The lockdown is being lifted gradually and we cannot expect to return to normal - business as usual. During the lockdown, we have been writing a new future.
Marketers have to be aware of this more than ever. Analysis of consumer data has always been important but considering the changes that all of us have been used to during the lockdown, they need to be more imaginative to visualize how the consumers have to be identified and nurtured.
There have been important changes in the way the consumer thinks, feels, says, and does. These are not an exhaustive list but the marketers should pay attention, consider it, and take appropriate action.
Shopping: Catching up to expand digital borders
Consumers have adapted to online shopping quickly during the lockdown.
Even in countries with low internet availability, consumers have been forced to go digital and conduct an e-commerce transaction as it was the only channel available. Consumers are turning to contactless transactions to access products and services.
This shift is likely to continue as in general e-commerce transaction is more efficient, less expensive, and safer. Social distancing and protective norms are likely to continue for quite some time and digital will become more ingrained in consumer habits.
Marketers will have to rethink their approach to consumers. They should focus more on the digital channels and promotions including direct B2C channels. Again they need to manage the data that is being generated and how to personalize the offers and messages to the consumers. Analytics will play a crucial role in not only tracking consumer preferences and behaviors but also in rapid response to opportunities and threats. Also, it should help establish a baseline of data and help brands expand into the physical world to create more convenient shopping experiences for the consumer.
E-services - New service platforms to help consumer business
In the past years, e-services have had varying levels of acceptance among consumers. Banking services had seen high levels of acceptance along with media and entertainment. Other services have not taken off due to sub-optimal experience and low availability issues among the many reasons. But now, people have started transacting more online. Telemedicine is catching up in the US.
Increasing confidence of consumers in e-services suggests a potential demand surge and an opportunity to create more contacts with consumers. As the number of services increase, marketers can plan for interconnection with other platforms. Food marketers can partner with e-health or online fitness platforms to cross-promote benefits to a wider audience. Homebuyer platform could linkup real estate, mortgage, moving, bill forwarding services.
Home - New command central for all activities.
The lockdown has mad home the central hub, where people work, live, learn, shop and play. This is likely to continue even after the easing of the lockdown. Home entertainment and gaming are likely to increase even when consumers curtail their expenses in other areas.
Marketers will have to engage with smart devices - digital or physical- and plan how they can deliver messages seamlessly to the consumer's phone, tablet, TV screens, how to start a two-way conversation with consumers in their homes without being intrusive. They will have to rethink their mix across a larger set of channels. the key is in integrating into the proliferating services and products at home.
Community - localizing the experiences
The total lockdown and the travel restrictions have made the local neighborhood much more important. many forums have been created to connect people with local volunteer groups and multi-aid groups.
Marketers can look to expand their reach by localizing their marketing. This could be in the form of messages tailored to local requirements and established through the newly set up networks, supporting local businesses, sponsor community centers, host events.
This will require marketers to rework their strategy and build on many capabilities developed around personalization.
Trust - Creating space for health and affordability
Personal health and economic well being are the top of mind concerns for people across many countries. Foo traffic would return to stores only when consumers are confident that the places are safe and virus free. Increased cleaning, disinfecting, ensuring that all consumers and employees wear masks, adopting contactless activities like kerbside pickups, self-checkouts are likely to continue.
This would require more coordination with sales and operations teams. Preference for self-checkouts can lead to a change in-store layouts. Consumers may change brands as thrift is a prominent factor and value replaces luxury as a desirable attribute.
Trust is a key factor as many consumers will turn to the brand they trust. marketers must maintain consumer trust in data and privacy concerns which can become a differentiating factor.
Purpose - Holding brands to a higher standard.
Social factors have become important in recent years and this is likely to continue. Recent surges in activism are likely to give consumers a greater sense of their power in bringing companies to account. Surveys indicate that how a brand responds to the crisis will have a larger impact on whether they continue buying when the crisis eases. Hence, marketers must communicate a strong sense of their brand's purpose through the projects they choose to be involved with, the way they treat their employees, and the messages they send to consumers. They will need to back up their statements with action. they need to make commitments to causes they believe in or risk employees calling them out.
The extent to which these trends stick needs to be monitored closely. The marketers should answer these questions that matter the most.
- How should the vision and strategy be adapted to emerging trends?
- How well you know the consumers?
- What analytical capabilities do you have to identify opportunities and act on them quickly?
- What kind of relationships the top management need to forge to drive real growth for business?
- How personalization will drive consumer experience in an increasingly borderless environment?
- Which channels and messages are most effective in reaching and influencing consumers?
- How can prices, products, and services be customized?
- How will the operational model be customized to be quick and flexible enough to meet consumer needs?
Marketers will need to strictly monitor trends and indicators, commit to bold changes, and build agility for the new world emerging post lockdown.
Reimagining marketing in the next normal
by Arun Arora, Peter Dahlstrom, Eric Hazan, Hamza Khan, and Rock Khanna McK July 2020
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