Today’s world is completely different than it was 6 months ago. The use of technology dramatically increased as people needed to stay home, and because of this, businesses needed to make all their advertising online. Online advertising has been beneficial in the past couple of decades due to the steady increase in new technological advances.

But what is happening to businesses with this spike in internet usage?

Before COVID, online advertising was very popular. There are many ads on television that are directed at the couch potatoes in the world, “call 1-800… save $20 off your order!” These ads saw an increase in profits once the stay at home order was passed in many states. Many other companies that did not usually direct their ads towards these people started making commercials. 

Other ads are going unseen- billboards, event ads, transit ads, and even exit signs that seem to tell you exactly what sounds good to eat or stay at for the night. Companies advertising through these methods need to find other ways to advertise, especially because the long term effects of COVID are not known. 

Before the pandemic, there was a large increase in advertisements overall. According to Shift to Online Promotions, a person sees about 5,000 advertisements per day. Because of this large number, a person notices and pays attention to about 6. Companies tried to be those six, but since people cannot go out to see the ad on the back of the bathroom door at the local gas station, their methods needed to change.  

An expert in the field of business who is also an educator in the subjects of marketing, accounting, and entrepreneurship, Greg Granlund, had a bit to say on the matter. He thinks that the business and advertising world will be changed for a long time. “Many companies are turning away from mass marketing and focusing on individual advertisements instead,” says Granlund. 

Companies have made a shift into advertising through social media instead of larger platforms. They are making ads that appeal to the individual such as where they are located, what content they look at, demographics, etc. These are very beneficial because of the spike in social media usage. 

Before COVID, online advertisements were analyzed. Here are the three that stood out to be the most beneficial: locational ads, videos without sound, and augmented reality ads. Augmented reality ads are popular in Snapchat and Instagram, where it creates a filter on the user’s camera, which includes an advertisement within it. In the response to the COVID pandemic, these three types of ads increased and became more prominent.

The world has changed because of the impacts of Covid-19 on the economy, technology, and business. Businesses are creating, developing, and mass-producing more and more ways to promote their products in this time of technology.

The best course of action to take in these trying times is to acknowledge these changes and how they will affect the entire population throughout the globe.