We are living in a post-pandemic market and economic and social crisis scenario, and when we look to the future, it seems, and in a way is, uncertain. However, we cannot say that we have not learned anything in these last few months. Quite the contrary, there have been countless lessons. In this article, we will talk about the changes in the market and consumption and how managers should prepare for a post-COVID-19 world.
During this period, we realized that even the most post-pandemic market conservative of consumers were ready for online retail , they just needed a little encouragement. With most stores closed due to safety measures, e-commerce ended up becoming the only sales option for many businesses . We also saw that many were not prepared for this reality.
We were able to observe that companies capable of innovating and adapting more quickly to changes in consumption and public behavior are those that manage to survive and stand out.
These experiences and experiences will guide consumption trends in the post-pandemic market.
The consumer during isolation
A survey conducted by Social Miner showed people’s consumer behavior during this period of social isolation. 24.9% of consumers bought from both buy bulk sms service online and physical stores , while 22.4% bought online from stores they had already bought from in person and 16.5% bought from e-commerce sites they were unfamiliar with. In addition, around 7.5% bought online for the first time .
This data is important, as it shows that consumers have been adapting to this reality and that companies that were already investing in online retail ended up having an advantage during this period.
Another important fact is that 46.3% of consumers our responsibility in the face of coronavirus found online stores through search engines (Google, Bing, etc.), 31.3% through Instagram and 27.7% through online ads. This fact was expected, since everyone uses Google to do any research, right?!
And this is even reflected in the channels chosen to make product purchases, since 72.2% of consumers who accessed e-commerce made their purchases on store websites , while 40.7% made their purchases through the store’s WhatsApp and 27.9% through the seller’s WhatsApp.
Ok, but how important is this data?
This shows that you need to be where the chile business directory consumer is. Just because e-commerce is the most popular sales channel doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be present on other platforms.
On the contrary, you need to use them to your advantage. Why not use social media to drive consumers to your e-commerce site? And why not provide a WhatsApp number so they can ask questions?
You need to have strategies, and the closer you, the store owner, show yourself to your customers, the more trust you will convey and, consequently, the more sales you will make.
The consumer and the “new normal”
We still don’t know how long this pandemic will last. Thanks to advances in technology, studies into the manufacture of vaccines have proven effective, but there is still no set date. And this affects not only consumers’ lives, but also shopkeepers, who are constantly opening and closing their establishments as a way to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
Consumers have been adapting to a “new normal,” in which preventive measures, such as cleaning and social distancing, must remain a priority in their routine. In another survey, 66% of Brazilians revealed that they intend to maintain personal hygiene measures, even in a post-pandemic scenario.
The truth is that, with less access to physical retail, consumers migrated to the virtual world . And this generated high demand, taking many businesses by surprise. And what is the solution? Technology to speed up processes and ensure effective sales.
How should the retailer prepare?
Even in a post-pandemic scenario, consumers are unlikely to abandon online retail. So much so that the same survey by Social Miner shows that in the Electronics/IT and Home Appliances segments, more than 50% intend to buy from both physical stores and online, and another 30% exclusively online. And this data is even higher for the Home/Construction, Fashion and Pharmacy/Health segments, where more than 70% of respondents can buy both in e-commerce and in physical stores and another more than 10% exclusively online.