These are the new normals for 2022 in digital and marketing, according to founder Ashley Friedlein, speaking at Econsultancy’s first quarterly trends briefing of the year (subscribers can watch in full). He referred to 2020, 2021 and 2022 as, respectively, the ‘Great Shock’, ‘Great Reflection’ and ‘Great Reset’.

In the ‘Great Shock’ of 2020, “large companies in particular were surprised at how fast they could move when they really had to,” and we saw 10 years of digital transformation in a single year. Then came the ‘Great Reflection’ of 2021, where firms asked ‘Has all this changed our business model?’, and many employees reflected that actually they didn’t want to stay in their jobs (the ‘Great Resignation’).

Hybrid is here to stay

Research shows how preference for hybrid work is shaping employer policies, with Friedlein referencing The Economist’s The World Ahead 2022 report. The report states that before qatar email database free the pandemic 5% of work in America was done remotely and 27% of employers offered flexible hours. Now 40% of work is done remotely and 88%, virtually all, US employers offer flexible working hours.

There is a demand for flexibility. “And the interesting thing,” said Friedlein, “is that employees have the power. In marketing/digital, as with most other jobs it seems, it is a candidate’s market. So whether employers want to offer these levels or not… they have to in order to attract and retain talent.”

The war for talent intensifies

The war for talent in digital and marketing is not new, but Friedlein described it now as ‘endemic’. He added that in his conversations with agencies and consultancies in the digital and marketing space, “there seems to be a common pattern over last year where they’ve been more profitable than usual and employees have been more productive which seems great except that they’re burning that talent and experiencing around 30% churn rates.”

Connections become more direct

Perhaps in part linked to our experiences of alienation during the pandemic. However, Friedlein’s third new normal is about connections becoming more direct.

“Arguably this is a continuation of a trend already underway express as a back lash against Big Tech. However, a quest for authenticity and meaning, a push back against toxic and overwhelming social media etc,” he said.

This is playing out in marketing also in a number of ways…