Winning with consumers – COVID- 19

How many countries? How many families? How many consumers have been affected by COVID?

I would not even dare to estimate the number of those affected by this virus. Even though the virus has infected almost 70 million, according to World Health Organization (Dec. 2020) reports, it is nearly impossible to quantify the number of people who have been affected by this global pandemic.

We, business organizations, cannot forget this context as we need to act quickly in helping our consumers, employees, and of course, our businesses. The current scenario makes us ask essential questions:

  • Do we know which concerns consumers are having right now? What does their hierarchy of needs look like today? What are their aspirations?
  • Do we really know how the behaviors of consumers have changed? How about their patterns of consumption, their preferences? Are their purchasing habits by categories/channels any different?
  • Do we know how their brand perceptions have evolved? Their meaning of ¨value¨ and ¨loyalty¨?
  • Where can we find our consumers? How should we contact them?

In this new framework, we need to find the answers to these questions and many more. We need to deeply understand how this pandemic is affecting the different aspects of our customers’ lives.

HOW IS THIS NEW SITUATION SHAKING OUR CONSUMERS?

  • Their Family: Health and well-being are the main concern for everyone right now. People have changed their ways in general; their habits and even their traditions look different from before COVID-19. We are co-existing in small spaces and elderly family members are receiving fewer visits. Home is now the place where we live and work. It is our living space, our office, our classroom, our social place. It is an all-in-one bundle where hygiene and safety play a vital role in our daily lives.
  • Their Work: The economic downturn has led to soaring unemployment rates at all levels. This together with the new model of work at home has created a turmoil in the working environment. This results in new relations and the adoption of new digital services like the virtual collaboration tools (Zoom’s user base grew from 10MM people to 200MM in 3mos (Mckinsey&Co., Marketing&Sales practices report). People are at home and have significantly reduced visits to retails while increasing in-home consumption.
  • Their Relationships: People have reduced participating in as many activities or social events that require leaving their houses, adopting new habits and hobbies which they can enjoy from the comfort of their homes. As a result, digital media consumption and engagement rates on social media platforms have achieved unprecedented heights. The internet has become a one-stop-shop source for work and entertainment – achieving the equivalent of seven years of technological advances in only five months.

Because of all this, we have observed a predominant shift in the FMCG shopping pattern: Consumers are focused on what it is important; they have increased their value and price sensitivity, they have increased the switching of brands and channels (60% higher intent of on-line shopping) looking for one-stop shopping trips and sometimes trading down. Among all these changes, E-commerce has seen an unprecedented boost due to the pandemic breaking its entry barriers and achieved an exponential growth equivalent to almost 10 years in as little as eight weeks (Mckinsey&Co., Marketing&Sales practices report). This is no longer new, and it is here to stay. E-commerce is no longer the new thing; it is The Thing.

It is vital that we talk and listen to consumers to find the real insights that can lead us to build reliable, valuable, and competitive brand propositions.

WHAT DO WE NEED TO DO AFTER THE CONVERSATION WITH OUR CUSTOMERS?

We need to:

  • Define our brand purpose and its undisputable offer while understanding consumers are more sensitive than ever.
  • Keep the conversation with our consumers through digital platforms and understand where and when to connect them and what they need. This is not only a source of information but of selling.
  • Understand the customer journey and evaluate new channels such as E-commerce with its different scenarios. Off-line/On-line is one of the most powerful strategies.
  • Develop both efficient and effective Go-To-Market plans designed to delight consumers and shoppers while generating strategic partnerships with both our channels and clients.

NO TIME FOR QUARANTINES…

Our brands have little to no time for quarantines. We need to prepare the COVID EXIT. Our markets, consumers, and competitors are adapting and changing rapidly. In these complex times, we need our companies to focus on learning and acting/reacting quickly alongside our consumers with digitalization and E-commerce presenting an undisputable way to go. Only then will we be able to take the lead and be the first in the last mile, winning together with our consumers.