Covid-19 quickly changed the way we buy stuff. Working at home and quarantine accelerated the already existing e-commerce trend.
Many companies were excellent to redirect their marketing online. But now that the physical world is opening up and life is returning to a more normal one, it is still not time to abandon your digital marketing. We, as consumers, have changed.
Humans are social beings who easily adapt, and the pandemic has changed our behaviour – how we spend our time, what platforms we use and how we interact with others. The result is that Swedes are now much more comfortable shopping online, whether groceries, consumables or clothes.
NEW SHOPPING HABITS ARE HERE TO STAY
A survey from Klarna shows that e-commerce is increasing, despite consumers returning to physical stores.
“New shopping habits have been formed that will continue to develop even after the pandemic,” says Klarna’s expert on consumer behaviour, Viveka Söderbäck.
“Consumers have lacked the social aspects of shopping in physical stores rather than the shopping experience itself, which means that new shopping habits have been formed that will persist and develop even after the pandemic.”
TWICE AS MANY SALES ONLINE
According to the e-barometer Q1 2021 presented by Postnord in collaboration with Swedish Digital Trade and HUI Research, e-commerce continued to grow strongly during the first quarter of 2021. Overall, e-commerce sales grew by 53 per cent, compared with the same quarter in 2020. First-quarter 2020 was only partially affected by the pandemic.
The product category that grew the most was groceries, where online sales more than doubled compared to last year (+109 per cent). The second highest growth was in the furniture and home appliance category, which grew by 81 per cent.
E-COMMERCE HAS BECOME THE NEW NORMAL
According to the report, Global Ecommerce Update 2021, from American eMarketer, e-commerce in global retail increased by 27.6 per cent in 2020. Sales reached well over 4 trillion dollars. This beats eMarketer’s previous assessment of growth of 16.5 per cent and shows the significant extent to which consumers last year switched to e-commerce. And eMarketer assumes that the behaviour will persist:
“We anticipate that consumers will retain many of their new digital behaviours by 2021,” said Ethan Cramer-Flood, author of the report.
That e-commerce has increased during the pandemic is not surprising – however, many still prefer to shop online rather than in-store. To shop online has become the new normal.
SOCIAL MEDIA IS MORE POPULAR THAN EVER
It’s been a long time since social media was all about entertainment. Today, social media channels are thriving marketplaces and an effective place for digital marketing. According to the report Svenskarna och Internet 2020, 9 out of 10 Swedes use at least one social media channel. During the pandemic, Swedish internet users’ use of social media increased by 2 per cent, from 87 per cent in the first quarter of 2020 (Q1) to 89 per cent in the third quarter (Q3). Compared with 2019 (82 per cent), this is an increase of as much as 7 per cent. Daily usage has also increased steadily to 74 per cent in Q3.
Many companies prioritize social channels because of their many opportunities. The channels are some of the best ways to reach an audience to encourage them to, for example:
- Shop
- Read reviews
- Interact with the brand and its customers
- Check out new products
So whether you use social media for traditional marketing or through influencer marketing, there are many opportunities on how to connect with potential customers.
POST-COVID MARKETING
Covid-19 has changed consumer behaviours and expectations. The pandemic has driven the transition from physical retail to digital. Digital marketing is even more important to reach out – it must also include several channels, including content, SEO, social media and purchased media.
ARE YOU LOOKING FOR GUIDANCE ON HOW TO DEVELOP YOUR DIGITAL MARKETING? NEED HELP? AMAZING! YOU HAVE COME TO THE RIGHT PLACE.
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IN ADDITION. DIGITAL MARKETING GIVES A HIGHER ROI
An excellent digital marketing strategy should include several elements such as search engine optimization, ad-words, content, social media, email and analytics. Properly executed, all of these media have a better ROI than traditional marketing. On the one hand, digital marketing is cheaper than physical, but it also offers a goldmine of customer insights – data that can help you better understand your target audience and, in the next step, improve your business and marketing strategy.