What is the new normal?

The suffering and disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic are heart-breaking. I’ve been finding it harder to fall asleep, feeling anxious about what this all means. But as many of you know, I’m a glass-half-full kind of guy.

Our tracking studies on COVID-19 is increasingly establishing an unprecedented behavioural reset. Canadians are changing, and this will impact the assumptions and models businesses, charities, associations have about their consumers, stakeholders, and employees. We have been feeling the impacts of this new reality ourselves at Abacus.

Organizations hoping to respond to this change by opening a dialogue with their consumers, employees, stakeholders, and/or members with genuine care and concern, will come out of this crisis stronger and better able to serve the people they work with.

For years now, we have been arguing that generational and technological changes are disrupting old business models. The COVID-19 pandemic will accelerate these changes. Our world will become less individualist, more digital, and more deeply interconnected.

This will have a profound impact on branding, marketing, public relations, employee relations, investor relations, and public affairs.

Our team is working on solutions for organizations that want to start this dialogue. Good research, intelligence, and data can help guide decisions through this very unsettling and uncertain environment.

Our company will emerge from this crisis stronger, more focused, and equipped to help organizations understand and connect with the people who matter most. If you lead an organization that is eager to start a conversation and understand how you can help and care for your members, employees, or customers, and find a path forward, we would love to work with you.

David Coletto, CEO
Abacus Data