It cannot be denied that 2020 is the year when each of us tried our best to live our best lives. When the coronavirus becomes a global pandemic and has been affecting the entire world, most of us have been struggling and try to cope with conditions rather than thrive. But this does not apply to everyone. Since people across the globe rely more heavily on online products and platforms as they are forced to socially distancing, a lot of technology companies behind those offerings have actually thrived for the last 12 months. In fact, this is yet their best year.
It is something that is clearly seen this week during the Web Summit. Web Summit is the largest technology conference in Europe that is virtually held for the first time this year. When CEOs, politicians, top executives, and even a number of celebrities gathered together to openly talk about the conditions of technology, the companies that have flourished gave a clear picture about the growth in their sectors.
Josh Silverman and handmade goods website Etsy mentioned that their sales roughly doubled to $10 billion this year. Anne Boden said the pandemic has given the transition to a cashless 10-year jump. On the other hand, Will Shu, the chief of Deliveroo estimated that the coronavirus global pandemic has accelerated the application of online food delivery by 2 to 3 years.
The Comes of Age
During his talk with Lance Bass of NSync, Steven Galanis, the CEO of Cameo described celebrities rushing to his video shout-out application when the global pandemic hit. When the international travel and entertainment industry are forced to stop, the app gives them a way to make money, as said by Galanis. It is also probably related to something to do with their spare time. The CEO of Cameo mentions that the marketing platform is quickly reaching success.
He described that many influencers have been using the app to provide paid-for greetings for their fans. It is more than a conventional brand partnership. Caspar Lee, Jeffries’ co-founder, who is also known as a famous Youtuber, mentioned that creating content during this global pandemic became quite tricky. It is because a lot of his videos are made outdoors on the spot. But regardless of these challenges, Lee has seen a great boost in engagement: a 67% increase in likes and a 50% increase in comments.
The market shrunk for travel influencers, people who make content about fitness and food have seen huge growth, as said by Caspar Lee. He also added that it became easier and more seamless to set up a collaboration with other YouTubers who live in different places as everybody is working from home. Lee also said that it was quite hard to collaborate with people in the States. But during this pandemic, it is possible to do that.
While some people are launching profitable careers, others have switched to technology platforms, including eBay and Etsy to make a little money. Many people utilize Etsy to sell their products and services, such as crafts and handmade goods, while eBay is useful for people who want to offload taking up space in homes. Jamie Iannone, the CEO of eBay said that when people think of goods at their houses that are worth 4000 USD, they bring a very distinctive kind of inventory onto the platform.
People also prefer to browse for used items as their effort to purse their purse strings. Instead of buying brand-new products, buying used items saves a significant amount of money. This is the reason why eBay launches a new certified refurbished one. It gives an award in the form of a 2-year warranty, money-back guarantee, and 30-day hassle-free returns. The program also allows the purchase of products from various brands.
People also buy kinds of things that they suddenly need when they are home during the global pandemic. From eBay, such items include home gym equipment and desks. While for Etsy, the items are mostly masks, as said by Silverman as the Etsy chief executive. There are also people who suddenly need equipment for newly discovered passions or starting their hobbies again. Besides these companies, there is another tech platform that has been flourishing this year, which is Zoom. As you know, most people in the world use this app to take care of their businesses. Even students use the app for online classes.
