To say that today’s buyer has changed would be a bit of a massive understatement. In fact, we’ve never seen such change in such a short period of time. When you consider how we’ve evolved since the advent of the internet (it became mainstream in 1996) and then throw on top of that all the digital behaviors that were catapulted by the recent pandemic, the results are stunning.

To name a couple:

• Today’s buyer, on average, is more than 70% through the buying cycle BEFORE they actually speak to a sales person. (Forrester)

Things will get better. Just keep saying that. And when we come out on the other side of the pandemic, we will face a world far different than the one we left behind.

The past year has brought new meaning to “working from home”. It has challenged personal and professional relationships, while also helping us appreciate and in many ways re-discover the simple pleasures in life. We have cooked more, watched TV more, (thank goodness for streaming!), experienced more time outdoors, and spent more time with our pets (or got a pet for those who did not previously have one).