1. Hyper-connected consumer

Since lock down, 9,000,000,000 mins of video meetings are being hosted on Microsoft Teams each week. Google searches on ‘language learning’ are up 100% yoy. Facebook Group calls are up +1000% in the last month. Web content download traffic up 90%. (Source: The Goat Agency.) What does this mean for future behaviour?

2. (Virtual) Experience Economy

With music acts canceling tours, museums and art galleries closing their doors and the no Olympics, there will be a massive void in people’s lives. But immersive new technologies mean that people can increasingly get their experiential fix from the virtual world. In the ‘new normal’ expect these, and other virtual experiences to take on new levels of meaning. A photo on instagram probably won’t cut it anymore!

3. Ambient wellness

It takes 6 weeks for a new habit to be formed. Habits formed within this lockdown will take a while to shift. Consumers were already becoming more health conscious, more aware of their mental health, more aware of the need to slow down & de-stress and spend time with the family. Whether we end up with a nation of OCD hand washers or just a significant number of consumers who are more health conscious, more aware of their mental health, more aware of the need to slow down & de-stress and spend time with the family – we expect the health and wellness trend to further spike.

4. Delivery

Consumers are using delivery when they would never have considered it before, and that includes groceries AND meal deliveries. MANY more restaurants, convenience stores, pubs, bakeries, and the like are all now offering delivery when they had had no intention of doing so before. Only 7% of UK consumers were using delivery apps on a weekly basis before this crisis – that figure is looking to be around 24% right now. Consumers are currently accepting kinks that WILL NOT be acceptable in less challenging times.

5. Never Forget

Social and environmental concerns, or CSR, are all getting far more important to consumers – what your brand does now will define how it is seen post-crisis. Don’t screw it up.

6. Connection & Collaboration

Consumers are connecting with neighbours, old friends, their children, their partners even more than ever despite being on lockdown – because many have more time to do so. An increased acceptance and ability to try video conferencing, like Zoom, mean people are actually speaking more regularly in many cases. Many businesses are at it too. Connecting and collaborating with new partners and even direct competitors.

Guest Blogger: Katie Jenkins of KAM Media

Find out more at kam-media.co.uk