A Look At How Consumer Behaviour Changed During COVID-19

It has been two years since the start of the seemingly neverending pandemic, which has caused the popularity of various online services and platforms to grow. Marketers have had their hands full as they try to track the changing behaviour of consumers brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. They’ve had to find ways to adapt, pivot and move on to keep their businesses afloat and their customers happy.

Working From Home

In the past two years, we have seen lockdowns worldwide which have caused a lot of stress for people as they’ve not been able to live and work normally. A survey found that more than 60% of Thai people felt terrible during the lockdown and more than 40% were worried about their income (source: YouGov).

Even though working from home helps save on transportation costs and time wasted in rush hour traffic, in the city, most people still want to go back to the office for various reasons:

1. Not every house has a place for work
   Working from home in a condominium or apartment unit for a long time can be boring and suffocating. Being locked up in one place all day, every day, can easily make people stressed and anxious. What’s more, Thai people often live with many family members, making it hard to find a quiet place to work without getting distracted or interrupted.
2. Working from home ruins your schedule
   Many surveys collecting consumer behaviour data during COVID found that working from home had changed people’s lives entirely. The routine of getting up and leaving the house early, chatting with people, buying food and interacting with colleagues stopped. Instead, they sat at their desk all day with no clear distinction between home and work.
3. Humans crave human interaction
   From meeting people at work and going out to see friends or family, to staying inside a room for months at a time, it’s no wonder people became unhappy with the idea of working from home.

Online Shopping Relieves Stress for Thais

When faced with a lockdown in which we all have to stay home, it’s natural for people to start looking for ways to occupy themselves and spark joy. A survey on consumer behaviour during COVID-19 found that 61% of Thai people entertained themselves with social media like TikTok, Facebook, Instagram etc., 41% played games, 40% shopped online, 36% redecorated their rooms, and 32% chose to work out (source: YouGov).

The funnier, the better

If you’re on social media, then you will have seen the hashtag #คนไทยเป็นคนตลก, meaning: Thai people are funny. But Thai people are not just content producers; they also like to consume humorous media as well. The stats on YouTube show that the most popular videos with a +90% growth rate are comical videos or movies, +80% are cooking, workout, or fitness videos, +70% are videos about renovation, decoration and investment, and +40% are videos about electronic devices.

The growth in “online learning” is significant

One COVID-19 consumer behaviour that is becoming more and more popular and necessary among the younger generation is self-development. Data shows that keywords like ‘online learning’, ‘learn with me’ or ‘study online’ have grown 25-fold in one year. This is proof that no matter how stressful the situation is, people are always ready to develop themselves. This also allows educational businesses to develop new courses and promotional campaigns that would attract people. 

All of these insights into changing consumer behaviours as a result of COVID-19 can help businesses that might be struggling to adapt and pivot. Because even though it might seem like everything is not in our favour right now, there’s always a way out of every problem. As COVID-19 changes consumer behaviour, businesses must adjust to fulfill the new demands.