Ever since the Covid-19 pandemic hit the whole world a few years back, we have lived in this so-called “New Normal” where everything is now fully digital. Since Filipinos aren’t tech-forward, we initially had difficulty adjusting. The current global situation caused many challenges for Entrepreneurs and even established corporations nationwide. But not anymore. Find out why Filipino Entrepreneurs went fully digital.
New Normal
Due to the World Health Organization declaring a global health crisis, the Philippine government decided to implement strict lockdowns until further notice. The roads were empty, most businesses were closed, and only hospitals and a few essential establishments were opened. People thought this would only last for a few weeks, but it eventually dragged on. Entrepreneurs needed to find ways to keep their businesses afloat even if their brick-and-mortar has halted operations. With no specific timeline to when the pandemic will end, this became a signal for entrepreneurs to go fully digital.
Everyone had to adjust, and many traditional businesses had a 360-degree change of their company. They started creating Facebook and Instagram pages, doing live selling on social media, utilizing e-forms and signatures, and creating websites. Clients who preferred face-to-face transactions needed to embrace digital ways of doing it. It is an adjustment that everyone in every industry made. They have called it the “New Normal.”
Why Filipino Entrepreneurs Finally Focused on Digital Selling
If we think about it without looking at statistics, a simple answer is that they had no choice but to adapt. The longer explanation is this:
Filipinos are Online 24/7
According to Statista, The Philippines is top 12 on the most number of internet users around the globe, with a whopping 79 million users as of 2019. That is more than half our population. So we can see that the internet is now being used for everything and by everyone. In addition to this, the same source also says that we are online for almost 11 hours per day. Not to mention that when we were on a strict lockdown due to the pandemic, the only thing people could do was browse the internet. So imagine how many hours we spent on the internet during those times. This shows that the market is online so businesses should be too.
Have a Wider Range of Customers
Word-of-Mouth referrals are now also digitized. Instead of just talking about a product or service with friends over coffee, we turn into creating product reviews on personal accounts or blogs or leaving google reviews, where more people can see. Marketing advertisements can now reach hundreds of thousands of potential customers in different parts of the country because people can share them on social media. The publication materials are not confined within the four walls of a brick-and-mortar store. One can even choose to target globally via Google Ads. The internet world is your oyster.
To Minimize Cost
For the most part, the internet is like a rent-free home for brands. One can easily create a social media page for people to find you. Posting marketing materials are free using templates in free editing apps and websites. When choosing to promote your brand using services like Google Ads or Facebook Ads, it might cost something but not too much like a traditional campaign. The overall cost for starting a business is minimal than building a physical store. This is why setting up a brand’s online presence and creating a website is now one of the priorities in starting a business.
The Beginning of the Online Selling Hype
Customers utilized the internet for buy and sell purposes way before the pandemic started, but it lacked the credibility to get more people using it. As more people trusted the internet, branded E-commerce platforms came into the picture as time went by. Customers started using them to buy things they couldn’t find in the store or if they wanted to avail a discount available only on the site.
An excellent example of the rave on E-commerce in the Philippines is Sulit.com.ph back in 2006, which rebranded to OLX.ph for a merger, and now Carousell, one of the largest marketplaces in the world, acquired them and became their name brand. People initially prefer these platforms since they have a high authority website and customers can easily reach out to the buyer before a sale comes through. It increased the credibility that customers were originally seeking.
Before Sulit.com.ph, many B2B and B2C brands were already doing business online. The internet has always been a place for trade and commerce, but only a few have maximized their use. As more people become digitally literate, these sites started gaining higher traction, and that is when the internet began attracting entrepreneurs of all industries. They now had the luxury to tap different markets by selling online while having a physical store. This created a massive demand for web design companies to ensure you get the best for your brand.
Why Did They Only Choose to Start Now?
The convenience that these companies have created was something most people did not realize at first. We took advantage of the fact that we could go to different places to buy different things. Now that we live in the “New Normal” where everything is within a push of a button, Entrepreneurs who went digital finally have the upper hand in the market. SMEs have the platform and the market to rise to the charts and hope to land the spotlight. As of today, there are a lot of websites and apps in the market. A few of the most used and highly talked about, Shopee, Lazada, Zalora, and now even Facebook Marketplace has joined.
Today, many Filipino entrepreneurs prioritize creating a website for their brand. This is because they have seen the growth it gave to SMEs, and they have more assurance in companies that have a website. Trusted website developer, High6, is a top choice by famous brands when looking for the right company to build your website. One of their specialties is Ecommerce websites. They create custom websites that reflect your company in the best light while ensuring high sales volume. A few Ecommerce websites they have created are Cravewell and Kumusta Mart so if you visit their website, you will see how the design really complimented the online store system created by High6.
Now that Filipino entrepreneurs went fully digital, they’re handling their business in the safety of their own homes as we can receive their products also inside the welfare of ours. We are now looking at a more convenient and accessible living here in the Philippines.