The Future of Customer Behavior: Will Pandemic Habits Stick?

The pandemic undoubtedly impacted customer behavior. Companies, and their customers, adopted digital technology as a lifeline during times of stringent safety precautions and growing uncertainty. 

Customers quickly embraced buy online, pick-up in-store programs, and headed online to purchase many of their daily necessities. The use of these technologies promptly became habitual for many, and companies are now working to incorporate digital counterparts into all aspects of their customer experience. But, as we regain access to in-person experiences will customers revert to their former routines?

While we know digital experiences are becoming much more accessible and intuitive, it is inevitable that some customers will still prefer a traditional in-person interaction — but what we don’t know is just how many, and which specific behaviors will extend beyond the pandemic and become a part of our next ‘new normal.’

Google, however, has taken the initial steps to identify these behaviors in its new study uncovering how COVID-19 changed the consumer journey. The research analyzes which consumer behaviors are likely to stick and offers recommendations for industries seeking guidance on evolving customer preferences in the digital age. 

Here we break down some of Google’s latest findings regarding the future of customer behavior:

The ‘Stickiness Scale’

The study begins by forming an official scoring system to measure a behavior's relative ‘stickiness’ or predicted long-term value. It first outlines two factors in how we can identify and describe behaviors that are likely to outlast the pandemic. The first is its perceived utility, which is how useful we consider the behavior to be. The second, motivation, questions whether there will be a desire to continue this behavior in the future. Both are fairly straightforward, but they do give us baseline qualities of a lasting behavior. For example, a behavior could have been valuable to us during the pandemic but the motivation to use it in the future is low — decreasing the likelihood of its long-term presence.

Google then defines two potential outcomes, the ‘new normal’ or ‘recurring nightmare’ scenarios. The ‘new normal’ represents a reality where we experience smaller, recurring outbreaks that may impact the way we live but are not necessarily overly disruptive to our day-to-day lives. The ‘recurring nightmare’ would entail continuous major outbreaks that spur uncertainty and feelings of chaos. 

With all of these terms defined, the ‘stickiness scale’ places a behavior in categories between useful now, continues in the new normal, or continues in the recurring nightmare scenario. If a behavior exists mostly in the useful now or continues in the new normal category it is likely to stick around. On the other hand, the fewer categories it fits into, the less likely it is to stay.

What’s interesting about this scale is that the realities it outlines still indicate a continual evolution of behavior. The ‘new normal’ category is still impacting the way we live, and it promotes the idea that these behaviors, though they may eventually subside, will likely persist. 

For example, buy-online and pick-up in-store initiatives would fall into all categories. It will remain useful in both the ‘new normal’ and ‘recurring nightmare’ categories, and many other pandemic-incited behaviors would reasonably be labeled the same. It’s worth considering, then, whether we will ever actually return to our former routines or if we should just accept the value these innovations have provided us. Additionally, many of these behaviors and innovations were already growing in popularity before the pandemic, so are individuals really likely to go back if they were adopting these habits before? However, beyond broader technological adoptions, the study does give us insight into behaviors within the overall customer journey that are more likely to stay. 

What’s Going To Stick?

Beginning with the retail sector, Google predicts that customer reviews, 3D product views, comparison sites, and contactless card payments have the highest likelihood of sticking around. On the more traditional front, browsing and interacting with a salesperson in-store is also more likely to last. 

With both digital and in-person elements predicted to stay, brands should continue focusing on omnichannel support. Customers may feel more comfortable in stores, but they still expect to supplement their experience with virtual tools. Additionally, Google suggests that brands leverage reviews and video to give customers greater insight into the product.

In the travel sector, customer service via phone clearly stands out. The presence of the phone channel on this list implies that customers do still want to interact with agents directly. Google hit on the emotional element of the travel industry, which may justify the more conversational and engaging appeal of the phone for this type of interaction. 

Notably, the study also recommended increased use of social media to gather consumer feedback and provide support for the travel sector. This may be a product of frequent customer complaints or emotional feedback on platforms like Twitter. 

For banking, Google highlighted online customer reviews and visits to retail locations as likely to last. Additionally, agent recommendations were also deemed critical to customers. The recommendations for the banking industry were also geared toward an omnichannel approach. Because it is a more personal and sensitive experience, customers want access to a live representative and value the advice they offer. However, they still need virtual access to quickly and seamlessly check-in.