Advancements in business use of Internet marketing: Post-COVID-19 era in South Africa

This study was conducted to gain insights into the effects of developments in the digital space on business marketing interactions in the South African economy. The objective of the study was to identify and analyse the impact of the internet on corporate and social environments and the challenges or opportunities digital marketing presents to the marketing disciplines in business. Qualitative research was conducted through literature reviews based on contemporary research and global institutes/bodies’ reports, as well as primary research through telephonic interviews using a selected sample of marketing leaders from different organisations. Insights were sought on how the internet affected business-cum-marketing strategies and innovations. The findings revealed a continuous need for shifts in marketing approaches in line with the vast digitisation of most of the global space. Market stratification in South Africa affects marketing as stakeholders are at varying levels of adaptation of the internet in the South African economy. Another major finding was that the Southern African economy was stratified in terms of language, where English, Afrikaans, Xhosa, Zulu and Sesotho are dominant languages. Hence they warrant marketing representation for businesses to thrive. The dynamics of each cluster are varied, posing a challenge over and above the required internet-related adjustments. While gains are derived from the internationalisation of trade through the internet, the established challenges radiated around the continuous adaptation of digitalised marketing while keeping up with product innovations presented by the internet competition. Internet security was mostly outsourced and requires to be localised for customer confidence on data security and confidentiality issues.