How has the pandemic changed the way customers behave, what it indicates about future behaviour, what you need to pay attention to?
The pandemic legitimized Work From Home (WFH), strangled dining, entertainment, travel and recreational options for more than a year. This will impact how we live: in-home workspace, caring for the family, companionship, staying healthy and fit, managing school routines and staying connected with family and friends. Here are some takeaways:
Change | Implications | Winners |
 Work from Home | Continue to upgrade homes and work space; | Technology providers, furnishings, office suppliers, casual wear; |
 Dining out Safely | Entertain more at home, less live entertainment; | Grocers, Uber Eats, food prep services, Netflix; |
 Pets Ownership has exploded | Millions of first-time pet owners, need help | Pet retailers, dog walkers, groomers, trainers; |
Growing numbers of people working from home, working longer hours because there is no commute home.
Change | Implications | Winners |
 Excercise at Home | Continue to upgrade homes and furnishing to accommodate partial or full-time WFH | Peleton, Fitness apps/equipment, online fitness classes |
 Get off the couch and out of the house | New outdoor recreation: kayaking, hiking, biking, | Recreation retailers: online, bricks and mortar |
The pandemic placed constraints on people’s ability to establish and maintain in-person relationships so people connected through FaceTime, Zoom and Teams:
Change | Implications | Winners |
 Travel has become uncertain | Travel less, pay more | Upgrade airline seats, Nexus |
 Chat/Meeting platforms continue to grow | Features and realism will continue to improve | Holograms? |
 Social is not going away | People, particularly Gen Z will constantly seek new ways to get their message out | Tik Tok, Instagram, Trello, Social Bee |
Conclusions
Digital
If it wasn’t obvious before, COVID has made it clear that marketers who don’t use data-driven thinking in all steps of their marketing are on a quick road to failure. Whether you are B2C or B2B company, your customers are finding and engaging with you online way before any in-person contact. So, make sure that experience is as positive and frictionless as possible.
Agility
Markets are changing fast. Planning and building systems that allow you to respond to consumers questions, comments or complaints is more important that ever. Quick pivots are also critical when one market dries up and another one opens. Look at how car insurance marketers jumped on lower auto usage to turn a long-standing negative (escalating insurance rates) into a positive by offering lower prices for coverage.
Confidence
We are still a way from ‘normal’. Marketers should find ways to reassure and remind people that their businesses are getting the basics right (product availability and safety). But also help people feel like they’re re-establishing some semblance of control over their lives and that they’re thriving rather than simply surviving.
Market with purpose
Social issues have never been more important and COVID may have helped bring a spotlight on some of them: Racial divides, women’s rights, mental health, different views on health and safety. Now it’s not an option, and consumers don’t expect…they demand their brands actively contribute toward the betterment of society as a whole.
Yield has had experience enhancing the value of brands by reflecting lessons we’ve learned from the pandemic.
Visit our website yieldbranding.com to find out more. Or reach out to me directly: Ted Nation, President Yield Branding. tnation@yieldbranding.com
