Rob Fallon is the CEO of Bluewater, a converged Direct-to-Consumer Marketing Agency based in Clearwater, Florida.
The Covid-19 pandemic has had such a significant impact on so many aspects of life. It transformed consumer behavior forever. Digital adoption across all demographics was accelerated by five to 10 years in a very short time—you could even say in days. This makes complete sense since it was a matter of life or death for many, especially seniors who were most impacted by Covid-19. Even my parents, who are in their late 70s, began ordering necessities from Amazon and placing their grocery orders online for delivery. Mind you, these two people previously didn’t know how to use the TV remote, but they were thrust into a world of no contact and really had no choice.
In this article, I’d like to take a deeper dive into three of the more noticeable and trackable consumer behavior changes that I believe are here to stay.
2020 was the beginning of the decade of the homebody economy. FlexJobs ran a survey and found that 58% of people surveyed would actually look for another job if they weren’t allowed to continue to work remotely. This comes as no surprise. The benefits from experiencing a better work-life balance along with the money savings attributed to not having to go into the office are hard to beat—especially when it comes to morale. Employees were able to take better care of their families and their homes while spending less on gas, commuting, lunches and wardrobe. Companies have also benefitted, with lower overhead costs on everything from office supplies to utilities. This was seemingly a win-win for everyone.
I project that remote work will be a trend that will remain in perpetuity in one form or another. In many cases, companies will consider shifting to a hybrid model, where employees are in the office two or three days per week. Since Covid forced so many of us to work from home in order to continue working, it really started to make sense for our office to continue a work-from-home and/or hybrid work week for many of our staffers. It allows them the flexibility to take care of personal responsibilities without the added stress, and we have found they are happier and just as productive as they were in the office.
When the pandemic hit, consumers turned to online shopping in order to get the things they wanted and needed while staying in a safe environment—their home. However, this behavior is not only expected to stick, but I predict we’ll see a continued shift from brick-and-mortar to online, if for nothing else but time and convenience.
According to a survey by McKinsey & Company: “Categories where expected growth in online shoppers exceeds 35 percent include essentials such as over-the-counter (OTC) medicine, groceries, household supplies, and personal-care products. Even discretionary categories such as skin care and makeup, apparel, and jewelry and accessories show expected customer growth of more than 15 percent.”
Over-the-top (OTT) streaming catapulted itself into homes and onto devices during the pandemic. Two primary things happened to cause this. First, not only were consumers afraid to go out without social distancing, but movie theaters were closed for an extended period, taking away one of the public’s most beloved pastimes. Second, the TV/film industry came to a screeching halt. Studios were shut down and no one was able to produce new content. So, what happened? Rather than watching reruns on linear TV, consumers turned to streaming options such as Netflix, Hulu, Roku, etc. How quickly did streaming grow, you ask? This category grew so quickly that, according to Business Insider, Disney+ surpassed 100 million sign-ups in 16 months, which took Netflix 10 years to achieve. Even though things are back to normal in Hollywood, consumers don’t seem to be giving up their streaming options that provide instant access to vast libraries of movies, shows, documentaries and even concerts at any time of day.
These consumer behavior shifts are here to stay—and the bottom line is this shift means a new marketing challenge for retailers and companies to overcome. Marketers and brands will need to shift their strategies from passive advertising meant to trigger a purchase when a consumer is walking down the retail aisles to eliciting direct engagement and consumer relationships. If they don’t, the next shift in consumer behavior we experience will be a shift in brand loyalty. The good news is there is hope as direct-to-consumer advertising and marketing agencies have developed proven strategies to achieve these goals and help companies thrive in this post-pandemic world.
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