It isn’t just the customer-facing aspect of business that is changing. Here are the top 10 trends that will drive every business in 2021. This will be a big trend in 2021 that will allow businesses to acquire capital easier than through traditional channels. Starting in 2021, the companies that ‘win’ will understand they must deliver bespoke experiences to prove to their target audience they’re truly customer-obsessed — and invest in modern, advanced tech to prove to their teams they’re dedicated to helping them succeed today and in the long term. Reem had plenty of advice to share with other large organizations looking to digitally transform with a pure-play CDP during our joint MarTech Conference 2020 session: “Take the time to identify the roles of people who will be using the CDP. More localized manufacturing and selling are also appealing for environmental awareness. Are offices still needed? Many companies also use execution tools like journey orchestration platforms and campaign management systems that are limited in their data scope and narrow in their activation. Looking beyond decision-makers’ improved thinking and approaches regarding tech investments, their reshaped stacks and modernized mix of tools will also lead to a newfound ability to drive true digital transformation across their businesses. Here are a handful of the business trends to watch in 2021, from the widely predicted to the little-discussed— as predicted by The Economist’s The World in 2021 publication. Bernard Marr is an internationally best-selling author, popular keynote speaker, futurist, and a strategic business & technology advisor to governments and companies. Three investment trends for 2021 After a chaotic year, there is hope for a happier, healthier and refreshingly normal new year – even on the stock market. With 2021 almost here, we thought to share some business trends we see taking shape in the coming months and offer advice to help executives and technology users accelerate their data-driven initiatives, advance their digital transformation efforts, and ensure success in the year ahead. In 2021 and the years ahead, business leaders and tech decision-makers (e.g., marketing ops) won’t ground their martech decisions not with checkboxes to compare features. Toss 2020 to the kerb and start the new year strong with a portfolio of investment trends. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. Increasing agility in ways like this will be paramount for leadership at companies large and small. When COVID hit, companies that prioritized strategic enhancements — to their people, processes, and technology — were able to withstand the worsening business conditions. As discussed in the recent webinar I co-hosted alongside long-time CMO advisor and strategist Elizabeth Shaw, operational efficiency is arguably the most important metric when it comes to business technology evaluation today. Therefore in 2021, businesses need to reimagine their own workspaces as well as provide the proper support for people working from home, such as outfit them with the right office equipment, mental health support, and more so everyone can work from home comfortably. Along with this will be engaging influencers and micro-influencers in your industry—those key people who are driving conversations and engage with your customers. Despite the human and economic toll taken by the coronavirus, 59% of business buyers expect their company’s revenue to remain steady or increase next year. Statista reported that global e-commerce will grow to about $5 trillion … The businesses that are currently thriving even during a pandemic are those that reacted quickly to the changes. Factoring in the massive drive and demand for digital content: without a second doubt, a business must stay ahead of the marketing curve in 2021. Trend 1: Drug Development Revolution with Advanced Covid-19 Testing & Vaccine Development Covid caused a … Business Trends 2021: The Bottom Line. This also requires an investment in systems that can efficiently and effectively process, analyze, and store the data streaming into the organization. You may opt-out by. Globally, it is about $204 billion worth. Ultimately, this "try before you buy" with virtual interfaces will transform how businesses offer their services. The Gig Economy. Over the last few years, data volumes have grown massively. Involve them from the very beginning, build your super-user community, put the plan together for your change network and make sure they are provided with the right content and education to keep the journey and adoption of CDP going.”. With first-party data guiding their strategies in 2021, business technology users can improve the effectiveness of everything from their omnichannel marketing strategies and multi-dimensional segmentation efforts to predictive model deployment and digital product and experience offerings. Data Discovery/Visualization. “Successful businesses will focus less on accurately predicting future years in advance. Another top business trend in 2021 will be automation. A sought-after speaker and industry voice, Cory’s work has been featured in Venture Beat, Wired, AdAge, and AdWeek, as well as spoken at conferences such as FutureM, MITX, and the Association of National Advertisers. Sustainability has been a concern for some time, but during the pandemic, things shifted in emphasis. International shopping has affected by the Covid-19, and many people have got value within their communities. The 2021 Topics and Trends report shows that lifestyle topics and trends for the UK, Canada and the United States revolve around the home, reflecting the reality of life in a pandemic. 2021 Small Business Trends [00:00:00] Hello, and welcome to another episode of the duct tape marketing podcast. Learn how to measure digital customer experience at the individual level by integrating Decibel's Digital Experience Score into BlueConic... advance their digital transformation efforts, first-party data is becoming increasingly important, bracing for the impending cookie-less future, third-party cookies will no longer be available, first-party data guiding their strategies in 2021, especially valuable resource for marketing, unified, persistently updated customer profiles, identity at the heart of their engagement strategies, compliance-oriented master data management systems, companies that prioritized strategic enhancements, Take manufacturer Belgian Cycling Factory (BCF), operational efficiency is arguably the most important metric, recognize the importance of efficient operations, strategic value a technology will provide, drive true digital transformation across their businesses, during our joint MarTech Conference 2020 session, Reducing Your Reliance on Third-Party Data, Exceeding Customer Expectations: A Team Effort, Ensure the consent status for all individuals (e.g., those who’ve opted in and out) is, Eliminate any data-related barriers in the form of. The 10 Biggest Business Trends For 2021 Everyone Must Be Ready For. Many are getting laid off and Top Economists are predicting the worst recession since the Great Depression. “Successful businesses will focus less on accurately predicting future years in advance. Remote Work on the Rise. … If you would like to learn more about technology trends, then have a look at my new books: Tech Trends in Practice: The 25 Technologies That Are Driving The 4th Industrial Revolution and The Intelligence Revolution: Transforming Your Business With AI. This insight from Forrester VP, Principal Analyst Brian Hopkins aptly explains the mindset business leaders must have in 2021 and beyond: Be as agile as possible. Late last month, Gartner Inc., a leading research and advisory company, announced its predictions for the top strategic technology trends that organizations need to explore in 2021. “The … Instead, they will become the kind of company that can adapt as events unfold.”. Determine which of the above business trends … So if you’re starting a business in 2021, it helps to know the relevant trends. Why does B2B marketing trends matter for any business? Businesses across industries still rely on backward-looking databases like data warehouses and compliance-oriented master data management systems. There have already been quite a few shifts in this direction from warehouses, supply chains, autonomous vehicles, trucks, and ships, as well as chatbots that automatically take over customer service inquiries. To comply with stay-at-home orders, people would use virtual avatars to "try" on make-up, eyewear, and clothes. If you are a company that sells its products or services to other businesses, you would know how the B2B marketing trends for 2021 are going to evolve, post the setback through this … In 2021, I expect that white-collar automation will be a trend as we consider what bits of a lawyer, doctor, or other white-collar professional's jobs can be given over to computers and smart robots and delivered through automated interfaces. All in all, BCF was able to shift to this new direct-to-consumer engagement model with BlueConic at the heart of its data infrastructure and technology stack. E-commerce Is Dominating. Increasing business agility has always been important to executives. One solution for raising capital has been crowdfunding, blockchain technology, and other decentralized finance options. Instead, they will become the kind of company … Artificial Intelligence and Business Intelligence. As a futurist, I help companies understand the latest trends and technologies and offer guidance on how to prepare their businesses for them. For a number of reasons, some companies were more successful than others. In 2021, there will be a big push toward a more authentic presence on social media and one that's less curated by social media experts, such as real behind-the-scenes looks at a company. Our pure-play customer data platform, for instance, enables modern marketing organizations and other growth-focused disciplines to store their first-party data in unified, persistently updated customer profiles and send that constantly refreshed data to their activation systems whenever they so desire. For example, restaurants that pivoted to enable expanded take-out abilities or Formula 1 companies that were producing ventilators altered their typical operations to ensure survival. Therefore, every company needs to rethink operations, environmental impact, and their products and how they are being used. Small business trends for 2021: Two-way communication, empathy and shopping local. Learn the Top Social Media Trends for 2021 He. I think it's been a little while I'm going to do . After witnessing so many beloved … IDC’s Technology Trends For 2021 VR environments will increasingly be used by online retailers to provide immersive, feature-rich shopping experiences. Take manufacturer Belgian Cycling Factory (BCF), for instance: The economic and business climates are murky heading into 2021. Before joining the BlueCrew, she was an analyst at Forrester Research where she covered business and consumer technology trends and the fast-moving marketing tech landscape. Some companies experienced an increase in productivity when their workforce went remote. 2020 was a whirlwind and our challenges will stay with us into 2021. As a result of the economic turmoil COVID-19 left in its path, capital markets continue to be nervous. This trend of sustainability links closely to the previous trend of a meaningful purpose as companies work to reduce their carbon and water footprint. SEO is constantly evolving through the years. Request a BlueConic demo today. But the innovation and adaptation displayed by businesses — from SMBs to enterprises — has certainly been inspiring to see. It’s a big thing for small business across BC, and the trends hope to continue in 2021 … Dependence on these tools prevents business users from efficiently analyzing, segmenting, modeling, and activating their first-party data whenever and wherever they need. In 2021, every business leader needs to reflect on what they're offering customers and how they operate as a business. November 20, 2020 . Leverage these four emerging business trends to give your business an edge in the new year. However, working from home wasn't ideal for others. And that list includes BlueConic customers, who have been able to adjust on the fly amid the pandemic, thanks in large part to the agility our customer data platform affords them. Financial forecasts are always important, but during uncertain times they’re critical. Bad debts. A barrier to achieving greater agility for many companies, though, is continued reliance on legacy technologies and the lack of an advanced solution, like BlueConic, that enables greater data access, utility, and confidence for teams across the organization. Below is a summary of our 12 Days of Insights, detailing what our leaders believe will shape the path into 2021 … That finding, from The 2021 State of IT: The Annual Report on IT Budgets and Tech Trends … However, … Cloud solutions allow us to access data from anywhere. Why don’t you connect with Bernard on Twitter (@bernardmarr), LinkedIn (https://uk.linkedin.com/in/bernardmarr) or instagram (bernard.marr)? 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