Lockdowns and social distancing have forced changes in the way all of us conduct business, forcing a mass migration to digital solutions.
Face-to-face meetings with clients and teams have shifted from being in person to online mediums like Zoom or Skype. And companies all across Australia have boosted their digital engagement with customers on multiple platforms.
Managers of companies buying and selling goods and services have found themselves adapting to a new world we describe as phy-gital - blending the advantages of digital communications technology and trading platforms like TradeSquare with more traditional means of doing business like attending trade shows and meeting with sales representatives - the normal way we worked in pre-Covid times.
The effect of going “phy-gital” has helped people in business remain human by blending the old-style physical nature of business with the new generation of digital means of communicating and trading.
Using technology to boost interaction
Monash University defines phy-gital as “the concept of using technology to bridge the digital world with the physical world with the purpose of providing unique, interactive experiences for the user”.
Ideally, phy-gital makes the shopping experience so effortless that customers don’t even notice that their life has become easier, explains Mike Welsh, Chief Creative Officer at digital consultancy Mobiquity.
“Removing the frictions from a user experience is our specialty. And we truly think that in the post-Covid world, the line between physical and digital experiences will be so blurred, that users won’t even recognise the difference,” says Welsh.
One of the critical points about going phy-gital is recognising it is a blended solution - not just a matter of embracing digital channels as a substitution for traditional means of communicating with customers. The adoption must be seamless and - as Welsh stresses - largely invisible.
Customers - whether end consumers or wholesale buyers - were exposed to digital messages and experiences last year more than ever before, via social media channels, communication from online trading business platforms like TradeSquare, email or app-based multimedia messages. The companies that used those platforms to personalise their interaction with customers are the ones who reaped the greatest benefits from using them.
How engagement makes a difference
During a time when physical interaction has been limited for weeks at a time - either by government decree or consumer preference - retailers like Allgifts Australia found benefits from embracing online channels to engage with customers, as distinct from bombarding them with impersonal messages.
"Being able to communicate with customers via email and our website has made a big difference to our business," the management team of Allgifts told us. “More and more customers who are very time poor are using our website so they can order any time of the day that best suits them and we can keep them up to date with out of stock items, new products and special offers.”
Ryan Clancy, of candles and diffuser maker Scarlet & Grace, is another supplier who became a firm believer in going phy-gital last year, embracing digital channels during the pandemic to complement its physical presence.
"We have further developed our online presence, bolstered our social-media representation and now we are using a brilliant platform TradeSquare."
At Olive Oil Skin Care Company, the digital focus was on expanding Facebook and Instagram presence, according to boss Frank Granziera.
Winning back lost time
There is another benefit from going phygital as Holly Evans, owner-operator of Creek and Bay, a design store in Seaford, Victoria, has discovered since joining TradeSquare to sell Australian-made, owned and or designed products the company purchases from manufacturers or wholesalers.
“TradeSquare minimises my screen hours by giving me access to well-known brands without the hours of research, lengthy application processes and long wait times normally involved in sourcing products,” she says.
“What would normally mean hours, if not days of waiting for applications, communication and portal registrations before even making a purchase was done in a day, I received regular shipping updates and my stock arrived quickly.”
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