The pandemic has deeply affected our lives. Be it economical, psychological, physical or financial, the changes have been observed in all domains. With economies facing slump and businesses tumbling down, the economic impacts of the pandemic are here to stay. Thus, it becomes important to analyse the changes in consumption behaviour.
Closer Look at Industries
The social distancing is the new normal and thus, people tend to demand comfort at their doorstep. They are actively engaging themselves in home cooking, 54% more than earlier and 22% more home improvement. The restrictions imposed on movement have turned the consumers towards home based entertainment. Online streaming platforms including Netflix and Disney have witnessed a boost in the subscriptions. A similar increase has been witnessed in the consumption of online news and social media.
The pandemic has led people worldwide to focus more on health and wellbeing. Thus, comes along the high consumption of e-medicine and e-pharmacy. People are also shifting to organically produced food items. In the US alone, consumption of organic produce has increased by 10 times since March. The E-Commerce industry has experienced a massive boom. It owes to the online shopping preferences. People are visiting stores and markets quite less. Rather, they are resorting to online shopping to keep themselves safe.
The ‘work from home’ has led to a natural increase in the user base of platforms like Zoom, Slack, Google Meet. Zoom’s userbase grew to 200 million. The growth is supplemented by the online education. Multiple universities have gone online and thus students and teachers are increasingly opting for online platforms and tools. As people are avoiding transit hubs and vacations, the tourism and hospitality industry, on the other end, have hit the rock bottom. The air travel has declined by 90%.
Way Ahead
The pandemic will have a long-term impact on industries worldwide. Therefore, companies need to come up with strategies and solutions to keep themselves on track. Retail stores and supermarkets need to focus on quick and safe visits. Drive-through pick-ups and home delivery might prove helpful. As the world adjusts to the ‘new normal’, businesses will subsequently have to tweak their operations and ways of engagement.
Source: World Economic Forum
