How COVID Has Affected Performance Marketing

If one thing can be said about companies looking to remain profitable during the pandemic, it’s that agility is key. Many sectors have been affected including the performance marketing space. It is more important than ever that performance marketers focus on their customer’s needs and curate targeted content from trending verticals.

 Do Your Research 

During the pandemic, performance marketers have seen an uneven landscape however, there is still a lot of opportunity. Consumers are actively engaged in e-commerce and education verticals, specifically entertainment, fitness and online education courses. Conversely, there is a steep decline in consumer interest in the travel industry.

Furthermore, it is imperative to look into trending consumer behaviors and consumer data to make the next marketing decision. Flex’s Director of Email Marketing, Maria Loreta notes that COVID “guided the market towards new opportunities in the e-commerce and education sectors” and “while we lost some advertisers, we gained many others because the internet is always on”. Although consumer engagement has been narrowed to specific sectors, the e-commerce, entertainment and online education fields are performing better than they were pre-pandemic.

 Work Efficiently 

Performance marketing has not been excluded from the list of industries affected by the pandemic. With commissions being reduced around the board, it is vital that marketers make up for this loss by working efficiently. For example, Amazon cut referral fees by 70 percent in various product categories, such as beauty and furniture. Workloads have increased for performance marketers due to an increased demand for certain verticals and marketers must go the extra mile to make up for commission cuts due to COVID. More than ever, it is important for performance marketers to organize their time appropriately and efficiently to manage the increased workloads.

 Strategize

Now that a vaccine has become available to the public, smart marketers should build a strategy for life post-COVID. As quickly as the pandemic hit, it is equally important to swiftly pivot into new demands once things have calmed down. Forecast and see how consumer behavior will grow in the deflated travel and retail fields and build a plan for how business will rebound.

During such uncertain times, marketers should look to seize opportunities in trending verticals and keep pushing towards more stable times. If you need assistance with performance marketing, please contact sales@flexmg.com.

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