How The 21st Century Digital Marketing Landscape Changes Our LivesFor more insight into the fascinating digital marketing landscape of the 21st century, join the Wits Plus Digital Marketing short course and learn how to select suitable digital marketing channels for specific needs.

ByWits Plus

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

You're reading Entrepreneur South Africa, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.

Bigstock

Vital Stats

In the course of only 25 years — a single generation —Amazon has grownfrom a start-up online bookseller to one of the most powerful corporations in modern history.

Consumers trust Amazon with everything from their personal information and buying habits to the literal conversations they have in their own homes through the purchase of smart home appliances and technologies. One possible explanation for this trust is that the company has a strong relationship with its customers, thanks to both its commitment to low prices and an apparent never-ending quest to make modern life more convenient in every possible way.

They started with print books, moved on to digital versions and e-readers and continue to crash through technologies and the media industry at an astonishing pace. All the while, they maintained an aggressive push into even faster shipping and all new retail formats. Prime Now, the same-day shipping initiative, and includes groceries — even fresh produce and refrigerated and freezer products —and makes Amazon competitive in still more types of retail industries.

数字乱发广告tising spendworldwide finally surpassed TV in 2017. Paid online search — through Google Adwords — is one way that companies/advertisers can get their message across. And in an online, connected world, many customers are reached through their mobile devices, which they carry wherever they go. Mobile commerce has not yet overtaken desktop but a typical customer journey now has more touchpoints than ever before, which means that mobile devices factor into purchases most of the time, even if the actual transaction happens somewhere else.

On top of all its other achievements, Amazon has become as much of a search engine as it is an ecommerce platform. Research has showed that Amazon has been the starting point for more product searches than Google for the past few years. Amazon has already changed how we shop and, by extension, how we live our lives. What will be next?

For more insight into the fascinating digital marketing landscape of the 21st century, join the Wits PlusDigital Marketing short courseand learn how to select suitable digital marketing channels for specific needs.

Wavy Line
Wits Plus想兼职的研究中心ty of Witwatersrand, offers selected undergraduate degrees, as well as a wide range of short certificate courses. Evening classes make all qualifications accessible to working people and busy entrepreneurs. Wits Plus also offers a range of online short courses that enable you to study wherever you are. Certificates of Competence are awarded to successful participants for both certificate and online short courses.

Related Topics

Growing a Business

Why Being Profitable is a Business Strategy in Itself

Profitability is a part of the strategic effort to be a hyper-growth, customer-centric and commercially-minded organization. And yes, it's a strategy.

领导

6 Ways to Become a Better Listener

Listening is one of the most foundational and critical skills in building relationships at home and at work. It's not always easy to listen well, but with practice, we can all improve our skills. Here's six ways you can start.

Business News

Steve Jobs's Son Is Diving Into Venture Capital — and His Focus Hits Close to Home

Reed Jobs, 31, launched venture capital firm Yosemite, which already boasts $200 million from investors and institutions.

Entrepreneurs

26 Of The Richest People in South Africa

Here are 26 of South Africa's richest people, but how did they achieve this level of wealth? Find out here.

Business News

Body of Missing 27-Year-Old Goldman Sachs Banker Found in Nearby Body of Water

John Castic, a 27-year-old Goldman Sachs employee, went missing around 2:30 a.m. on Saturday after attending a concert at the Brooklyn Mirage in East Williamsburg.

Thought Leaders

So, You've Been Hacked. These are the Best Practices for Business Leaders Post-Hack

The lasting effects of a cyber incident can impact an organization's reputation, customers, workforce, databases and network architecture.