In a way, the Covid-19 pandemic has changed the way consumers shop and communicate with brands more than any other disruption (including technological ones). During this pandemic, as more people work from home, they are sticking to basics, stepping outside only to buy essentials and are constantly worried about the risks of getting infected in crowded places like malls and supermarkets.
Analysts are of the view that retail brands across Nigeria, and the globe at large, has witnessed shifts in consumer behavior and retail trends from close quarters.
Spurred on by a trifecta of smartphone, internet penetration and increasing consumer wealth, the ecommerce market was expected to grow beyond imagination few years from now. This projection was based on customer and market research in a pre-Covid 19 world. But in the last 2 months, both the market landscape and consumer behaviour has been altered beyond recognition and there is clear indication that the ecommerce industry will take the front seat in driving global economy much sooner.
Check by CONSUMERS ASSEMBLY revealed that, some of the key consumer behaviour changes, include: consumers have changed their traditional shopping habits, more consumers have ordered products online that they would normally purchase at the store, most consumers are worried about going to the store due to fear of being infected
While some of these changes are no doubt temporary, others will be permanent. As the community moves beyond the survival mode, the digital-adoption momentum is likely to carry forward and become permanent. This inflection point will be primarily shaped by two major shifts in consumer behaviour – the reluctance to mingle in crowded public places and higher propensity for digital adoption.
Speaking on this issue to CONSUMERS ASSEMBLY, a marketing analyst, Deno Edwards said; “consumers are likely to opt for online shopping even after the outbreak ends, especially for categories such as groceries and personal care. This trend is likely to continue long after the lockdowns are called off as people would still be apprehensive to visit crowded areas like malls or supermarkets.”
According to him, a survey by eMarketer revealed that nearly 60%-85% of internet users across China and South-east Asia have avoided crowded public places to mitigate the risk of contracting the virus. While this will certainly come down to in favour of offline, I expect it will not go back to old normal of majority thronging to brick and mortal shopping aisles.”
In short, the Covid-19 outbreak and 2020 will mark a tipping point for the adoption of ecommerce and mobile commerce platforms. He added.
On his part, a lecturer of marketing with the Benue State University, Makurdi, Ibrahim Omale told National Economy that!; “retail is at an inflection point – and this is the start of a “A New World Order” in terms of how consumers shop and the way the retail industry operates. Retailers will need to be agile in adapting to this zeitgeist, since the prognosis for brands that miss inflection points is not great —cases in point, Kodak and Nokia.”
According to him, “under this New World Order, retailers across diverse categories cannot rely entirely on their offline presence even after the lockdowns are called off. They will have to inevitably adjust to the new norms of online buying. This will become even more relevant for categories like groceries and personal care where previously the propensity to buy online was low.”
While reacting to question on who will and survive in the said new world order, he pointed out that; “this “New World Order” as expert envision it, could force every retailer to embrace omnichannel ecosystem and converge the operations of their online and offline stores. Not doing so, will mean suffering huge loss in revenues. So, who will be the leaders, survivors and laggards in this New World Order? He asked.
For him the leaders would be agile retailers, who upgrade to an omnichannel ecosystem and constantly introduce innovative shopping experiences by analyzing the new buying behaviour. They would be closely followed by the survivors – pure-play digital platforms who have their own e-store and are sell on major online marketplace platforms.
The laggards in this race would be the pure-play offline retailers who are still waiting it out with the hopes that old buying habits and the demand will be restored post the lockdown period.
