A Historical Shift in Consumer Behavior

Consumers are embracing digital commerce during these unprecedented times. Digital has become the NEW NORMAL and many businesses are moving towards the digital horizon. Covid has compelled people to shop online, favoring digital giants like Amazon.

The Indian e-commerce industry has witnessed a huge demand spike during the Covid 19 pandemic.

The disruption brought in by Covid-19 has fundamentally changed the way people live, think, and perceive the world. The pandemic has reshaped many industries, dislocated supply chains, and globally changed consumers' priorities towards products and brands.

Social distancing and restrictions over out-of-home activities have forced people to shop online from groceries to medicines to personal hygiene products.

Consumers are trying to fit in this new normal world with unsettled fear of how this crisis will impact them economically and health-wise.

According to a survey report by KPMG, 78% of Indian consumers are reducing discretionary spending as they are feeling less optimistic about future economic prospects amid the rising of the pandemic.

Further, 19% of Indian respondents maintained that they will continue cutting off their expenses, according to the report.

Consumer priority shift in uncertain times

Consumers have opted for new purchasing behaviors during these uncertain times, providing a boost to e-commerce and online payment sectors. Personal health and hygiene have become a top priority for consumers followed by food, medical care, and financial security. People are choosing saving overspending.

Consumer-Brand relationship

Consumers have become more conscious about buying products than they were before. They prioritize sustainability, and several brands have altered their strategies to adhere to this shift in consumer behavior.

A survey report by IBM Institute for Business Value surveyed the impact coronavirus has on sustainable Indian consumer behavior. 21% of Indian respondents considered the use of sustainable items to be an important purchasing factor.

At the beginning of the crisis, product unavailability gave consumers a good reason to try alternative brands, followed by developing new demands and habits.

With this phenomenal change, marketers are pushed to reconsider their strategies and build a consumer-trust-based relationship’ in this new reality. And understanding this change in customer behavior can help marketers personalize and customize their marketing strategies which may include the application of advanced data and analytics to achieve immense efficiency and provide long-term value to their customers.

Retailers rapidly need to understand consumer's preferences over spending on essential and non-essential items and adapt to them. Consumers’ confidence in a brand will be the real game-changer and opportunity for growth for any business.