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Many are now calling the COVID-19 pandemic and its fallout The Great Reset. The economic, political and human impact has been huge, and while consumers find themselves adapting to new ways of working and living, businesses find themselves facing up to the daunting and uncertain prospect of rebuilding. 

To rebuild, they need to understand what’s changed, and separate hype from reality. 

It’ll be years before we realize the true extent of what’s changed in 2020, but in the first of this two-part series, we’re looking closer at the major consumer trends and shifts our research has uncovered  this year so far. Here’s what we’ll answer:

• Is the TikTok hype legit? 
• How have spending habits changed?
• Should tanking economic confidence deter marketers?
• Why is it time for online education to shine?

Global lockdown, multiple outcomes

It’s pretty rare that most of the world gets told to stay at home for a prolonged period of time. But just because most of the world has found itself in a similar position in 2020 doesn’t mean we’re seeing a uniform picture in changing consumer behaviors – far from it. 

Societies went into lockdown at different times and for different lengths, cases have peaked at different rates between countries, consumer groups have reacted differently to spending more time at home, climate has impacted how people use their home space, different economy types have impacted the scale of remote working between countries…

Our research across 46 countries is consistent and harmonized, meaning we can get the full picture of what’s happening on the ground, and why.

Yes, the TikTok hype is legit.

Can we really talk about 2020 without mentioning TikTok? 

The social platform has certainly given people an outlet for creativity during lockdown, offering a platform for light-hearted content at a time it was needed most. 

Our data shows not only has time spent on social media risen during the first half of 2020, nearly every social media platform has seen a boost in monthly engagement. 

But nothing compares to TikTok’s success in this timeframe. 

During lockdown, TikTok experienced a +72% growth in monthly visitation on a global level between Q3 2019 and Q2 2020. In Latin America, that growth sits at an astonishing +185%; perhaps the biggest rise in social platform visitation we’ve ever seen in such a short time-frame. 

In North America, it’s not hard to see why potential buyers are racing for the chance to acquire TikTok’s regional operations, or why marketers are adding TikTok as a staple in their marketing mix. 

It’s the only other region aside from LatAm where visitation growth has surpassed the 100% mark in the first half of 2020. 

Spending patterns haven’t been universal.

During the so-called “Great Reset”, it seems through forced circumstance or abstinence, people and organizations have gained new perspectives. 

Brands strategizing recovery are reconsidering the efficacy of media channels they’ve had to do without, company leaders and CEOs are rethinking the role of the office space, and consumers are reassessing their living environments as they’ve spent more time indoors. 

This is reflected in our purchase category data, but true to the complexity of the consumer behavior shifts caused by COVID-19, spending shifts tend to differ by region and demographic. 

Younger people, above all, have contemplated their surroundings during lockdown and are now looking to make improvements to their environment. It’s important to note that purchase trends are typically more subtle than others we see in our data set, and figures typically remain modest. 

But over the course of lockdown, we’ve seen small but unmistakable indications of consumers shifting their spend towards in-house or home improvement purchases. 

These trends have been most pronounced in Western Europe and North America. These are typically service economies – meaning there’s a higher proportion of white-collar job sectors compared to more manufacturing-based economies in fast growth countries. This results in a larger number of people able to work remotely in service economies. 

Between Q4 2019 and Q2 2020, the rate of consumers aged 16-34 in these regions who say they intend to purchase a sofa in the next 6 months has increased by around 4 percentage points (12% do), having risen incrementally over the past two quarters. 

From our research so far, out of all behaviors adopted or increased during lockdown, consumers are most keen to carry on their exercise habits. This is also reflected in our purchasing data. 

In Q2 2020, we witnessed the largest number of consumers looking to buy home exercise equipment since we started tracking this. 

Elsewhere, smart home tech has also appeared on young consumers’ purchasing radars in these regions. Again, we found that ownership of smart home devices rose to a point never seen before in our data in Q2, largely thanks to the 1 in 10 16-34 year-olds having purchased a smart home assistant in the past 3-6 months.

There’s another factor to consider when looking at these figures. 

These countries are in the temperate zone of the Northern hemisphere. From a seasonal perspective, the most drastic lockdown measures coincided with the beginning of spring and lasted throughout most of summer in the Northern hemisphere. 

As the weather improved in these temperate regions (more so than usual in Western Europe), those lucky enough to have an outside space to enjoy seem to have been incentivized by lockdown to invest in these spaces. This might be why we see the uptick in purchase intent for garden furniture in these countries.

Q2 was crunchtime for financial hopes, and for marketers.

From March to July, our dedicated 17-country COVID-19 research took stock of economic confidence as the pandemic unfolded. Two things became obvious. 

• First: concern about the financial impact of the virus grew and was the least acute in China. 
• Second: expectations for personal finances were much rosier than those seen for national economies. 

With our latest wave of core research, we now have the benefit of trending economic confidence. This allows us to benchmark pre-pandemic confidence levels against that seen during the most disruptive months of 2020, when societies were firmly in the “adjustment” phase of the pandemic response. 

For most of the world outside China, lockdown didn’t begin until March, so the fact that the dramatic swings in confidence didn’t occur until Q2 is to be expected. Even so, there was an indication that at least some were bracing themselves for economic shocks to their economy in Q1. Between Q1 and Q2, the rate of global consumers who expected their country’s economy and their personal finances to get worse in the next 6 months grew by +72% and +99%, respectively. 

Marketers’ reactions to such economic turmoil have ranged from one extreme to the other, with some global brands doubling down on brand investment and others freezing their ad spend. But financial gloom hasn’t undermined the importance of advertising, it’s just created a new set of priorities and expectations for advertisers to crack. 

To crack them, they need to stay close to their target consumers using reliable, frequent and granular psychographic data which contextualizes consumer behavior. When marketing budgets are under more pressure than ever, this kind of information can help ensure your marketing dollars aren’t going to waste. 

Throughout the second quarter of 2020, consumers were telling us that they wanted to hear from brands, that they supported brand advertising, and that they had certain expectations of companies in terms of extending empathy through flexibility and discounts. 

Meanwhile, online purchasing has increased, and the majority of consumers in the UK and U.S. expect to spend as normal in the run up to Christmas. 

So despite the worldwide recession, consumer spending intent is still there. It’s their expectations that have changed.

You can assess the true impact of the pandemic on your own target audiences in our platform with a free account. 

The pandemic has accelerated demand for online education – especially among younger age groups.

If lockdown gave people a new perspective on their belongings and immediate surroundings, it also gave them a chance to put their futures more into focus too. 

It’s been a strange time for education in general. While school-age children and parents have battled with home-shooling, colleges and universities have moved their learning models online out of necessity, more or less putting the spectrum of university institutions on an equal footing with distance learning-based models. 

This puts the most prestigious universities under pressure to defend the aura of scarcity attached to their highly selective learning experiences – an aura which up until now has been unquestioned. This is just another fascinating development resulting from the fact that the pandemic has accelerated the growth of online education. 

The impact of lockdown in incentivizing people to pursue online learning opportunities is evident throughout our data. But this eagerness for self-development has been most acute among  16-34 year-olds. 

Most notably, Q2 saw a boost in the number of 16-34s who say that they use the internet for education and study-related purposes. This shift coincided with a considerable jump in the rate of 16-34s who say they’re currently studying for an undergraduate degree – a jump which happened in every region with the exception of the Middle East and Africa.

Many might assume that this new wave of lockdown students can be attributed to widespread job losses, temporary lay-offs and those who have had their hours reduced. That’s not necessarily the case. 

Our COVID-19 research across 17 countries revealed those whose jobs have been negatively affected by the pandemic are as likely to be currently studying a student course as those who have been left professionally unscathed. Only people who say they’ve been temporarily laid off by their employer are slightly more likely to say they’re currently studying for course.

That tells us the trend towards online education isn’t just a product of unfortunate circumstance. It’s potentially much more profound. 

Automation is now entering white-collar work. There’s a continuing disconnect between demand in the labor market for modern skills, and supply of those skills in national education curriculums. 

This has led to concern over the job security of future workers who may need to frequently retrain to compete with artificial intelligence and automation. Our Work data set already shows these technologies are being harnessed across industries, and that there’s a lot of interest and enthusiasm in scaling their application. These can be forces for good, but they can also be extremely disruptive in the labor market.

The idea of education systems extending far beyond age 18, and of retraining and upskilling being a fact of future modern working lives, is not new. But our 2020 data on online education indicates that it’s now approached a unique opportunity. 

After decades of education cost hikes far outpacing inflation in countries renowned for their learning institutions, the lockdown learning boost has come at a time when technology has vastly improved the virtual learning experience. 

Many more affordable online learning institutions which have invested in this technology are currently operating within the same rules of engagement as traditional universities, many of which are only now adapting to distance learning. This is online education’s time to shine.

Key takeaways on the new consumer landscape

• Many trends instigated or accelerated by COVID-19 haven’t been universal. The world may have been subject to the same threat, but the reactions and outcomes have typically differed along the usual lines of demographics, culture and geography.
• Spending habits are a case-in-point. More time indoors has given people the chance to reflect on their homes. Countries with higher rates of remote working and those whose lockdown experience was characterized by summer weather have typically opted for home improvement purchases.
• As we enter one of the biggest recessions in modern history, consumer confidence has tanked. Marketers may be tempted to put their plans on ice, but instead they should be adjusting their plans to a new set of consumer expectations.
• It’s a pivotal time for online learning, and an uneasy time for more traditional higher education institutions. The virtual learning experience has benefited massively from tech advancements, and lockdown has not just increased enrollment, but it’s also put the education sector on a more equal footing. 
• TikTok is one platform that’s seen unprecedented growth. It’s seen huge growth during lockdown and has a high profile in the media – the hype is real.

Leveraging our leading survey with over 40,000 different data points to explore, this is by no means the extent of changes during the course of 2020 so far. 

Look out for our next blog in the series looking at why older consumers have experienced the most transformation in digital behaviors as a result of the pandemic.

Today’s Americans consume more content across more channels than ever before. 

The ubiquity of smartphones and the ever-growing list of services to watch, listen and read has led to a rapid growth in media consumption around the country. The average American spends over 9 hours and 30 minutes per day consuming different media content, including online and print press, broadcast and online TV, social media, and radio.

The result is an extremely crowded entertainment landscape, and consumers have been given nearly all the power to pick and choose the services they will pay for. Companies jockeying for our attention have to compete not only with one another, but also with our divided attention spans as many of us access multiple screens at a time. 

For advertisers and brands attempting to reach American audiences in this complex media mix, it’s paramount to understand the holistic picture of consumer behaviors. Data from GWI USA sheds light on a few media trends to keep an eye on. 

The rise of “cord nevers”

Broadcast TV is still the king of entertainment in the U.S. However, as the potential costs stack up, many are starting to drop some services in favor of others. 

By all accounts, cable currently bears the brunt of these service cancellations. 

In 2019, Comcast reportedly lost nearly 700k cable TV subscribers, and in Q2 2020 alone this number grew by nearly 500k. Consumers are overwhelmingly prioritizing new streaming services over traditional TV, and the growing number of services to choose from may be driving the rise in cord cutting behavior. 

In the past twelve months alone, we’ve seen 5 new major streaming services launch (Apple TV+, Disney+, HBO Max, Quibi, and Peacock).

By Q1 2020, 40% of Americans reported owning a TV streaming device. 

So while 58% of the nation currently subscribes to cable TV, this majority is waning, and the possibility for cable to win back lost customers or entice new viewers grows weaker. 

The majority of cable TV subscribers are made up of Gen Xs and baby boomers who have likely been subscribers for decades. And even among these loyal age groups, cracks are forming.

57% of cable TV subscribers have also viewed an online streaming service in the past month, and 1 in 5 said that while they watch some cable TV, they favor services like Netflix and Hulu.

Many Americans are going with online alternatives exclusively. 

29% have dropped a cable TV subscription, and 13% of cable TV subscribers are planning on dropping their cable service in favor of online streaming in the next 6 months.

And younger generations are less likely to sign up for cable in the first place. These are the “cord nevers”.  

As opposed to cord cutters, these “cord nevers” pose a unique struggle for cable TV providers. With a growing number of streaming platforms to choose from, often offering shows and movies without ads at single-digit monthly costs, it can be hard for cord nevers to justify the cost of cable. 

While nearly 6 in 10 Americans currently pay for at least one streaming service, there’s a steep drop off for those who pay for multiple subscriptions. 

Only 16% of the country pays for 3 or more streaming services, and the fact that this group is 30% more likely than average to have dropped cable means that with more new entrants into the streaming space, the writing is on the wall for cable TV.

The entertainment landscape stands to grow even more complex when new entrants and established services clash over content rights -. aAccess to one specific show can often be the deciding factor to begin or renew a subscription., For instance,and many users may switch services for instance when The Office, Netflix’s most popular show, heads to Peacock early next year.

Account sharing means wider exposure

One of the challenges facing online streaming platforms in the future centers around the sheer volume of users that currently access these services for free.

It’s an open secret that many viewers of these services use accounts belonging to friends and family members, but the untapped potential is far bigger than expected.  

Streaming platforms may be allowing this behavior to continue on purpose, as streaming viewers aren’t particularly brand loyal, often have access to multiple services, and aren’t yet willing to pay for more than a handful of accounts. 

Yet account sharing may actually lead to broader exposure and more long-term strategic success, as these companies attract viewers with their original content and begin to carve out market share through exclusive shows that attract and hold users.   

Some services are already strategizing on genres to solidify their place in the market.

They dominate entire categories where their viewers show a preference, like Disney+ users being twice as likely than average to watch children shows, and Hulu viewers being 60% more likely to watch anime.

In reality, this is causing the current streaming landscape to look a lot like TV channels did in the past, where certain services lead in a given genre. Account sharing may give viewers the opportunity to judge the quality of a service before shelling out for a subscription themselves, even if it leaves money on the table initially. 

So while Hulu and Disney+ have less users than Netflix, they may actually have more staying power as their users are more engaged with their content. 

15% of Hulu and Disney+ viewers spend over 5 hours a day on these platforms, as opposed to just 11% of Netflix and Prime Video viewers.

In the future, it will be important for advertisers to pay attention to the shifting competitive landscape, as it affects which audiences are drawn to which platform. 

Second screening is the new normal

Americans in 2020 are distracted to say the least. 

A critical mass of Americans use phones, laptops, or tablets while watching TV, so while online streaming platforms contend with one another, they also have to compete with our own attention spans. 

Second-screening has become the norm in the U.S.

Over 80% of Americans admit to using a second device while watching broadcast or streaming TV, and these behaviors reach as high as 90% among Gen Z.

While this may look like bad news for advertisers, as many viewers are likely to pull out their phones during each commercial break, it simply changes the medium for these advertisers to reach their audiences.

40% of the country browse the internet and over 30% scroll through social media while watching linear or online TV. Second screening actually offers advertisers opportunities to reach viewers, who may be on streaming platforms specifically to avoid ads. 

Second-screening is even more pronounced for users of multiple streaming services. 38% of all streamers use social media while watching TV, and this rises to over 50% of those who watch 5 or more streaming services. 

This gives advertisers an opportunity to reach cord nevers and other streaming-first viewers in very specific ways. 

For instance, 38% of all U.S. streamers use social media while watching TV, but this number reaches 53% of Disney+ viewers, while Amazon Prime viewers are the most likely to be looking up info about the shows they’re watching.  

Podcasts are catching the ear of U.S. consumers

All said, advertisers can benefit from understanding more about each aspect of their consumer base’s total online experience, and podcasts are another increasingly important piece of that puzzle. 

The market for podcasts has grown considerably in the past few years, evidenced most recently by a hundred-million-dollar deal between Spotify and Joe Rogan’s popular podcast. And there’s still a lot of room to grow within the segment overall. 

Nearly a quarter of the country listened to podcasts in a typical month at the beginning of 2020.

And like most other shifting trends in the country, it’s driven largely by Gen Zs and millennials, as one third of both age groups listen to podcasts monthly, and 1 in 5 listen weekly.

This represents a huge opportunity for advertisers, especially since users seem more receptive to advertising in this medium than in others.

Many podcast listeners accept advertising as a way to listen for free, and just over one third of podcast listeners currently pay for a music streaming service. 

Unlike viewed content, where many consumers are seeking ad-free streaming alternatives to cable, podcast listeners are more equally distributed among ad-sponsored and ad-free versions. 

In this medium, the value of the content is a much larger driver for listeners than the method of accessing that content. 

Barring a few deals by Spotify, there isn’t much exclusivity in listening methods, and many podcasts are posted on multiple channels at once, including YouTube. 

Although there isn’t much difference between the generations, Gen Zs and millennials are slightly more likely to listen to paid, ad-free content, while Gen Xs and baby boomers are most likely to listen to ad-supported versions. 

At the same time, podcast genre preferences also differ by generation. Compared to the average podcast listener: 

• Gen Zs are 35% more likely to listen to comedy
• Millennials are 21% more likely to listen to TV and movie topics
• Gen Xs are 20% more likely to listen to sports podcasts
• Baby boomers are 65% more likely to listen to news and politics content. 

With such stark differences in podcast preferences and an openness to advertising in this space, trends in both the exclusivity of the content and the methods of listening will be important to pay attention to in the future. 

What does the future hold? 

The coronavirus will no doubt lead to permanent changes in our media preferences, but the threshold for how much we are willing to pay for these various services going forward will be even more important. 

Until now, our increased usage of streaming services has been driven by their low cost in comparison to traditional media. But as more services join the competition for our attention, will the last holdouts for cable TV remain subscribed, or will they join younger generations in jumping ship?

The future is uncertain. Where our attention lies, and how much we are willing to spend on our total entertainment costs will no doubt affect the offerings themselves, and as the list of our online subscriptions grow, advertisers will need to pay close attention. 

During these extraordinary times, understanding the needs of consumers in the U.S. means digging deeper and listening to the millions of voices that make up this unique landscape.

Our new data set, GWI USA, allows us to do just that; analyzing the online behaviors of U.S. internet users from a more granular perspective than ever before. This is an important perspective to adopt as different states emerge from lockdown with different rules, attitudes, and priorities.

Using figures from this new data set and our ongoing coronavirus research, we address some of the burning questions in the U.S. advertising landscape right now. 

Key takeaways:

• As consumers show a growing interest in travel alternatives, ads on public transport are quickly becoming less of a priority.
• In-store displays are now a key point of focus for brand discovery.
• U.S. consumers are watching more broadcast TV than before.
• Social media has become an important place to research brands as well as discover them.
• Consumer attitudes to coronavirus-related advertising have changed.

1. How has OOH advertising changed?

In the early stages of lockdown, the concept of the rush hour virtually disappeared in major cities across the U.S. Public safety measures extracted a heavy toll on out of home (OOH) advertising, with advertisers pulling back on a spend previously expected to hit $40 billion across cities in 2020.

Observing OOH advertising across the U.S. now,  it’s clear the outbreak has hit public transport the hardest, with just 2% saying they discovered new brands via ads here in the last month. Even for those living in an urban context, it only reaches 4%.

Given 38% say they’re now extremely or very interested in transport alternatives, ads on public transport aren’t likely to rebound quickly. 

For example, sport-related patterns around transport hubs may not return to their previous level for some time. 

This isn’t to say, all aspects of OOH are set to struggle. Billboards are still resilient, with 12% in urban environments identifying them as a brand discovery channel. Roadside locations and retail environments, for example, may prove fruitful even as demand for public transport is depressed.

Retail environments may even, amid reduced demand overall, prove beneficiaries of the “back to normal” phase we’re entering into. 

Our coronavirus research found 37% of American internet users expect to shop online more frequently after the outbreak. 

This will undoubtedly displace some in-person visits. 

But for those who do make the trip, managing the flow of people through a store or mall will present opportunities. More time and thought will go into the trip, which may mean more attentive viewers of OOH ads in a retail context, and retailers themselves get the chance to develop the in-store experience. 

Safety and hygiene are obviously the priorities, but social distancing protocol allows for more interaction with in-store displays – which 1 in 5 U.S. users cite as a typical source of brand discovery. 

Retail experiences cannot be high-touch for the moment, but creative thinking can ensure that safety measures add to, and don’t detract from, the customer experience.

An additional benefit to in-store promotions is that they’re more likely to appeal to older audiences, with 55-64’s being 26% more likely to discover brands in this manner and over 65’s 35% more likely. We’ve noted previously how older individuals are just as eager to return to stores, and this is a perfect way for brands to remain visible to those less inclined to shop online.

2. Does TV still rule entertainment?

Lockdown also prompted the biggest shakeup in media consumption habits in living memory. Emerging from the other side of it, the natural question to answer is whether TV is still king, or whether newer distractions occupied internet users’ time, and became the place for them to discover brands.

Lockdown restrictions certainly made an impact, with 32% of U.S. internet users saying they’ve been watching more broadcast TV against 29% using more social media. This is unique to the U.S., given, globally, social media consumption is up 43% against 39% for TV.

For brand discovery, this means 41% of U.S. consumers discover brands via TV commercials, while ads on social media sit at 22%. 

While TV viewership is certainly driven by older age groups, younger audiences are important here too – just under 1 in 4 of 16-34’s say they’ve increased TV viewership, with an additional 10% saying they intend to continue after the outbreak. 

But the gap between TV and social is closing, and as younger audiences continue to acquire more spending power, they’ll bear greater influence in dictating this change.

An active example of this can be seen in the South West of the U.S. where the gap sits at just 14 percentage-points between ads on social media (25%) and ads on TV (39%) Here, 40% of internet users are aged between 16-34 – a higher concentration than anywhere else in the U.S.

Brand discovery among U.S. 16-24’s is now social media-centric, with 1 in 3 discovering products or services via ads or posts on a social media platform. While TV still has a place among this audience – commercials make an impression on just under 1 in 5 – behaviors are shifting.

It’s only users aged 55 and above that brands should approach cautiously online, given just 12% discover brands via ads on social media, compared to 59% via TV commercials.

While some 55-64s are using social media more as a result of the outbreak – 22% say this – it’s worth noting this may be short lived as just 6% think they’ll continue using social media after the outbreak.

Discovery is gradually shifting online, but that doesn’t mean offline methods have to be cannibalized. TV’s long-time, and resurging, popularity means younger audiences will continue to discover ads in this manner, despite a greater likelihood to do so via social media. Both are likely to complement one another for the time being. 

3. How should brands reach consumers outside social media?

Social media might not have sucked up too much time from TV, but it’s become a lifeline for businesses whose physical presence has had to shut down. In many cases, it’s been the only way to keep in contact with their customers. 

As a result, social media comes to the fore as a source of information. 

Though 22% of users discover brands via ads on social, 29% say they use these sites to search for information. 

Age groups associated with higher social media use are the main players here – 37% of 16-24’s search for information on social media – older audiences are using them in this manner too, with 1 in 5 of 55-64’s searching for information here.

Other channels gain extra relevance at this stage of the customer journey. 

Though just 12% of U.S. users discover new products via ecommerce sites, 26% say they search for information here. Given a further 12% say they visit ecommerce sites every day – rising to 32% weekly – there’s a high likelihood that ad-presence here will reach consumers who discovered products elsewhere too.

Ads on video sites, which only 9% of U.S. users say they discover new products on, see a dramatic increase when used for research, almost on par with social media. 

This is important when considering the future of TV and social in the U.S. With digital video ad spending committed upfront set to grow by 11% this year, and as social media begins to encroach on TV ad space, brands can get creative and steer viewers toward their social pages – where users are more likely to discover new products. 

Simultaneously, viewers discovering products will return to videos to research further, giving brands more visibility and better opportunity to directly interact with their viewership.

4. Is corona-fatigue setting in?

When we first started looking at how consumers responded to brands and their reactions to coronavirus, we found that internet users were supportive of those that chose to directly address the ongoing pandemic.

For example, in a custom survey ran from March 31st to April 2nd, we found that over 7 in 10 U.S. users approved of brands running advertising showing their response to coronavirus – with all age groups in agreement. 

At the same time, just under half approved of brands running “normal” advertising campaigns. As this was an early and uncertain stage of the pandemic, brands played an important role in supporting their customers in the early stages.

But as of our most recent research, run from 29th June to 2nd July, attitudes have changed. We found that 57% of U.S. internet users approve of coronavirus-related advertising – still high, but a significant decline from April. 

While the situation is far from “under control”, society has begun to adapt to changes in daily routine and, with 36% watching more news coverage, they’ve become more informed. 

This decline may be attributed to news fatigue, specifically regarding coronavirus.

Evidently, brands continuing to show how they’re tackling coronavirus is still welcome, but approval of running “normal” campaigns hasn’t declined – having settled at around half of U.S. users since tracking this behavior in March.

While this sentiment for less coronavirus-related messaging could be attributed to younger, less at-risk individuals, older audiences – who are commonly considered at greater-risk – are actually just as likely to approve.

In the U.S., 54% of individuals aged 55-64 approve of brands running “normal” advertisements, just behind the 59% of 16-24’s who say the same. Even high-risk individuals –  those with certain health conditions – agree, with 58% of this audience saying this.

Businesses thinking of relaxing their coronavirus campaigns can take comfort in knowing that their efforts to resume with a degree of normality will be welcome – and it’s beginning to show as more brands look toward the endgame.

The coronavirus pandemic has changed our everyday behaviors and now, as lockdowns begin to ease for most, we’re experiencing yet more change. But, despite the changing context of our lives, we’re all still people with basic human needs – and we’re still consumers. 

Every brand is asking the same questions: 

• What activities will people return to and when? 
• How will the aftermath of COVID-19 impact consumer behaviors and confidence? 

This blog post is a collaboration with location advertising and analytics company, Blis, and reveals the answers to these questions by comparing what people say (in consumer research) versus what they do (in the real world).

In analyzing our respective research across five regions, (U.S., UK, Italy, Singapore, Australia), we found two significant trends:

• Cautious consumerism
• The thrift mentality

Despite people’s longing to return to normal, our combined data reveals people are approaching life with a new air of caution – both around returning to places and spaces and around their finances. We believe these two factors will drive consumer behavior for the next 12 months.

Consumers are still approaching a ‘return to normal’ with caution.

Our latest coronavirus research in most markets reveals the majority of people said they’d return to shops in a fairly short time frame. Blis foot traffic data broadly corroborates this, but the change isn’t happening uniformly, and it’s not happening overnight.

Blis noted Australian consumers want the quickest return to stores and venues. This may be a result of the country’s relative remoteness or how it’s responded to the pandemic. 

In June, outdoor activities and food and drink venues across the country experienced a surge in visitors, reaching 86% and 64% of pre-COVID traffic, respectively.

In Italy, consumers are more likely to maintain their reduced selection of stores for routine behaviors like grocery shopping. 

Once the epicentre of the pandemic, behavior here is still guided by extreme caution, and the week after lockdown was completely lifted, we still saw just 7% of pre-COVID foot traffic through stores. 

According to our data, there seems to be a conservative mindset at large in Italy. Even though virtually everyone wants businesses to reopen as normal, few want to take the plunge themselves. 

They’re even more cautious about returning to large outdoor venues.

Both indoor and outdoor venues remain a distance away from each other, with typically around half as many consumers saying they would return to larger public spaces in a quick time frame compared to shops. 

The trend is more encouraging for large outdoor venues, with a stronger intent to return due to individuals having greater control of their immediate surroundings, as evidenced in foot traffic to these spaces.  

Across all five countries, encouraging people back into these spaces comes down to reassuring them of sanitization and distancing measures. But beyond these core factors, consumer priorities differ between markets to quite a large degree. 

Most prominent is the mandatory use of face masks. Our data shows some countries have a long way to go to move past the social stigma of wearing face masks. Almost 60% in Italy and Singapore say wearing facemasks is important, along with just under half in the U.S. But these figures drop significantly to as low as 12% in Australia and 25% in the UK.  

They’re watching their spending.

With so much up in the air right now and economies on the cusp of financial downturns, the data paints a picture of a consumer who’s transitioning to a ‘thrift mentality’. This is shown not only by foot traffic statistics, but by consumer confidence figures. 

Our research shows consumers are most likely to delay big purchases, cut back on day-to-day spending, and look for discounted versions of items. When we trend this data, however, we see the pattern of consumers cutting down day-to-day spending has slowed, while looking for discounted products has gone up. 

So we may be seeing a gradual transition from financial rationalization to tentative spending. This is validated by the trend of consumers perceiving the impact on their personal finances – a climb between waves 1 and 3 of  our coronavirus study, then a ‘steep-ish’ drop at wave 4.  

Blis data backs up these perceptions with what we’re seeing on the streets. 

In both the U.S. and UK, discount stores fared among the worst during panic-buying/stockpiling days of early lockdown. 

Visits to these outlets picked up notably as people settled into holding patterns and were perhaps more inclined to rationalize household budgets. 

In the U.S. Big Box sector, we saw retailers like Walmart ceding significant ground to budget store Dollar General, while in the grocery sector the discounter Aldi saw its share of foot traffic reflected the ebb and flow of panic buying amongst periods of relative stability.

Interestingly, when ‘survival mode’ temporarily kicked back in during the anti-racism protests, Blis data saw pharma retailers regain ground. 

Trips to Dollar General receded, indicating that price isn’t everything when the circumstances are more extreme.

For big ticket items and conservative spending, however, Blis has seen the most UK foot traffic in electronics stores as opposed to DIY and home stores, indicating that, despite the thrift mentality, people are seeking to make their home environments more comfortable and liveable.

4 key takeaways for brands

There are many lessons to be drawn from our joint observations about what people say vs. what they do and the trend toward cautious consumerism. For brands looking to thrive as they enter the recovery period with an eye to stability, we recommend the following:

1. Simplify and declutter. As consumers seek more control over their environments, brands should adapt customer experiences accordingly, whether that’s less cluttered store layouts or more seamless online-to-offline journeys.
2. Combine data for the full picture. Marketers should use both sentiment and location data to map the pace of change and how confidence and caution differ by region, and to better understand priorities, needs and real-world behaviors to more effectively target consumers. 
3. Approach big purchase promotion with caution. Most homes are delaying big purchases and the family wallet has likely been hit hard, so approach campaigns for big tech purchases with caution and be aware of the attitudes that would need shifting to make this work.
4. Keep your contingency plan in place. When campaign planning, brands should ensure contingency planning is put in place, if possible, and to prepare for multiple eventualities, in case of a second wave and further lockdowns.

Combining our leading survey data with location data like that offered by Blis helps you get the complete picture on your audiences – and answer the crucial question of whether intentions with match behaviors. With this view, you can adapt your strategy to meet your consumers with confidence you’re looking in the right direction.

The past few months have taught the world a tough lesson in unknown risks. For many Americans, the pandemic revealed just how exposed individuals can be without a financial safety net.

Since the beginning of the outbreak, around 5.4 million Americans have lost their health insurance, and millions are now out of work and at risk of greater financial losses. And on the B2B side, even businesses with robust coverage are finding it hard to collect on business interruption claims. 

As a result, the pandemic has altered the U.S. outlook on insurance and will usher in permanent changes to the industry as business and consumer risk tolerances evolve.

Findings from our new data set, GWI USA, can provide some insight into this. 

Americans, especially the young, are underinsured.

Up until this point, Americans have had a non-essential approach to most types of insurance. Those who could easily afford coverage have had a variety of options to choose from, yet for many Americans, proper coverage remains out of reach.  

American insurance owners are generally more financially secure than average. 

68% of insurance owners in America are over 35, and more than 6 in 10 have an associates’ degree or higher.

The vast majority of policy holders are in the middle- or upper-income segments, and three quarters say they’re comfortable, or doing OK financially.

Uninsured Americans are often those who are less equipped financially to weather bad times.

While it’s clear that huge portions of the country are uninsured, what’s missing from this chart is the extent to which lower income and young Americans drive these high rates of uninsurance. 

31% of all US consumers currently rent their place of residence, and those numbers reach as high as 42% among millennials. 

In the absence of home ownership, the vast majority of Gen Zs and millennials aren’t covered under a home or personal property policy (86% and 69% respectively), and nearly half of Gen Xs are similarly uninsured.

Instead of general home and property coverage, many Americans – especially younger generations – opt for cheaper, more specific coverage.    

Access to insurance, like other systems of security and privilege in America, can also reflect social and racial disparities. African Americans and Hispanic Americans, for example, are less likely than white Americans to have auto, home, life or medical insurance. 

But while lack of holistic coverage remains an issue that affects many Americans, the digitization of insurance may make it possible for some groups to get less expensive coverage for specific things.

Compared to white Americans, people of color who own smartphones are more likely to have mobile phone insurance, and people of color who have pets in their household are more likely to have pet insurance. Furthermore, among all pet owners, millennials and Gen Zs are the most likely to have pet insurance coverage. 

Those who may be less likely to have policies to cover large assets, are still interacting with the insurance industry to cover the things they care about. And when it comes to more specific policies like pet and phone insurance they do so at greater rates. 

Going forward insurance providers may want to focus on the specific needs of those without insurance and offer more affordable and customized packages, rather than appealing to the sweeping, general coverage options that are often inaccessible to many Americans.  

So, what is the newest wave of insurance buyers looking for in a brand?

Insurance buyers are looking for more than just coverage.

Those planning on purchasing or renewing an insurance policy in the next 6 months skew younger than the current insurance owners. 

1 in 5 millennials and Gen Zs don’t currently own any insurance at all, but over half of this age group plan on purchasing or renewing their coverage in the next 6 months. 

Given that half of those intending on buying insurance in the next 6 months claim they remain loyal to brands they like, insurance companies stand to benefit for years to come if they can attract these customers now.

Younger American insurance owners have very different insurance needs than their parents. They’re less concerned about the cost and coverage of an insurance policy, and more concerned about online recommendations and the ease of signing up. 

For young Americans who struggle to make ends meet, insurance may feel like something inaccessible to them, and this feeling explains the rise of digital-first insurance platforms, like Lemonade and Allstate’s esurance, who aim to simplify access to insurance products. 

The U.S. insurance landscape can also be a minefield of federal and government regulations, subsidies, and penalties. Looking at a category like auto insurance, rather than healthcare, allows us to see some of the true influences of brand and marketing on consumer choices.

Lessons from a competitive sector: auto insurance 

Auto insurance is by far the most competitive sector within the insurance industry in America. 

Ownership of an auto policy is required by law of all drivers in the U.S., and as such we see a lot of different brands with varying shares of the market.

Tied with health insurance, auto insurance is the most owned policy in the country, and nearly two thirds of U.S. consumers have this coverage. Unsurprisingly, these rates differ depending on where they live. 

70% of suburban consumers hold an auto policy compared to 51% of urban dwellers, who are less likely to own a car.

Consumers are more price conscious about this coverage than any other insurance type, with 7 in 10 auto insurance policy holders stating that price is the most important factor when determining which brand to purchase.

Although price leads, it may not be a factor that’s widely researched. Just 6% say they consider online comparison sites, which often highlight price first and foremost, important in determining which company to go with.

Other factors also play a huge role in the decision-making process. 

46% of auto insurance owners say that the level of coverage matters most, 35% factor in customer service quality, and 30% find the brand name and reputation most important. 

And just as with other policies, age plays a large role in driving what’s important.

Some concerns increase steadily with age, such as price, level of coverage, customer service quality, brand reputation, and the level of excess and deductibles. 

Put simply, after decades of driving and owning insurance, older consumers are more equipped to understand the importance of these factors and focused a lot more on finding the perfect policy for their specific needs. 

So it’s no surprise that Gen X and baby boomers are most likely to have a policy through State Farm, which has the largest market share of any other auto insurance provider. 

On the other hand, when it comes to determining insurance purchases, Gen Zs who own an auto insurance policy are nearly twice as likely than average to say they use recommendations from friends and family, and more than twice as likely to use online comparison sites. 

Younger Americans are also most likely to be concerned about the ease of the application process. 

This may explain why the AAA is the most popular auto insurer among Gen Zs, as this generation is often yet to own other insurance, and so AAA – known well for their roadside assistance – may attract many as a one-stop-shop through various channels of name recognition. 

The future of insurance lies in shifting priorities. 

All in all, the financial realities of Americans today drives many of the gaps in insurance coverage we see in the nation overall. 

The shifting nature in American home ownership, as well as the acknowledgement of unknown financial risks uncovered in the months following the coronavirus outbreak, may cause many Americans to reevaluate the level of risk they’re comfortable with.  

Even though Americans are price conscious when it comes to purchasing their insurance, cost considerations are by no means the only factor in the decision-making process. 

Instead, insurance providers stand to attract more new customers by understanding that those without insurance – younger consumers, low income consumers, and people of color among them – are more drawn to custom coverage options.  

With that said, many insurance owners across all categories were unable to say which brand they owned a specific policy through. 

This response could be due to the fact that many American’s still don’t purchase insurance directly from a brand, but instead work with independent insurance agencies, who deal with the insurance provider on behalf of the buyer. 

Often local, these brokers work with insurance providers in many complicated arrangements and often offer advice to the eventual policy holder on the benefits of one brand over another. 

So while more consumers shift toward online means of insurance buying, there remains a lasting influence of the personal element of insurance sales. In future explorations of insurance in America, the dichotomy between individual choice and corporate influence will remain an ever-evolving, but important consideration.