1. Introduction

The spread of COVID-19 is the only reason for the closure of business activities throughout the globe. For retailers and services providers, it was a very bad time as they have experienced a major financial crisis during the pandemic. The new normal stage emerges through the adaptation of the latest technologies. In this new normal, a business can operate while having minimum interaction with people through the use of SOPs and the latest technology. Berwick (2020) have indicated that the new normal stage is an opportunity for retailers and service provider organisations. Contradicting with the arguments, Floetgen et al. (2021) said that the new normal stage has also created a large number of challenges for both retailers and service providers. The author included that the shopping behaviour of consumer has been changed. Interaction with consumers is reduced to zero. No doubt, the new normal stage has provided virtual platforms for interaction, but nothing can match the effusiveness of physical interaction. The purpose of this essay is to investigate the emergence of a new normal stage. This essay will be exploring how retailers and service providers have changed their businesses operate to operate effectively in the new normal stage. Along with this, the current essay determines the opportunities provided by the use of the latest technologies. Another important objective to investigate how retailers and service providers will look like in the post-COVID-19 world.

2. Main Body

The spread of COVID-19 throughout the world had impacted the service and retail sector very negatively. Service and retail businesses were forced to shut down their business activities, owing to which they have faced major losses. After developing significant knowledge regarding COVID-19, economies are now moving towards a new normal where service and retail businesses can operate, but they are strictly advised to follow SOPs and maintain a social distance. As per the arguments of Laato et al. (2020), retail and service organisations have shifted their operations to digital platforms where they can perform better without interacting with a lot of people. The author included that this transformation towards digital platforms is known as the new normal. The new normal has also enhanced the flexibility for employees. Employees are working remotely from their homes, owing to which the flexibility is enhanced (Nah and Siau, 2020). The retail and service sector are also allowed to open the stores and service centres in the new normal stage. Although they are allowed to reopen the stores and service centres, still they are provided with a list of SOPs according to which the retail and service sector is able to operate with a limited number of employees. As per the SOPs, retail and service organisations are supposed to check the temperature of consumers before they enter the service centre or retail store. Pantano et al. (2020) say that the list of effective SOPs in the new normal stage has enabled the consumers to visit the stores and service centres. Consumers who are more concerned about the health of their own and their family members have adopted online shopping. Online shopping enables them to avoid interaction with a lot of people. One can say that the new normal stage has been proven to be very beneficial for retailers and consumers as well. This is because and retailers and service-providing organisations are able to operate effectively through the use of digital platforms, and the consumers are able to shop using online shopping platforms.

Marketing of products and services provided by service and retail sector organisations is essential. Owing to the spread of COVID-19, retail and service organisations are unable to promote their products through the use of advertisements. This is because shooting advertisements involve the interaction of a large number of people, which is not allowed by the governments of countries. Considering this, retailers and service sector organisations have adopted differentiated means of promoting their products and services through the use of digital and social media platforms. Vickerman (2021) said that the new normal stage had enabled the service and retail sector to promote the products and services while avoiding interactions and taking precautionary measures. Following SOPs in the new normal stage has also developed the brand image of service and retail sector organisations. Willems et al. (2021) argue that consumers are afraid of interacting with people. The author included that organisations that are following SOPs effectively are likely to be visited by consumers. Where social and digital media marketing have provided a large number of benefits to the service and retail sector organisations, there are also some limitations. Some retailers and service sector organisations are adopting unethical ways of promoting their products and services. For example, organisations are using fake posts regarding the SOPs to enhance their brand image. Firms make fake claims to promote their products and services in the new normal stage. The core reason for these fake posts is the loss that has been faced by retail and service sector organisations during the pandemic. Prasetyo et al. (2021) said that firms are using such fake posts to overcome the consequences of the pandemic. Fake posts made by retail and service sector organisations can provide great harm to the trust level of consumers. Fake posts can really damage the brand image of the organisation. This is because social media theory has stated that social media marketing can add value, but fake reporting and posting can have a negative impact on the brand image. In the new normal stage, retails and service sector organisations can add value through positing informative content regarding the precautionary measures during the spread of COVID-19 throughout the world.

The new normal stage after the pandemic has enabled the retailers and service providers to adopt the use of social and digital media platforms to interact and communicate with the consumers. Another major approach used by retailers and service providers in the new normal stage is automation marketing (Gelfand and Hefele, 2021). Automation marketing has played a significant role in the establishment of the new normal stage. This is because automation marketing has enabled retailers and service providers to use the automated process of marketing while excluding the use of traditional and manual marketing processes. Technology is also one of the important elements that have enabled the new normal stage. The latest technology has enabled both consumers and service providers to enter a new stage (Loske, 2020). This is because the latest technologies have enabled retailers and service providers to bring all of the online marketing channels to a single centralised platform. Centralised marketing has enabled the service providers and retailers to create and manage campaigns through the use of a single centralised platform. The use of a centralised marketing platform is beneficial for retailers and service providers because it also reduces the cost of marketing. Reduction is the marketing cost results in increased profit margins which is one of the objectives of organisations. Automation marketing is not without challenges (Brandtner et al., 2021). This is because a robust control and management system is required for the management of all channels via a single centralised platform. There is a need to create the right combination depending upon the size of the organisation. To avoid the risks created by automation marketing, retailers and service providers are using both automation and social media marketing. The combination of both marketing platforms has enabled organisations to promote their products, but the benefits and limitations of these techniques must not be ignored to be successful.

The most important factor that must be considered here is that the performance of the retailers and service providers has also been impacted due to the preferences of consumers. As per Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, the demands and needs of the consumers must be fulfilled at first ( McNeish, 2020). This is why consumers are focused on avoiding interactions, as it is one of the most important needs of consumers these days. It has also been identified that the spread of COVIIDD-19 throughout the world has negatively impacted the financial conditions of people as multiple people have lost their jobs, and many are facing losses in businesses. Considering the financial requirements, consumers are firstly concerned about the health of their own and their family members (Buheji and Ahmed, 2020). Secondly, the consumer prefers to buy products that are essential for their living. Most of the people who have enjoyed a luxury lifestyle are now trying to fulfil their basic needs and demands. The change in the preferences of consumers has also changed their experiences. The preferences and experiences of consumers hold a great impact on the performance of organisations (Villani et al., 2020). For example, a consumer prefers to visit a retail store or service centre where social distancing is strictly followed. If one experiences that things are not as per the expectations, the performance of the specific retailer or service provider will be negatively impacted. In contrast, if the SOPs are strictly followed, there will be a positive impact on the performance of the organisation. Hence, one can say that the preferences and experiences of consumers are changed in the new normal stage. Depending on the place, the profitability of the retailers and service providers can be positively or negatively impacted. Considering this, one can say that retailers and service providers should be very careful while choosing the place of business while operating in the new normal stage.

The new normal stage has also impacted the relationship of retailers and service providers with the suppliers and consumers. As per the arguments of Berwick (2020), the new normal stage has made the relationship complex. It was easier for the retailers and service providers prior to the pandemic. This is because consumers preferred to visits physical stores where they could physically interact with the staff, but now the situation has been changed, and it has become very difficult for the retailers and service providers to take feedback and investigate the changing demand of consumers. While supporting the above argument, Floetgen et al. (2021) said that no doubt social and digital media platforms had provided great help to the retailers and service providers, but nothing can match the physical interactions. The author also argued that retailers and service providers are unable to deal with the rapidly changing demand of consumers while using digital platforms. Laato et al. (2020) said that the new normal stage had enabled the retailers and service providers to interact with the consumer through the use of centralised media platforms. Websites and social media platforms have enabled the retailers to interact with the consumer by answering their queries and keeping them up-to-date through informative content posting. Moreover, the digital platforms have also provided much support for interacting with the suppliers. New means of communication are identified and adopted in the new normal stage. The use of these digital communication platforms has enabled the retailers to place orders and get required materials in time so that they could be able to operate effectively. One can say that it is essential for the retailers and service providers to sustain the complex relationships with suppliers and consumers in the new normal stage.

Where the new normal stage has provided retailers and service providers with a large number of opportunities, it has also created a number of challenges. This is because most of the small and medium-sized organisations were not using digital and social media platforms prior to the pandemic. Also, some of these businesses never had an e-commerce website for selling their products. The spread of COVID-19 throughout the world has impacted organisations financially. This makes it difficult for small and medium retailers to adopt the use of digital and automated marketing techniques. Entering the new normal stage is itself a challenge for retailers and service providers. Nah and Siau (2020) says that adopting the use of technology along with entrance into the new normal stage is a more complex thing to do. Multinational retailers do have enough resources to adopt the use of the latest technology and train their staff for its use. Also, multinational hold online presence prior to the pandemic. This had made it easier for multinational retailers and service providers to enter the new normal stage. Pantano et al. (2020) said that multinational firms had gained a large number of benefits as they are now able to expand their business operations in different countries with minimum investment. The operations are completed shifted to online platforms, so no physical presence is required in the host countries, which minimises the cost of expansion or internationalisation. Maybe small and medium retailers and service providers are currently able to expand, but the new normal stage has also provided them with this opportunity as they can easily expand internationally after they come out of the financial crisis created by the pandemic. Vickerman (2021) said that retailers and service providers are not able to interact with the consumers physically, but they are now able for 24 hours. Any time a consumer can write a query in the social media pages of retailers, and the queries will be answered. Chat and comment section features provided by social media platforms have enabled the retailers and service providers to deal with the challenges of the new normal stage. One can say that there are some challenges of the new normal stage, but these challenges will be eliminated with time, but the opportunities provided will keep benefiting the retailers and service providers throughout the globe.

3. Conclusion

In the light of the above analysis, one can conclude that the spread of COVID-19 throughout the globe resulted in the closure of retail stores and service centres. The retailers and service provided have faced a major financial crisis. The concept of new normal enabled the use of the latest technology, and social and digital media platforms have enabled the retailers to start operating again with limited resources and online presence. One of the major problems faced by retailers and service providers is that they are unable to shoot advertisements for the promotion of products and services. The new normal stage has enabled them to adopt the use of social media platforms and automation marketing for the promotion of products and services. The change in consumer preferences and experiences have also changed depending on the place, so there is a need to focus on consumer requirements and change in buying behaviour before choosing a place for business. Consumers visit places where there is minimum crowd, and SOPs are followed strictly. The implementation of SOPs and social distancing do have a critical impact on the profitability of retailers and service providers. In the new normal stage, the relationship between consumer and retailers is getting really complex as organisations were unable to take feedback from consumers. The use of social media platforms in the new normal stage enables the retailers and service providers to interact with the consumer using chat box and comment section. This helps in the maintenance of logistical operations of the organisations. No doubt, the normal stage is creating some short-term challenges for retailers and service providers, but it has also provided long-term opportunities.

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