Key issues in the digital environment – Cultural Factors
In the digital environment nowadays, the internet’s impact on society culture, and norms is highly affected. It changes how we do things daily. Cultural things are things that we always do and pass it generation to generation, but in the digital environment, when the Internet becomes an important part of our daily life it also changes our culture. For example, the use of smartphones is not to only receive calls, but it extends the ability of computers. People can use their smartphones for work, ordering meals, shopping, watching videos, playing games, photographing.
Cultural factors affect an individual’s buying decisions. Every person has unique habits, beliefs, and ideas which he/she develops from his surroundings and background. What they see, hear, and feel from their childhood becomes their culture.
Cultural factors are highly affecting the digital business. People used to buy tickets directly to the cinema/theatre and have a risk that the show they want to book is fully booked, but now people can use online ticketing to know the remaining tickets of the show. This small change is creating a chaining large change like the efficiency of time, no long queue, giving customers extra time to purchase snacks and drinks that profit the theatre, and many other changes.
In Indonesia, a huge example of cultural factors that change is when Gojek started their businesses. Usually, people order taxis that cost more or walk to the traditional ojek base to get a driver, so back in the day, it’s the customer who went for the ojek to get their services. But with gojek, the service (gojek driver) is the one who goes to the customer’s house. With such benefits, Gojek customers started to change their behavior and culture. People started to be lazier and slacking by ordering gojek instead of taking public transportation. People started ordering food online because it’s easier than having to cook in their own kitchen. This laziness to go out creates a major change in cultural aspects like the lack of social interaction because Gojek is the one who went out to take your order and shipment.
Gojek also changes the transportation and food culture industry. Back in the day we must phone call a taxi or wait in the street to wave out to get a taxi but now people can use their smartphones and order right to their own homes. From the food industry, gojek is a major change. It helps small businesses to market their business. Back in the day only big food restaurant chains that can support delivery services to the customer’s home, but now every small food restaurant can have their product delivered to the customer easily.
Cultural factors in digital business strategy and environment are important factors. It helps us to get an insight into what markets we are going to penetrate and gives us an opportunity to blend and grow to that market.