When Covid-19 struck, businesses worldwide were forced to reconsider their strategies to keep up with shifting customer expectations. As a result, businesses hurriedly embarked on digital transformation initiatives to make their products and services available online. This was mainly due to mass lockdowns mandating brick and mortar stores and physical locations to close down and cease operations.

However, the successful deployment of the coronavirus vaccine is expected to reopen the world's schools, businesses, cultural venues, and public spaces shortly. Still, most experts predict that things may never be the same as they were before the outbreak began.

What the "new normal" means for businesses

When pandemics and large-scale disruptive events sweep through societies, they have a lasting impact on the critical structures present in these societies, such as the healthcare systems, economic life, communities, and even family life.

Once the Covid-19 pandemic is resolved, we are all about to enter into what people are referring to as the "new normal." Just as the phrases "prewar" and "postwar" are frequently used to describe the 20th century, future generations will likely discuss our current eras as pre and post-Covid.

But what does all this mean for businesses? Well, if one thing is for sure, the pandemic has brought technology to the front and center of most organizations' strategies, to a point where the successful implementation and utilization of these tools is now one of the most essential aspects of their operations.

Granted, even before the pandemic, businesses were looking towards technology to engage with customers, enable workplace flexibility, and introduce automation and more efficient processes. However, the spread of the Covid-19, as well as the banning of in-person meetings for non-essential businesses, has hastened these adoptions dramatically as it forced companies to explore innovative digital solutions to continue to operate remotely and serve their customers.

Many organizations adopted a customer-facing and even a behind-the-scenes approach to digital operations. Due to the inability to congregate in groups, many professional organizations and schools have had to develop innovative ways for people to interact, cooperate, and accomplish a job or school project while collaborating remotely. On the other hand, consumers have shown an interest in obtaining services with little to no human interaction, pushing for remote (or at the very least contact-limited) operations from a customer-facing perspective.

In many ways, you could argue that Pandora's box has been opened, and now consumers across the globe will continue to expect and demand the convenience of digital transactions for their products and services. With this in mind, many experts believe that the new normal will be far more tech-driven than many people have anticipated. Let's look at some of the techs that are expected to play a significant role in the coming years.

Collaboration tools

As people have become more disconnected and isolated than ever before, collaboration tools have soared in popularity. With the use of these tools, businesses can continue as usual despite the lack of regular face-to-face meet-ups. According to Owl Labs, 52% of global employees work remotely at least once a week, and this number looks set to continue rising even after the pandemic has drawn to a close.

Software such as Slack, Zoom, Trello, Asana, and Basecamp is expected to become a critical part of business plans to support distributed teams for years to come.

Immersive eCommerce

91% of eCommerce CMOs believe their brand's revenue will grow in the next 12 months as people become more comfortable ordering products and services online (thanks to Covid). Now, it seems that consumers will continue to conduct a large proportion of their shopping online, which means that competition will be as fierce as ever.

One way eCommerce stores are trying to keep hold of their new customer base is by introducing immersive sales experiences. In other words, customers can test products before they buy through various technologies such as virtual reality, augmented reality, and telepresence - thus further enhancing the consumer digital sales experience.

AI and data-driven insights

AI, machine learning, and big data have made waves in almost every industry over the past decade. Still, once again, the coronavirus has acted as a catalyst for the demand for these technologies. Now, companies want more data on their customers so they can offer them personalized shopping experiences where they will customize products, services, and even marketing campaigns to suit their needs.

AI and machine learning tech also help online stores recommend smarter recommendations, which leads to more sales, especially for larger retailers with millions, perhaps hundreds of items.

The rise of cloud computing

Finally, cloud computing has been on the rise in recent years thanks to the incredible flexibility and scalability it brings to businesses. Small businesses and large-scale enterprises have discovered that storing data in the cloud and using cloud technology for data analysis is far more cost-effective than doing it on-premises.

This enables them to invest their resources into other areas of business operations without sacrificing productivity or efficiency. In fact, cloud computing technology has many benefits over its legacy counterparts, especially for businesses with a sizable remote-based workforce, as cloud-based software and platforms are far easier to adapt and extend when necessary.

Final word

Even though the global pandemic seems to be nearing its natural conclusion, it's safe to say that we will not be returning to life as we remember it pre 2019. Over the past 18 months, people have become more comfortable with online shopping than ever before, and businesses have already invested significant sums into digital transformation schemes that they hope will continue to pay dividends.

While there will, of course, be some return to brick and mortar stores and face-to-face sales, we should expect technology such as collaboration tools, AI, machine learning, and cloud computing to continue to facilitate digital transactions into the foreseeable future.