively build trust by asking the right questions and matching their answers to your solutions, you’ll find that deals will flow like wildfire even during trying times.  

Check out our 5 Virtual Sales Meetings Tips to help you impress CxOs at your next meeting.

4. Maintain Confidence

Confidence in sales, whether face-to-face or online, will always stand to have the most chance of securing a deal. As businesses start to emerge on the other side of a pandemic – and are navigating an accelerated digital transformation wave – it is natural to uncertain in unchartered waters. CxOs may be more cautious with their investments and business strategy. As a salesperson, your job is to try and cut through that hesitance. 

An effective way to maintain your confidence is to plan out your meeting agendas and have a strong closing prepared when networking or during sales meetings. A well-thought-out closing strategy will help greatly in calming your nerves and being prepared for both expected and sudden client situations.  

As per The Ultimate Guide To Closing The Sale by Resourceful Selling, be a top seller by “remaining upbeat, even when dealing with pessimistic prospects.” 

“[Top sellers] don’t feel bad for themselves, even when a sale fails to close. They maintain enthusiasm by repeating positive affirmations to themselves, such as, ‘I will close the sale because I have the best product.’” 

For a further boost on how to ensure a successful virtual meeting with a senior prospect, check out our article on 7 Tips To Rock Your Virtual 1-to-1 CXO Meetings. 

5. Be Prepared to Handle Objections

You are probably familiar with objections. Facing these online can seem daunting, given the lack of body language cues and the ability to turn on your sales charm for prospects. However, learning to handle sales objections online can save you a lot of grief and time. 

A key factor in successfully turning around objections is to be prepared for them, especially since virtual meetings with prospects tend to be short. However, the added benefit of virtual spaces is that you can instantly pull up relevant information, stats, or case studies to address unexpected objections. Did your prospect ask a question you weren’t expecting? No problem. You can immediately look up the right information during the call to address their objection and turn it around. 

Embrace sales objections as part of the process and take it as a chance to nudge your prospects along their journey. Be on their radar to ensure visibility and make sure to follow up – with an email, perhaps with an in-person meeting to demonstrate your solutions in more detail. 

Read our article on How to Handle & Turn Around Sales Objections for more insights and tips. 

“It’s not your customer’s job to remember you. It is your obligation and responsibility to make sure they don’t have the chance to forget you.” – Patricia Fripp, executive speech coach and sales presentation skills trainer.   

In Conclusion 

We are firmly in the new normal and online meetings have become permanent fixtures in most organizations. Mastering the hybrid sales strategy means finding ways to leverage both in-person and virtual spaces to your advantage. Focus just as much on perfecting your skills in virtual meetings as converting your digital connections into the real world. Effective and efficient communication, especially, is a key differentiator that can significantly separate you from your competitors in creating a lasting impression among CxOs, closing sales, and enhancing your brand in the digital space.