25 Mar Services, Reinventing Business Models Up in Coronavirus Times
The coronavirus has indeed changed how global mobility professionals and assignees in northern California live, work, hang out with friends, take care of their health, and eat, mostly home-cooked meals these days. Having eaten inside food courts at Google’s campuses, those employees are missing their free 3-course meals daily.
Some industries, more than others, have suffered the backlash of closed businesses. The tourism sector is practically at a standstill. Restaurants are shifting to delivery systems to survive. Yet, perhaps as a silver lining, there are businesses that will emerge stronger after this crisis, due to two reasons: their services are increasing in demand, and/or they have managed to reinvent themselves and adapt to the changing business conditions. Take a look at the more resilient ones:
Healthcare and medical checkups
Many of the treatments that had been sidelined because of the prioritization of the coronavirus can expect a surge once people are allowed to gradually visit their doctors. A mother’s overdue mammogram exam, her child’s broken tooth that needs dental repair, and her husband’s diabetic condition—this entire family would trek to the nearest hospital or clinic once the government says it is safe to do so.
As Forbes says, radiology centers, medical insurance firms, dental clinics, and other healthcare service providers should be preparing themselves for consumer demand, with their medical teams and fully stocked cabinets standing by.
Marketer Neil J. Patel based his observation on the behavior of organic web traffic on numerous industry websites. All signs indicate that media and news sites are getting a lot of hits and views.
The skyrocketing figures show that people want reliable, accurate, and relevant information that they can use any time they need it. The coronavirus, its causes, preventive measures, and possible solutions are top of mind right now. Business owners are also tuning in or clicking to check how the latest medical update or political decision can further impact their embattled companies.
Food sourcing
Next to health, people want to find out how they can get food, especially if they have families. They are stocking up any chance they get to the groceries, to make sure their food supplies don’t run out. The entire supply chain of this industry, from farm to supermarket, is invested right now to fill shelves.
Video-streaming and electronic entertainment retailing
As Forbes describes it, people will look for home alternatives for the outdoor activities that they cannot enjoy right now. While movie theaters are struggling to survive, video-streaming services are enjoying a boom.
Netflix added 16 million new subscribers in the second quarter of the year, far above its projected 7 million. The obvious reason: the coronavirus shelter-in-place arrangements. The gaming industry has racked up both users and online usage, while basketball and baseball games have been suspended. Perhaps for lack of any sporting event to watch, the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls docu became the highest rated ESPN documentary.
With gyms and fitness centers considered a potential hub for infection, expect some tech genius from San Francisco any day now to create a virtual-reality exercise session designed to trim the fat and burn calories.
Data’s role in streaming
IBIS World names this sector as the unsung hero that supports the many sectors trying to survive during this crisis. They are indispensable to business continuity, storing and then sending the endless amount of data that enters its system every day.
They are responsible for streaming the news that we read online, and transmitting the information to the e-commerce sites that keep our food delivery going. They connect millions of gamers all over the world, and their digital libraries preserve all those streaming shows we just love to binge on.