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ADVERSIDADES E REINVENÇÃO / ADVERSITY AND RENEWAL
However, it is important to distinguish the situation between technical lighting and decorative lighting in the face of the current crisis. Technical lighting did not suffer such a sharp drop in orders, a reason that may be linked to construction that did not suffer such a slowdown in the crisis. Decorative lighting is in a more delicate position due to the drop in tourism and the projects associated with it.
The sector's promotional actions in the post-pandemic will depend a lot on the evolution of COVID-19: if the disease subsides by the end of the year, the confidence of all agents will be expected to increase and personal contact between suppliers and customers will return, as there are clients who prefer face-to-face as a way of strengthening the professional relationship. A portion of customers will also continue to prefer to analyze products before purchase, and therefore, even with all the changes introduced by the pandemic, we must never forget that customers will need personal contact and to see the product in person. Thus, the resumption of both traditional sector fairs and direct visits by suppliers to customers and vice versa, will depend on the evolution of the pandemic in the short and medium term.
If there is a 2nd wave of the disease in the next autumn / winter or if efforts to obtain the vaccine prove to be fruitless, we will continue with all the changes that were introduced by the pandemic, both professional and social. These changes prioritize remote contact between customers and sellers and products through videoconferences. The promotion in marketplaces and the bet on digital marketing that was already assuming an increasingly relevant role and for some companies had already surpassed the fairs as the main sales tool, now assumes, and certainly in the coming months, the main role in the competitiveness of companies.
With the postponement of the fairs, a gap in product promotion opened up and this gap will have to be filled by investing in digital, at least until the normalization of post-pandemic social life.
In the near future, the focus will be on integrating companies into digital marketplaces (MOM, Arquiproducts, BIM, Dialux, etc.); through digital advertising campaigns (Google, social networks, etc.); digital catalogs; periodic refresh of the companies' websites; publications sponsored on social networks by influencers / prescribers; organize the commercial teams with marketers who can jointly develop the promotion / sales work and by direct visits from suppliers to customers. These visits will always depend on the evolution of the pandemic, but until the international fairs return, there will always be a group of customers who will want this personal contact.
This current crisis has made it possible for national companies to open up horizons and seek other forms of business, such as e-commerce or other areas of action, making them more competitive in the market. The resilience of Portuguese businessmen makes our market stronger, believing that it has experienced a technological evolution of about 10 years. The future is uncertain, but the strength of the Portuguese remains timeless.
Director Executivo
Ricardo Sebastiao
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13 | OUT./DEZ.