How did COVID-19 change the way we have perceived things so far?

With the increasing concerns on the COVID-19 outbreak in every part of the world, it has had a huge impact on the behavior of online shoppers. The data by Adobe Analytics has shown that the transactions in the eCommerce industry while monitoring the transactions of 80/100 top U.S retailers.

When COVID-19 can hurt in-store traffic meant for a few retailers, many others have seen constant changes in the online shopping experience since everywhere, people have started reacting over the virus with anxiety. When we take a look at all the memes and photos, we can see that people have the maturity to deal with bigger issues in life with a sense of humor and pinch of positivity.

How to survive without basic necessities- The fear of the people

We should not forget the fact that stores are running out on basic necessities such as hand sanitizer and toilet paper. When a number of people now want to avoid public places and large gatherings, we can easily say that online shopping meant for COVID-19 related items are in demand. We can also see that Americans have taken this issue seriously since they want to protect their loved ones as well as themselves. When people have gone about buying online whatever they can, we need to take a look at what are all the common purchases people make. This would offer you with insights on what products you can buy online.

Online shopping was led by storm due to COVID-19 virus protection

Adobe’s analysis further showed that many medical experts and officials have started encouraging many people to start taking action. They were urged to wash their hands and refrain from touching their faces. Now everyone has started listening to the advice keenly. Ecommerce purchases such as gloves, hand sanitizers, antibacterial sprays and masks have gone up by 817%.

People have started stocking up online medicines

When countries have started putting COVID-19 travel restrictions in order to minimize the virus spread, many U.S countries have stocked up above-the-par medicines, when they wanted to safeguard themselves from cold, cough and flu. The rates have gone upto 198%. People have started purchasing pain relievers online with an increased rate of 152%.

Toilet papers are being purchased online

Would we have imagined that we would be bombarding online eCommerce platforms to buy toilet papers? Brick and mortar retailers in Canada and the U.S have reportedly limited their toilet paper supply. Even when toilet paper purchases have gone above 186%, we can see that suppliers are struggling to cater to the never-ending demand.

Filling the pantry with online shopping

In similarity to toilet papers, even non-perishable foods, canned goods and shelf-stable food items such as rice, oatmeal and pasta have seen an increase in sales. These are due to emergency preparation steps taken by the people. You need not be surprised that online purchases for all these items have gone up by 69% as well as 58%.

When consumers have started relying on online methodologies to prepare themselves for the emergency situation, retailers should ensure smoother, fast and frictionless experiences on all of their eCommerce sites along with mobile apps.

Being a businessman during this time is the biggest challenge in the world. This situation could lead you to make or break your business. The way you handle this situation with empathy would take you across the next stages. You need to think from your customer’s point of view to sustain in the market.

At Pattem Digital, we ensure that we support everyone to our best capability. Let’s sail across this tough time together.