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SKYFALL? FIVE MARKETING TRENDS IN 2021 BY EUNICE GOH
Marketing trends for your marketing plans. No, I’m not referring to the James Bond movie. But similar to Skyfall, where Bond was put through both physical and emotional wringers, 2020 has been an emotional year due to the global physical lockdown caused by COVID-19. Global advertising spend is predicted to fall by 7.5% to US $587 billion in 2020 according to Zenith’s Advertising Expenditure Forecasts, and the global economy is expected to plunge into the worst recession since World War II. It’s not all doom and gloom. Zenith predicts that global ad spend will bounce back by 5.6% to $620 billion in 2021. Here are five marketing trends to look ahead for in 2021, as COVID-19 has shifted the way we work, live and socialse, likely forever. Digital Transformation The world is adjusting to a new lifestyle as COVID-19 fasttracked digital transformation. This has put the growth of e-commerce, video conferencing, virtual events, and Advanced TV on steroids. The growth of e-commerce has come fast and furious during the pandemic. There’s no turning back now since customers have experienced a wide range of products, special festivals, live streams and value-added services from Shopee, Lazada, Taobao, etc.
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Issue 48 I February 2021
Also, e-commerce platforms are aggressively pursuing major brands to set up virtual shops and even acting as consultants for brands and agencies for their e-commerce strategies. Examples include Lazada’s Preferred Partner Program with GroupM and the Shopee Media Agencies Partner Program with media agencies from the other ‘big five’ holding groups. Also, Facebook has just announced it will buy Kustomer to enhance its recent move to social e-commerce. Google and TikTok are partnering with Shopify to set up e-commerce hubs on YouTube and TikTok, respectively. The competition will intensify as Facebook, Google, and TikTok jump on the e-commerce bandwagon. Zoom fatigue is very real, especially for video conferencing and virtual events which lasted for hours! We human beings are social creatures; we crave in-person connection. On the other hand, video conferencing and virtual events encourage inclusiveness as more people can participate. Expect future events to be hybrid—in-person and virtual. For instance, The Front Row, Singapore’s first virtual fashion week supported by Enterprise Singapore, and produced by AP Media will be going hybrid next year! Audiences are increasingly turning their attention to Advanced TV, thanks to players like Netflix, Apple TV, Viu, iQIYI, Disney+, and HBO Max. This year’s trends have changed the TV
