For over a year, the world has witnessed unparalleled challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This once in a lifetime hardship has brought global leaders and business leaders together to combat the pandemic’s adversities and strategise to move towards normalcy. Despite the global challenges, we must survive in this turbulent wave and continue to fight for a successful recovery plan in the post-pandemic world.
To focus on a specific sector and driver of the Indian economy, let us look into the tips and methods for the Survival and Revival of the Consumer Tech Sector as vaccination drives against COVID-19 are in full swing across India.
Survival and Revival of Consumer Tech – Overcoming COVID-19 Challenges
As the vaccines are being administered on a pan-India level, the recent announcement by the government that allows companies to inoculate their employees and their immediate family is giving hopes for survival and revival to the business world. Health economists believe that India’s immunisation programme can contribute to economic recovery, as it is expected to improve working conditions for staff through health and vaccination programmes like workplace vaccination.
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In addition to the economic recovery driven by vaccines, the Indian consumer technology industry is also at the forefront of exciting change and expansion.
In consumer tech, the popularity of internet and networking technologies, the availability of the Internet of Things (IoT) and the benefits of cloud and analytics are becoming essential drivers for the industry’s survival, revival and subsequent growth. In a post-pandemic world, consumer technology companies will face significant challenges in reaching out to new-age consumers with hyper-personalised services across a multitude of media.
Tips for Survival and Revival of Consumer Tech Businesses in a Post-pandemic World
In the ‘new normal’ of the post-COVID era, consumer goods and technology companies must revive and secure their future by turning competition into an opportunity as well as introducing new business models.
Adapt to Changing Customer Preferences
As consumers globally respond differently to emergencies like the ongoing pandemic, their consumption patterns change significantly. Today, consumers are looking for safer, more reliable and more sustainable value products for environmentally friendly experiences, including the communities they live and work in. Your consumer tech business must cater to this emerging trend in a post-COVID world for revival.
Transform Your Supply Chain
Current events have drawn customers’ attention to constantly evolving products and their strategically added value. This potentially creates a significant competitive gap in the consumer goods market. To adapt to this change and fill the gap, widen your consumer tech resource bank and rely on more technology-driven sources rather than offline producers. This will incentivise the digitisation of the entire supply chain.
Rapidly Shift to E-Commerce
To do this, set up your e-commerce website or enter into a purchase agreement with an online marketplace to ensure that your products are available 24×7. The current crisis is forcing consumers to explore different sharing and consuming options. Accelerated changes in e-commerce and the transition to local commerce are the future of consumer tech.
It is also believed that e-commerce will bring many benefits to small and medium businesses. As the market expands, overcoming regional barriers will offer a playing field for SMEs to compete with more prominent players. Consumers generally benefit from healthy competition between MSMEs and corporate entities. The pandemic has opened the gates for e-commerce in the consumer goods segment, and striking a balance between demand and availability is fundamental for consumer tech businesses’ survival and revival.
Post-COVID Revival – A Focus on MSMEs
Many customer goods vendors engaged in supplying non-essential goods and services (such as electronics, clothing, etc.) do not have the sources to continue their fixed business expenses such as rentals, wages, EMIs, etc. As a small business in the consumer goods and technology segment, one way to support your small e-commerce platform is to get permits for non-essential products to be delivered while maintaining hygiene and social distance.
On the administrative end in the sector, reforming foreign investment rules, strengthening regulatory coherence and ensuring the sector’s proportional control can also go a long way in promoting the growth of smaller players in e-commerce and, therefore, in consumer tech.
Survival and Revival – A Vaccine Away
Many workers are engaged in the consumer goods and technology sector’s informal economy, including manufacturing and production, logistics and other parts of the process. Public vaccination will contribute to rejuvenating the economy of the industry.
Vaccination against COVID-19 is expected to wipe out the fear and instil confidence in the workforce and SMEs of the consumer goods and technology segment. This will increase their participation in growth and development and effectively revive the overall Indian economy.
