The Era of the Hybrid Experience
In his recent post on Forbes Business Council, PFL President Nick Runyon observed that, over the last 18 months, we might have experienced one of the most seismic technology shifts in the history of humankind. He suggests that the near-instant transition to remote work and our reliance on digital tools is unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.
But in all the upheaval, the importance of relational experiences is coming to the forefront as a distinctly human and critically necessary part of life. What it also shows is that we are simultaneously embracing new technologies and risking being overwhelmed by them.
So, what does this mean for brands? Runyon believes they should fight the tendency to push more information through digital channels and consider how their customers, prospects, and employees really live. What’s more, he says, many in the U.S. are emerging from quarantine life into a newly vaccinated reality where people are likely to crave live events while making their preferences for remote work and video conferencing over onsite staff meetings and faraway sales calls clear.
Simply put: “Worlds are colliding!” according to Runyon. Our online and offline worlds have collided, and there’s probably no going back. We now live in this new hybrid environment with hybrid events and a hybrid workforce.
Welcome to the era of the hybrid experience.
To succeed in the hybrid work world, concludes Runyon, businesses should accept and appreciate that people are more than email addresses and demographics in a database. Whether the audience is online, in-person, or some fluid combination of the two, brands should leverage their customer data to inform the context and timing of their messaging and deliver an experience that transcends the digital to embrace the beautiful reality of the hybrid.
