Digital Agencies
How Covid2019 is fast-tracking digital transformation in experiential marketing
Consume or connect ? We didn’t know it at the time but somewhere in the middle of March we all got enrolled in a digital bootcamp. Covid2019 didn’t fast track digital transformation, it literally beamed us into the future. I have never witnessed such far-reaching change at such a pace.
For an industry built on enabling human connections, Covid2019 rudely hit pause and with little warning. For those who will get the reference, it felt like Mr Freeze was on a rampage in real life. And when things thawed, we were in the future. Engagement changed overnight, calls were replaced by zoom/teams/blue jeans and webex. In a few short weeks we had already graduated to zoom fatigue and realised blue jeans were fading fast. And it wasn’t just about video messaging, the humble WhatsApp became part of the retail renaissance as the mom and pop stores leap frogged into the future and Ludo rivalled call of duty for family time.
As isolation and social distancing become the norm for now, engagement and interaction has moved to our devices. The buzz in the experiential industry is all about pivoting to digital events. The tech jargon is flying fast and furious and it’s all about innovating or becoming irrelevant.
Digital transformation isn’t about the adoption of technology, video conferencing has been around since the 80s and live streaming since the 90s. Most of the tech being adopted has been around for a while now and the first virtual conferences were held more than a decade ago. Digital transformation is all about staying real in a virtual environment, looking at screens not as devices to consume but as spaces to create live engagement. The screen is the new experiential touchpoint. Not just a place for content consumption but place to enable real human connections through live digital experiences.
I am not sure if it was insight or instinct ( or maybe a combination of both) but the lockdown pioneers of digital engagement seem to understand the difference between creating digital content and producing live digital experiences. They understood that being present on the other side of a screen is not the same as participating with the on-screen experience.
Vir Das hit a home run (no pun intended), with At Home, his online comedy tour for Covid2019 relief. A brilliant and effective use of zoom creates live engagement with the audiences. They are not watching a Vir Das special on their screens, they are part of a live experience. Kommune, the artist collective did something very similar when they created Lockdown Love , a play performed live on zoom. With every performance the experience became more engaging, with audience interaction seamlessly made part of the narrative. These early experiments by creators like Vir and Kommune clearly show that it is possible to connect with people on the other side of the screen.
Almost every pre-pandemic human engagement has moved online. From fitness to education and everything in between. A recent article in Forbes states that virtual events are up 1000 per cent Since Covid2019, with 52,000 on just one platform called 6Connex!
Take a look at some of the virtual events scheduled during the next few months. This July, Nintendo will host its flagship event, Pokemon GO Fest in a virtual format. XBOX is following suit with the XBOX 20/20 launch through a series of virtual events. From gaming to finance, with digital payments on the rise, June has seen the opening of Virtual bank branches across the globe from TSB in New Zealand to the Al Salam Bank in Bahrain. Hong Kong is going to see more than five different virtual banks open shop in the coming months. Commerce is not just going digital, it is going virtual. Closer home, the iconic Lakme Fashion week is going digital with the launch of “Virtual Showroom”. A digital engagement platform for designers and artists to showcase their collections to buyers and suppliers. The showroom is set to launch in Q3 with the upcoming LFW.
We are seeing similar transformations across industries; each is an opportunity for digital experiential marketing because commerce is more than just a transaction. Digital experiential has the ability to elevate the experience and create human connections across the screen and there lies the real transformation. So while we navigate the new and wait for some of the old to return, remember it’s not just about pivoting, it’s about persevering.
(The author is Geometry Encompass CEO. The views expressed are his own and Indiantelevision.com may not subscribe to them)
BENGALURU: For years, creative teams have learned to live with ambiguity. Vague comments, last-minute changes, feedback that arrives without context, clarity, or conviction. It became part of the job – something teams worked around rather than getting it solved.
But as we head into 2026, that tolerance is wearing thin.
Creative work today moves faster, scales wider, and involves more stakeholders than before. Teams are producing more content across more formats, often with distributed collaborators and tighter timelines. In this environment, guesswork is no longer a harmless inconvenience. It’s a cost – to time, to budgets, and to creative mindspace.
The real problem isn’t feedback, it’s how it’s given
Most creative professionals you see today will tell you they’re not against feedback. In fact, they rely on it. Good feedback sharpens ideas, strengthens execution, and pushes work forward. The problem is ‘unclear’ feedback. When someone says “this doesn’t feel right” without context, they aren’t just revising – they’re basically decoding. They’re guessing what the problem might be, trying different directions, and burning time in the process. Multiply that by a few stakeholders and a few rounds, and suddenly days disappear.
In 2026, when teams are expected to deliver faster without compromising quality, interpretation is a luxury most can’t afford.
Scale has changed rverything
Creative projects used to be smaller and simpler. A designer, a manager, maybe one client contact. Feedback loops were short, even if they weren’t perfect.
Today, the same project might involve internal marketing teams, agencies, freelancers, brand reviewers, and regional teams. Everyone has a say. Everyone leaves comments. And often, those comments don’t agree. More people reviewing work means alignment matters more than ever. Clear feedback isn’t just about being nice to creative teams, it’s about keeping projects moving when complexity increases.
Guesswork quietly wears teams down
One of the less talked-about impacts of unclear feedback is what it does to people.
When feedback is vague or contradictory, creatives second-guess their decisions. They hesitate. They overwork. They keep extra time buffers “just in case.” Over time, confidence drops. Ownership fades. Work becomes safer, not stronger. Creative energy gets spent on managing uncertainty instead of pushing ideas forward. And in an industry already grappling with burnout, unclear feedback adds unnecessary mental load.
Actionable feedback is a shared skill
Clear feedback doesn’t mean controlling creative decisions or dictating every detail. It means being specific enough that someone knows what to do next.
Actionable feedback answers three basic questions:
What exactly needs attention?
Why does it matter?
What outcome are we aiming for?
This applies whether you’re reviewing a video frame, a design layout, or a copy draft. The clearer the feedback, the fewer follow-ups it creates. In 2026, teams that treat feedback as a skill and not an afterthought, will move faster with less friction.
Tools shape behaviour (whether we admit it or not)
The way feedback is delivered is often dictated by the tools teams use. Comments buried in long email threads, messages split across chat apps, or notes detached from the actual work all contribute to confusion.
When feedback lives outside the work, context often gets lost. When it’s disconnected from versions and timelines, decisions get questioned. When it’s scattered, accountability disappears. More teams are starting to realise that feedback problems aren’t just communication issues, they’re workflow issues. How work moves between people matters just as much as the work itself.
From Opinions To Alignment
One of the biggest shifts happening in creative teams is a move away from purely opinion-driven feedback. Instead of “I like this” or “I don’t,” teams are asking better questions:
● Does this meet the brief?
● Does this solve the problem?
● Does this align with the goal?
This change reduces unnecessary back-and-forth and helps feedback feel less personal and more productive. It also makes decisions easier to explain and defend. As creative work becomes more strategic, feedback has to support that shift.
2026 Is About Fewer Loops, Not Faster Loops
There’s a misconception that speed means moving through feedback cycles faster. In reality, the most creative teams aren’t just accelerating loops, they’re reducing them. Clear, actionable feedback upfront leads to fewer revisions later. Clear approval stages prevent last-minute surprises. Clear decisions stop work from circling endlessly.
In 2026, efficiency won’t come from working harder or longer. It will come from designing workflows that respect creative time and attention.
Ending guesswork is a mindset change
Ultimately, ending creative guesswork isn’t just about better tools or processes. It’s about mindset. It’s about recognising that clarity is an act of respect – for the work, for the people doing it, for the time invested and for the mindspace used. It’s about moving from “figure it out” to “here’s what we’re aiming for.”
Creative teams that embrace this shift will find themselves not only delivering faster, but also enjoying the process more. And in an industry built on imagination, that might be the most valuable outcome of all.
