“Is 2020 the worst year ever?” That was the headline in a Bangor Daily News story. Shocking? Maybe a little. Hyperbole? Not at all. After a pandemic that swept around the world, economies tanking, and then civil unrest across the United States, it’s easy to see why some would speculate that 2020 has been the worst year ever.
The scary thing is that there’s still a long way to go before the calendar (mercifully) turns to 2021.
That can mean one of two things:
1) It can still get worse.
or
2) There’s still time to turn this thing around.
If you’re an optimist, you should focus on the latter. You can knuckle down, put the power of positive thinking into you, and remember that when things get bad for some people, they get good for others. If you really want to turn 2020 around, it’s time to take a look at the industries that are not only surviving the “worst year ever,” they are thriving.
Here’s a look:
1. The Lottery
Playing lottery games is very popular in good times as well as bad. But when things get wrong, the game of chances and jackpots becomes incredibly popular. And why not? A relatively small investment gives you a day or so to dream about living the good life.
A little daydreaming can be good for your mental health. Maybe that’s why many states in the USA declared lotteries “essential” and kept them open, even as they shut down schools, businesses, and professional sports.
This year, lotteries have done well.
And the beauty of modern lotteries is that people don’t even have to leave home to play. LottoLand allows people to play from anywhere they are legally allowed to log on.
If you are looking to invest in an industry that is pretty much pandemic-proof, now is the time to take a look at an industry like the lottery.
2. Online Delivery Services
When everyone from the World Health Organization to local government agencies is telling you to stay home or risk contracting a never-before-known illness, most people will stay home.
But they still need to eat, and that’s why online delivery services are doing so well during this global pandemic.
The beauty of this industry is that it’s relatively easy to get into. You can go small and strike a deal with a few neighborhood restaurants to be their exclusive delivery service. Or you can go big, like Uber Eats, Grubhub, or Delivery.com.
And you can deliver anything—from food to household items to healthcare supplies. There is literally no end to what people are willing to pay to have delivered.
3. Electronics
If you’re going to be stuck working from home for months on end, you’re going to need the right equipment.
As a large percentage of the workforce has transitioned to working from home, the electronic industry has grown. In addition, families have turned to their at-home entertainment systems for fun during the ongoing lockdowns.
This means that computers, televisions, soundbars, gaming systems, and more have been flying off the shelves (and often delivered by online services). And there is no sign of this trend going away any time soon. Many companies are considering keeping their employees at home even after the pandemic goes away.
Now might be a great time to invest in the electronics industry.
4. E-commerce
Perhaps no industry has benefited more from the pandemic than the e-commerce industry.
People are stuck in their homes. They’ve been told not to go outside, to stay away from crowds, and to be careful about what they touch.
So more and more of them are doing their shopping online.
This means that everyone associated with the e-commerce industry is doing incredibly well. Suppliers and supply chain management firms are killing it. Warehouse operations are killing it. Companies focused on shipping and returns are thriving. Software companies that understand client relationship management are doing well.
Even marketing professionals who specialize in e-commerce are benefiting from the pandemic.
5. Streaming Platforms
If 2020 is indeed the worst year ever, it should be no surprise that people are looking for anything and everything they can find to distract them, and that usually means one of the many streaming services that have popped up in the last few years.
Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, AppleTV+, and most of the others are doing incredibly well during the pandemic.
What does this mean for you? It means that now is the time to invest in a streaming service. Because one person’s unfortunate incident is another person’s opportunity.
6. Healthcare
You knew this one was coming, didn’t you? After all, healthcare has been the industry of the pandemic, and, while struggles have undeniably been felt along the way, efforts to strengthen health systems across the pandemic have worked some wonders.
Telehealth consultation has revolutionized healthcare, providing patients with faster and more efficient processes, enabling them to make better decisions, get the care they need in a timely manner, and access a wider range of care options. Primary care telemedicine has been a game-changer and lifesaver because, before the pandemic, the healthcare industry was on its knees!
No more waiting weeks or months for an appointment; no more long-distance travel; and no more having to sacrifice quality of care.
As such, while family nurse practitioner work hours haven’t exactly changed (budgets in the area are undeniably still pushed), efficiency has certainly increased, enabling fast diagnosis and, perhaps most notably, saving on wasted time that cost healthcare providers as much as $150 million every single year before this.
Besides, with health playing more on all of our minds, we’re certainly more likely now to appreciate and seek the help that we need when we need it.
