How Coronavirus is impacting the retail industry
the retail industry has undergone critical changes, ranging from technological advancements to the coronavirus pandemic.
Nothing, however, comes close to the global effect of the coronavirus pandemic.
Although the threat of coronavirus will ultimately pass, customer experience and the retail industry will be forever changed, thanks to financial losses and the rise of e-commerce. Furthermore, if retailers are to recover, they will need more empathy and understanding from nervous customers than ever before.
What does this mean for market research, though? And how can market research help retailers as they make their way through the new normal? In this article, we look into it.
Retail industry Future and the New Normal
From social distancing to shifting shopper attitudes, online shopping to click-and-collect, the high street is about to change dramatically. Here are a few possibilities for the coming weeks and months:
Internet shopping
When the stores reopen, one thing to expect is that online shopping will remain prominent. Even before the pandemic, online shopping was gaining popularity due to its convenience and ease – and new data shows that Egypt online retail industry sales increased by 22% in the first week of April 2020 compared to the same period in 2019.
The longer the crisis lasts, the more likely it is that online and omnichannel shopping will become the new normal and remain an important part of life after the lockdown. According to a poll held in late March, 90 percent of shoppers were reluctant to shop in-store due to the coronavirus, with WHO research indicating that up to 61 percent of consumers intend to do so even after stores opened.
What does this mean in terms of market research? For starters, it means that as the shift to digital purchases continues, user experience and usability testing will become increasingly relevant. Websites, apps, and all other online channels must be simple to use as more people shop online. And with a growing number of people – particularly non-tech savvy older generations – who are afraid to do their shopping in-stores retails must do an effortless experience for all of their customers.
Click and collect has been improved.
The Coronavirus pandemic will also have an impact on the retail industry since the click and collect trend will continue to evolve. Click and collect is emerging as a super-convenient solution as shoppers seek out convenient and contactless ways to shop: it’s low-cost, simple, and eliminates any concerns about potential contagion.
However, if retailers want to provide a click-and-collect solution that reassures worried customers, the experience must be seamless, with short wait times and social distancing measures in place. This is where market research comes into play once more.
Furthermore, retailers will use customer feedback to refine and tweak their click and collect service as we all become accustomed to the new normal by conducting customer surveys.
The rise of social retailing
Are you afraid to consider how much time you’ve spent on your phone since coronavirus pandemic began? You’re not the only one who feels this way. As a result of lockdown, Facebook’s Daily Active Users (DAUs) increased by 1.7 billion in Q1 2020, and with people spending more time on their phones, the social shopping trend is set to continue.
Social media penetration in Egypt stood at 41% of total population in January 2020
With so many people spending so much time on social media, it’s no surprise that social shopping is on the rise. In fact, social and search sites like Google, Facebook, and Instagram currently account for 83% of all online orders, a figure that will continue to increase exponentially in the coming months.
So, how does this affect market research? User experience and app usability tests, once again, are expected to be critical components of market researchers’ post coronavirus pandemic toolkit. But that’s not all: as more people use their smartphones to access the internet, mobile market research techniques that provide instant, in-depth insights into customer experience will become more popular. Furthermore, with more people using social media, retailers have the opportunity to reach a larger target audience than ever before.
Contactless shopping and technology
It’s understandable that customers would be hesitant to physically communicate after being socially isolated for such a long time. As a result, a rising trend of touchless retail will emerge, fueled by innovations like cashless payments, which can provide a high level of security. Virtual services will now continue to grow in popularity.
Because of the growing popularity of contactless shopping, augmented reality may (finally!) get its chance to shine. In fact, trying on clothes practically with augmented reality would most likely become more mainstream within the next five years. Around a third of shoppers now use augmented reality in stores, and analysts estimate that the market will be worth $130 billion by 2020.
The possibilities of augmented and virtual reality for market research are endless, and options like virtual accompanied stores and focus groups may provide a safe and effective market research alternative to face-to-face methods post-pandemic.
The value of market research
Continued customer study is the best way to address the immediate and long-term problems posed by the Covid-19 crisis if your budget permits it. Your clients are still out there, and they’re likely to return after the lockdown, but their purchasing criteria may have shifted considerably – and you’ll need to respond quickly to their new wants and needs.
FNT will encourage you to reassess your clients, allowing you to define your target audience and determine what they want, why they want it, and how their desires and needs have evolved as the crisis has progressed. Customer perceptions will have shifted dramatically in recent weeks and months, so you’ll need to nail your business messaging and marketing as well. By figuring out what makes your customers tick, you’ll be able to better serve them, You can convince customers, develop empathy, improve relationships, and provide a delightful service.
