Richard Gerretson-Cornell

As 2020 rolls on with a tremendous amount of uncertainty, both consumers and businesses are faced with the possibility of a COVID-19 second-wave of shuts downs across Australian cities.

With the growing costs of upholding a bricks and mortar store and the current Covid-19 pandemic, many businesses are closing up shop, only to reopen online.

As both a consumer and a strategist for a leading digital marketing agency, I have been fortunate to look at this Covid-19 pandemic from two very different views.

Who would have thought that in 2020 we would have seen such significant changes to our lives, almost overnight? These changes have seen many businesses heavily impacted by lockdowns across the globe.

As technology continually changes and adapts, so too do the opportunities available for marketers.

Attracting customers in today's digital age is no easy feat. With a multitude of factors that contribute to a brand's online success, effective web design is one of the most important. 

Since launching in 2000 and attracting only 20 million searches a day, Google Ads (previously called Google AdWords) has grown immensely, now attracting over 3.5 billion daily searches and equating to roughly 40,000 search queries a second. 

While the online era has definitely impacted the way consumers interact with brands, it may be surprising to know consumers still visit physical stores and establishments.

Although labelled as a buzzword, the 'digital transformation' has made an immense impact in many areas of business, including the insurance industry.

It is with no doubt that the digital age and online environment has had a major impact on the retail industry in recent years. While foot traffic into physical stores declines, online shopping and e-commerce sales have grown massively.

As the Oculus Rift, HTV and other virtual reality (VR) headsets increasingly creep into our homes and the augmented reality (AR) app phenomenon, Pokémon Go, took over our smartphone screens in mid-2016, VR and AR technology has been hot on everyone's lips.

In Australia, the education industry is a $121 billion market and according to IBIS World has expanded at a faster rate relative to population growth in the past five years.