Hybrid shopping, localized travel, a focus on health and wellness, the rise of challenger brands and an increase in e-commerce in areas of higher infection, are some of the buying behaviors in the U.S. that remain in a post-pandemic era.
Here’s what this may mean for your advertising trends in 2022, courtesy of Ascential-owned research firm WARC.
The data come from WARC’s latest Spotlight US report, designed “to help advertisers navigate the challenges and opportunities as consumers settle into new COVID-induced buying behaviors.”
And, it could give marketers and brand managers a paint brush designed to illustrate just how they will go about planning their budgets for 2021.
WARC US Commissioning Editor Cathy Taylor notes, “Marketers have long wondered what would become of the consumer behaviors that took hold during the pandemic when it began to wane. The evidence is starting to come in, and though COVID-19 is still very much with us, in terms of grocery buying behaviors and in other areas, the U.S. is moving onto its new version of normal.”
WARC’s Taylor provides a round-up of this latest Spotlight US series in her op-ed, ”The U.S. bread-baking fad is over, but other COVID-induced consumer behaviors remain.”
In the report, WARC examines research from 84.51°, NCSolutions, Braze, Twitter and Reach3 Insights, and came up with the following insights:
(1) Americans are increasingly hybrid shoppers, making use of all the variations that popped up with COVID-19
Every development during COVID-19 has resulted in a change in shopping behavior, but now some habits, like hybrid shopping – where US consumers do a mix of pick-up, in-store, delivery — are becoming established patterns.
Barbara Connors, VP of Commercial Insights at 84.51°, said, “Switching easily between in-store aisles and e- baskets, this new hybrid shopper demands retailers and brands meet them where they are.”
(2) Retail and digital are increasingly coming together
The pandemic has hastened the need for brands to engage with its consumers in different ways, including an increase in digital investment and activations that combine virtual and in-person.
Shray Joshi, Head of Digital & Growth at Health-Ade, said, “You’re starting to see retailers bring a digital experience into their actual retail accounts. And so, for us, that’s something that we’re going to be heavily leaning into: this in-person digital marketing.”
(3) Americans are traveling, but staying closer to home
A global study showed that Americans were the most travel-ready of any nationality, but even as many have made travel plans, the preference has been for short, domestic trips.
Will Crocker Hay, Customer and Partner Marketing Team Lead at Braze, commented, “As more travelers worldwide become vaccinated, the travel industry is hoping to return to some form of normality. Understanding and meeting up-to-the-moment customer wants and needs will be a competitive advantage, enabling brands to drive retention, revenue, and other vital outcomes.”
(4) The pandemic has been the perfect time for the rise of challenger brands
Challenger brands thrive in unsettled environments because of their ability to handle disruption, and so many have found their footing during the pandemic. Forty-five percent of US consumers have tried a new brand during the pandemic, according to research from Reach3 Insights.
Matt Kleinschmit, Founder and CEO at Reach3 Insights, pointed out, “Challenger brands have disruption in their DNA, but established brands will find they can compete – and keep consumers that they have fought hard to win over – through a bit of gene editing on their own.”
(5) E-commerce increases in areas of higher infection
Because of both uneven vaccination status and COVID-19 caseloads in the US, there are some subtle regional differences in shopping behavior among US grocery shoppers, according to research from 84.51° and NCSolutions. E-commerce activity increases where and when COVID is more of an issue.
(6) The search for wellbeing and creator culture have also been accelerated by the pandemic
Analysis of billions of US tweets before and during the pandemic reveal that wellbeing and the rise of creator culture took root in the US before the health crisis, but are even more important now. There’s also a desire for “everyday wonder” and protecting the planet.
Speaking at the 4A’s StratFest, Twitter Sr. Reearch Manager Lisa Cowie explained: “It’s important to look at these things not as a snapshot of what’s happening right now, but really about what that means over time, and then that gives us an insight into what might be pertinent and important to think about in the future.”
(7) Location targeting needs to find new techniques
Even though people are largely back out and about, marketers are having to further adjust how they use location to target consumers in the new world of heightened privacy that has unfolded irrespective of the pandemic.
Jesse Rosenschein, SVP/Integrated Investment at Mediassociates, commented, “The mobile landscape is evolving and so should the way marketers leverage location data.” She cites programmatic, out of home, real-time, and trigger-based notifications as options for marketers to reach consumers.
WARC’s Spotlight US is a bimonthly series which focuses on a timely industry topic facing brands in the market. It comprises a capsule collection of commentary, tackling the topic from a range of angles. Contributors to the series are industry experts offering on-ground insights to what’s working or developing.
