Amid the current situation, Facebook will now be running a weekly COVID-19 webinar, called COVID LIVE. As a Facebook Premier Partner, we are provided with weekly updates and consumer trend insights which we will summarise and circulate with our current customer base.
Please find below the key developments from this week’s COVID-19 Facebook webinar.
1. Moving beyond passive consumption.
Content consumption continues to grow with news remaining the most consumer media but its increase slowing down. Movies and other entertainment’s consumption is still on the rise. Netflix and Amazon have both reported a 41% increase in viewing with Amazon moving from HD to SD to avoid congestion on the platform.
People are becoming increasingly bored. Instagram volume of interactions of public posts including word ‘bored’ has increased by +918% YoY. Therefore, people are, now more than ever, ready to learn a new skill (34% of users in the UK and 22% in Germany). People are becoming increasingly interested in home cooking, home fitness, chores or breadmaking. Spotify reported that users are streaming more podcasts with words “cooking” or “recipes” and there is an increasing number of cooking-themed playlists. However, home fitness has seen the biggest uptake as health and fitness apps record the highest levels of weekly downloads and consumer spend in ad investment.
Consumers are also becoming more and more interested in challenging themselves with active participation exploding. Brands start testing inviting the public to answer questions to win prizes during their Live streaming, or redeploying their staff to interact with customers via new platforms.
So what does that mean for you? Think about how you will actively engage with the millions more with time on their hands.
2. Most big purchases delayed, not cancelled.
The majority of consumers have now delayed a large purchase, with the number increasing weekly (76% in the UK and 64% in Germany). However, the effect that behavioural shift has on different categories differs. VOD subscription, computer and home appliance categories have seen the highest increase in new plans to purchase. Not surprisingly, travel/holiday, TV and smartphone has seen the biggest impact in the purchases being delayed. However, more importantly, the biggest proportion of buyers delays their purchase rather than cancelling it, suggesting that people are still making plans for the future.
The delay in purchases is most likely to end when the outbreak is over. However, when is that going to happen? It is now becoming clearer in most consumers’ minds that the outbreak will take longer than initially planned, with 61% of adults in the UK believing the outbreak will last 6 months or more, compared to 49% of adults in Germany.
So what does that mean for you? Try to inspire your consumers, not simply inform them.
3. We are entering the next stage.
People’s attitudes towards advertising are evolving as less and less people strongly disapprove of brands carrying on advertising as normal. People are happy to hear from brands if they are being relevant and sensitive to the current situation. The latest study also shows that the way brands will act now will have a long-term impact on their customers’ perceptions of them. 64% of the UK customers stated that how well a brand responds to this crisis will have a huge impact on people’s likelihood to buy that brand in the future. Brands that are focusing on driving conversions and ROAS, rather than providing support and reassurance, can be impacted the hardest in the long-term by losing their customers’ loyalty.
The majority of consumers wants to hear the same or even more from companies related to household goods, entertainment, charities, financial services, pubs & restaurants, gym & fitness, or fashion & beauty. Not surprisingly, if you are within the healthcare, supermarket or food & drink sector, that needs is even higher. Consumers are also trying new products and brands because of the innovative and compassionate wat they have responded to the virus outbreak (24% in the UK and 19% in Germany).
So what does that mean for you? Research is a good guide, but creating brand feedback loops can help more relevant understanding of your consumers’ needs.
If any of the above inspire you to make a change to your current strategy, reach out and let us know how we can help!
Have an inspiring week ahead and remember to stay positive.
