How the pandemic is impacting technology investment in companies in Brazil

COVID-19, distancing and social isolation, brought to light a new reality for Brazilian companies. Despite many segments, especially education and retail, experiencing a deficit due to the pandemic , the IT market in general is quite optimistic, given that many companies have come to see technology as a fundamental tool to survive the crisis. new reality.  Recently, major companies in the segment, such as Apple and Amazon, reported their earnings for the second quarter of 2020. Amazon doubled its profit compared to the same period last year, reaching the incredible sum of US$ 5.24 billion, and Apple had a 12% increase in sales, reaching US$ 11.25 billion. But, how is the pandemic impacting investment in technology in companies in Brazil? Is it possible to increase sales at this time?

Before the pandemic, the growth expectation for the technology area was 20%, according to research by  Advance Consulting . Today, even with everything that is happening, the consulting CEO, Dagoberto Hajjar, still forecasts growth of 10% in 2020, an encouraging estimate considering the negative impact seen in other sectors of the economy.

And why this positive forecast?  Certainly because companies from different sectors, especially from the education, health and retail sectors, urgently need to invest in new technologies. In the case of education, for example, universities and schools have to prepare for quality distance learning, which is only possible through digital transformation . Segments such as health, of extreme importance to the population, feel the need for increasingly advanced, modern resources, such as telemedicine. Another essential area that needs technological improvement is retail. Today, brands that haven't embraced e-commerce are certainly a step behind their competitors. However, betting only on e-commerce will not be enough. When social isolation ends, stores will need to reinvent themselves in face-to-face service, carry out a new analysis of consumers and invest in artificial intelligence.

Was the impact the same across all technology companies?

While there are many technology companies selling well, there are those that are truly suffering from the crisis. This happens because there is a lot of polarization, since there are companies that managed to modernize, seek new customers and new products. These companies grew and invested in the cloud and revamped their infrastructure. On the other hand, we have those that were negatively impacted by a series of factors, be it lack of investments in IT, innovation, creativity, marketing and sales.

However, we can observe that the main characteristics of companies with a high growth rate include good planning, with objectivity and discipline in execution. Combined with advances in innovation, with new ways of offering services. It is important to take advantage of the moment to make new reflections and understand that now the market changes by the minute. Therefore, the agility to seek new projects and actions is crucial.

What changes in the sales strategy of IT companies?

First, it is necessary to analyze the sales funnel (conversion rate, sales cycle and average ticket), present a good strategy to obtain new customers, such as, for example, betting on upsell and cross sell opportunities (sales strategies aimed at increasing revenue and customer retention). In addition, it is essential to frequently review goals and objectives, pains, solutions, competition and external influences, to assemble an effective action plan for your business.

The sales approach, however, must be different and must look for short-term actions with the objective of attracting the customer. Nowadays, the argument that technology reduces costs for a company is not effective. It takes a lot more than that. Therefore, it is necessary to keep an eye on the market, research consumption in various segments, as everything is volatile at the moment. Every time there is a crisis, the industry changes, and consequently, the pattern of purchases changes. Therefore, put into practice a new sales methodology for your company. Give preference to short-term actions that give results, negotiate with your client, try changing the approach and ask high-impact questions to show value and the real benefit of what you are offering. Above all, don't miss the opportunity to genuinely listen to your customer.

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