How is COVID-19 changing our relationship with digital? What are the new consumer trends that originated during the lockdown and are emerging today? Blendee will try to answer these questions in the column “Blendee Trend. Market Trends as Seen from Marketing’s Perspective,” an observatory from which we will try to explore the changes and opportunities originated by the crisis.
During the lockdown, we have seen how the traditional separation between online and offline has been gradually reduced, moving in the direction of greater integration between users’ online and offline purchasing behaviors.
COVID-19 has brought confusion and uncertainty into our lives, and people have rediscovered the value and importance of trust, a major trend emerging in 2021. How one reacts during a crisis then becomes an opportunity for brands to demonstrate their trustworthiness and renew trust with new and loyal customers.
With the pandemic of COVID-19, customer loyalty and engagement are increasingly related to three key factors:
- transparency
- trust
- empathy
Brands will have to take this into consideration if they want to continue to retain customers.
Personalized customer experience and respect for privacy
In 2021, brands will need to collaborate more with users to create a more personalized customer experience online, keeping in mind that consumers are increasingly demanding more control and respect for privacy.
Earning the trust of consumers will become increasingly essential, especially considering that by 2022 the Web will see the disappearance of third-party cookies. Therefore, it will be imperative for digital marketers to have an even deeper understanding of the preferences and needs of users, who have become more aware during the pandemic regarding data protection policies (such as Gdpr and Ccpa).
Digital-first and new consumption habits born with the COVID-19 emergency
The digital-first trend that first emerged during the lockdown seems destined to last for a long time, as do new consumption habits.
As the use of digital solutions grows and involves more and more people, customers’ expectation of brands grows as well: in fact, with the COVID-19 emergence, many consumers take digital relationships with companies for granted.
The customer today expects:
- digitization of operations
- multichannel interactions
Personalized customer experience, but with respect for privacy; trust as a pillar of retention and customer loyalty; and the ability to actively respond to the growing demand for digitization and multichannel interactions-these seem to be the challenges that companies will have to face after the pandemic.
