The Impact Of COVID-19 Pandemic On Organizations: A Literature Review Essay.

Impact on Brick and Mortar Retailers

The Covid-19 pandemic has spread in different countries and the populations of various countries are trying to adapt themselves based on the changes that have taken place in the environment. The brick-and-mortar or physical retailers have started losing importance in the last two years as the shoppers have shifted towards the online shopping activities. The organizations can aim at surviving in their respective industries by developing the online services that can be offered to the customers. The formation of an e-commerce presence and the functional website have been able to play a major role in supporting the organizations so that they can maintain their profitable positions. The websites can have an impact on the number of customers being attracted by the organizations and can also fulfil their needs from comfort of their homes (Akar, 2021). The growth of digital or online marketing has been an important aspect of the operations that have been developed by the organizations. The literature review will be based on detailed analysis of the impact that pandemic can have on growth levels of organizations and their positions in the industry as well. The significance of the online presence of an organization during the global pandemic will also be discussed in literature review in detail.

The covid-19 pandemic has influenced all the sector of economy in the year 2020 that includes movie theatres, processing facilities and the warehouses. The lockdowns that were implemented in different countries for the purpose of maintaining social distancing have disrupted the supply chains of the global organizations that operate in various industries. The pandemic is global challenge that is evolving in a huge manner and has weakened the health systems while posing great levels of risks to security and the global economy. The Covid-19 pandemic is considered to be a major health emergency that damaged the levels of public health and has increased the spread of various infectious diseases in different parts of the world. Growth of the global economy has declined hugely and this has enhanced the risks related to global recession and the levels of uncertainty (Brydges et al., 2021).

The disruptions in the supply chains, reduction on demands related to investment and consumption and weakening of the economic activities are able to affect the organizations in different parts of the world. The factors have tested the resilience levels of various economies, effectiveness of the international cooperation and the levels of governance. The overall trends related to the consumption of various products has been able to depict the changes that have taken place in the during the pandemic. The public health-related emergencies are mainly focussed on the behaviours that are depicted by the consumers, the psychology of consumers and the changes that can take place in the process of decision-making of the consumers. The pandemic can thereby reduce the development of countries and the economic activities and this can further inhabit the levels of consumption (Brydges, Retamal & Hanlon, 2020).

The trends that are depicted in various industries can also provide a detailed picture related to the influence that Covid-19 can have on the operations of the firms and the reduction that has been seen in their overall revenues. The employees were not being able to provide their effective contribution towards development of a proper production facility. The material-related shortages that are being faced by the organizations are considered to be another major aspect that has affected the strategies of firms during the pandemic (Xie & Youn, 2020). The organizations have started facing increase in the operating costs due to the issues like delayed delivery, cancellation of the orders and stagnation of the production process. The organizations had to deal with the compensation related to contact breach and insolvency due to which the production costs have increased hugely. The organizations have faced major levels of pressure related to the payments of the salary of employees, rent payments, settlements of the payable accounts and the repayment of loans (Castañeda?Navarrete, Hauge & López?Gómez, 2021).

Global Challenges and Risks for Organizations

The organizations have aimed meeting the challenges that are provided by the global pandemic by ensuring the implementation of decisive and agile ways. The opportunities related to recovery can be considered by organizations for enhancement of recovery levels and improving their position in the industry as well. The review of the decisions and actions of the organizations will also be considered to be an important aspect of the strategies that will be developed for maintaining the operations in post-pandemic environment (Chakraborty & Biswas, 2020). The businesses have aimed at taking steps that can help in capitalising the business operations and taking advantage of the opportunities that are provided by the market. Business resilience will have a positive impact on the strategies that can be implemented by the organizations for maintaining their positions in the industry. The businesses need to learn effective lessons for ensuring that they can face the crisis and can develop the strategies accordingly (V?t?m?nescu et al., 2021).

The future operations of the organizations will thereby be related to the disruptions that can take place in the organizations. The small businesses have faced major issues and challenges due to the Covid-19 pandemic and its effect on the economies in different parts of the world is also quite huge. Small businesses have always proved to be a backbone of the overall growth that has been gained by the economies. The job opportunities that are mainly provided by the various small business organizations are also huge and this has an influence on the contributions that are provided to the overall economy. The challenging development and macroeconomic situation have however reduced the abilities and revenues of the small business organizations (Chauhan, Banerjee & Mittal, 2020).

Online marketing is considered to be a set of the methodologies and tools that can be used for the promotion and advertising of the services and products through internet usage. Online marketing can thereby include wide range of the marketing elements that are better than the traditional business operations based on extra channels that are used as a part of these activities. The major benefits that are provided by online marketing include growth in the levels of potential, reduction in the expenses, elegant communications, better levels of control, enhanced customer service levels and competitive advantage. Online marketing can also be called web marketing, internet marketing and digital marketing. The effective programs related to online marketing can aim at leveraging the consumer data and improving the levels of customer relationship management or CRM systems (Cvik & Pelikánová, 2021).

Online marketing in this case can connect the organizations with the qualified customers and can help in enhancement of the business development process in a more effective manner in comparison to the traditional marketing. The online marketing strategies can also be helpful in raising awareness of the brand by establishing the online presence. The online market can combine the technical and creative tools of the internet including development, design, advertising and sales (Youn, Lee & Ha-Brookshire, 2021). The focus is mainly provided to the primary business-related models including e-commerce, affiliate marketing, lead-related websites, social media and local search. Online marketing has provided major advantages that include low costs and can increase number of reachable audiences within the fraction of the traditional advertising budgets that can allow the organizations to develop the appealing and effective consumer ads (Hasbullah et al., 2020).

Disruptions in Supply Chains and Reduction in Demand

The advertising platforms can also allow the scalable ads based on different levels of the reach that can increase the customer base of the firms. The consumers can research and also purchase the services and products during their leisure with the help of online marketing. The business blogs can also be used for letting the consumers and the prospects that can conduct the own research on products of the organizations. The effective statistical results that can be gained with the help of online marketing strategies can be helpful in the decision-making process of the organizations. The efforts related to business intelligence can also have an impact on the decision-making process of the firms. The online marketing platform of the organizations can also provide various tools that include email marketing, pay-per-click advertising, banners, integration of local search and the social media-related advertising (Kim, 2020).

The companies related to digital marketing can offer various services across the channels of online advertising by changing the offer based on individual needs of the clients. The consumers can be targeted demographically in a more effective manner with the help of online marketing strategies. The increase in analytical activities can have an impact on the products and services that are being provided by the organization and the strategies that are implemented as well. A major limitation that is related to the implementation of online marketing is mainly lack of the levels of tangibility that mainly means that the consumers are not able to the touch or try the products that they wish to purchase. Online marketing has however outsold the traditional advertising related activities in the last few years and the growth in usage of the online marketing strategies is continuous (Koch, Frommeyer & Schewe, 2020).

The Covid-19 pandemic has led to major levels of crisis for the fashion industry and the various organizations have aimed at using their assets for facing the challenges that are a part of the market. The factories of the organizations have been used for manufacturing masks or hand sanitizers that were further provided to the employees for solving the issues being faced by them. The fashion organizations have aimed at ensuring that the organizations can thrive and survive after the huge shock that has been provided by the pandemic. The quick actions have been implemented by the fashion organizations for ensuring that the continuity of business operations can be maintained effectively. The changes that are being implemented in the business model can play a major role in reducing the impact of disruption on the organizations (Ozuem et al., 2021).

The fashion and apparel industry of the US has faced huge challenges previously due to lack of proper levels of growth. The current situation is however not effective for the organizations to maintain their position in the industry and providing their products to customers as well. The offline retail was highly influenced by the massive levels of declines in the sales during the Covid-19 crisis. The retailers in different parts of North America have started shuttering the doors for the consumers and issues related to worker safety have also increased hugely. Online retail in fashion industry has however not been able to keep pace with the changes that are taking place in the business environment. The spending of consumers is expected to decline further due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the issues that have been faced by the supply chain. The fashion industry has however been successful in reinventing itself and this has increased the profitability levels of the organizations (Paul et al., 2021).

Challenges Faced by Organizations during the Pandemic

The brands and retailers that are a part of the industry have adapted themselves with the environmental changes and have also emerged strongly in the post-pandemic environment. The clear and frequent communication with the employees have been an important aspect related to the successful operations of the fashion organizations. The pandemic has led to reviewing of the strategies and the supply chain operations of the fashion organizations. The managers of the organizations can play a major role in ensuring that the distribution channels and the supply chains can be maintained effectively. The enhancement of e-commerce business and making investments on the digital channel can also affect the future operations of fashion organizations in post-pandemic environment (Roggeveen & Sethuraman, 2020). The process of revisiting logic of the marketing investment and shifting from the brand building activities towards customers activation can also affect the operations that are developed by the organizations. The online presence that can be developed by the fashion organizations can influence the future strategies and profit margins that can be gained by the firms. The fashion companies can maintain connection with the customers with the help of their online presence in different parts of the world (Sharma & Jhamb, 2020).

The formation of a creative and cohesive strategy for digital marketing is important for an organization to gain online success in the fashion industry. The team of American Eagle consists of creative solvers or problems, technologists, data scientists, growth generators, content makers and marketers. The data-driven approach has been used by American Eagle for creating a plan that can increase the levels of engagement and the connections with the brand. The efforts related to digital marketing that have been implemented by American Eagle are able to play a major role in ensuring that the organization can maintain its position in the industry. The increasing traffic in the website of American Eagle is also an important aspect that is related to the growth gained by the organization in fashion industry (Americaneagle.com. 2022). The team related to digital marketing developed by American Eagle mainly comprises of the creative solvers of problems, the technologists, the data analysts, growth generators, content makers and marketers (Zhao & Kim, 2021).

The approach of marketing that has been used by the organization can have a major positive influence on the real-time decisions that are made by the firms. The data analysts in American Eagle have been able to play a major role in understanding the needs of customers and develop their product portfolio accordingly. American Eagle had faced a decline of 3 percent in its quarterly sales due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the retailer has also struggled with the weak demands for its products among the consumers. The online marketing strategies of American Eagle can support the organization to enhance its future revenues and to develop a connection with its customers (Reuters.com. 2022).

The limitations that have been faced while conducting the literature review are mainly related to lack of detailed research regarding the overall impact that Covid-19 has on the fashion industry of the US. The previous researches have provided details related to the influence that Covid-19 has on the overall business environment in different parts of the world. However, the researches have nor been specifically related to the organizations that are operating in the fashion industry. The operations of fashion organizations have not been discussed earlier and this has led to increase in the importance of the literature review that has been currently conducted. The literature review has offered a detailed picture of the changes that have taken place in the fashion industry due to Covid-19 pandemic. The decline in profits that have been faced by the fashion organizations and the ways by which they have aimed at facing the challenges are also an important part of the analysis that has been done in the literature review. The review has been able to depict that the online marketing strategies can be highly effective for the retail organizations to help them in providing effective responses to the issues in the post-pandemic environment.

Opportunities for Business Resilience and Recovery

References 

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