Latest insights

US consumers are leading the way as the global health and wellness industry. An industry with an opportunity to continue its significant growth streak. Forecasts show healthy industry growth The “wellness economy” was valued at more than USD4 trillion in 2018. Roughly the combined GDP of Canada and the UK. It’s massive! This follows an annual growth of 6.4% over the three years leading up to it. A trend that’s expected to continue, despite the current global business slowdown. When we talk about the health and wellness industry, we’re not merely referring to the latest diets, health supplements or exercise programs

The digital age brought with it an industry shift to rely more heavily on inside salespeople – with great success. We recognized that outside salespeople remain crucial to business success and asked how digitization can best serve their role. This is a question we take seriously. We offer a product and services designed specifically for businesses with outside sales teams. Our own team of field sales professionals works closely with an active inside sales team to help users adopt our product and grow their sales. Two decades ago, very few companies relied on inside sales. Almost no salespeople were exclusively

Historic and early indicators suggest the cosmetic and beauty industry will do relatively well and use innovation opportunities to its advantage. Digital will play a critical role in saving the beauty industry. Early predictions and consumer responses Lockdown’s effects on the cosmetics and beauty industry will show up clearly in economies around the world. This global industry generates $500 billion in sales a year and accounts for millions of jobs, directly and indirectly. It’s ability to bounce back or potentially reinvent itself will determine the extent of the damage. Historic and early indicators suggest the

Disruptions to our normal schedules and various related stressors are causing many people to struggle with sleeplessness. Skynamo can help to reverse the profound effect this has on sales productivity. Improving sales productivity is a central theme in all our conversations at Skynamo. Our product and development teams are constantly improving our all-in-one sales platform with outside sales team productivity in mind. We’ve created a tool that reduces sales admin and frees salespeople up to spend more time selling and yet, external lifestyle factors affect productivity in ways we cannot always account for. Scientific

Suppliers are struggling to visit pubs and restaurants in person and maintain business relationships the way they used to. However, technology enables field salespeople to schedule visits and assist pub and restaurant owners in track-and-trace campaigns. We’ve heard from quite a few food and beverage suppliers that some of the pubs and restaurants they deliver to are hesitant to have them visit their premises. It’s understandable, with all the complicated regulations surrounding human-to-human interactions in the current economy, that these businesses want to avoid any interactions they deem unnecessary. The company

Much has been said about mask-wearing and handwashing, but what other practical measures and important information do you need to consider when engaging in outside field sales? Most people now understand the necessity to wear a mask and regularly wash their hands* when moving among others or sharing spaces with them. But what else do field salespeople need to know before visiting customers or stopping at restaurants to grab lunch or dinner? The questions below were answered by South African Occupational Health Specialist, Dr Marina Clarke, on 5 June 2020, during the live webinar (SA was at Lockdown Level 3 during

As business activities return to normal, we analyzed our sales reports to see which industries are making a comeback. Or which industries were least affected during recent trade restrictions. The most significant and obvious economic shift caused by the COVID-19 pandemic is a move from physical spaces and interactions to virtual ones. The general shift toward digital has been underway for some time. Many who were slow to adapt have now been forced to do so. At least until physical movement and interaction return to something resembling what we used to call “normal.” We’re not yet sure what business as newsual might

Harvard Business Review analyzed 4700 companies across 3 global recessions to identify 4 generic strategies that were followed and identified the one that fared best. Which are you following? There’s much talk about the “new normal” or, as we like to call it, “business as newsual”. Things will indeed be very different going forward. Yet, we’ve learnt enough from history to make wise decisions going forward. We who run businesses right now face some pretty tough choices. And we need to make these choices with weak, confusing and contradictory data as our guide. There is no doubt that in a couple of years’ time, when

In 2013, Sam Clarke – founder and CEO of local startup, Skynamo – decided he wanted to solve a problem that had been getting in the way of business for decades. A few years later, in 2020, Skynamo went on to secure $30 million in US funding. It is now putting it to good use. ITNA’s Jenna Delport had the opportunity to chat to Clarke, here’s what transpired: What first made you think of a career in technology? I have been a tinkerer my whole life. From a very young age, I would take things apart to see how they work. Often even getting to put them back together again. I started teaching myself to write software when I

Skynamo’s field sales app, and other apps available in the Google Play Store, can’t be downloaded on new Huawei devices because of current trade restrictions. This is why you should not try to hack the Play Store onto your Huawei device. What’s up with Huawei (wha-way)? Android & Play Legal Director, Tristan Ostrowski, explains why software like the Skynamo field sales app is not available on new Huawei devices – here is an extract from his statement: “On May 16, 2019, the US government placed Huawei on its Entity List. This government action prohibits all US companies, including Google, from collaborating with