Traditional materials such as whitepapers and articles are solid lead generators.

What a difference a year makes. As I write this, three Covid-19 vaccines are approved and are in distribution to healthcare workers and nursing homes. By the time this is printed, it’s likely the next tier of eligible recipients will be able to get a shot at a pharmacy or their doctor. The speed of development, manufacturing, testing and deployment is unparalleled. The teams involved in this have set the stage for a return to normalcy. Yet it is likely Covid-19 will have a global impact on business travel and selling processes for most of 2021, because it will take time for herd immunity to develop. So, what should sales and marketing teams in the electronics manufacturing services (EMS) industry expect as we transition back to normal?

The need for speed. OEMs discovered some EMS companies could cut new product introduction (NPI) time significantly during 2020. The bar will likely stay raised, both because it provides competitive advantage and because unanticipated variations in demand require it. Companies able to exploit their success in this area will likely see additional new business.

Demand will be more variable than usual. While parts of the economy have been almost normal for months, some regions experienced shutdowns. There is also pent-up demand for products such as appliances that experienced shortages in 2020. Consumer lifestyles changed in 2020 and are likely to impact buying patterns in 2021. A telecommunications technology shift is in play with 5G, and potentially political incentives for alternative energy products. From a sales perspective that translates to new opportunities in markets that may not have been as attractive in prior years.

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