What the Post COVID-19 World Means For Retail Survival
Consumer trends shift constantly depending on the situation of the world or the local trends people experience. During an economic crisis where the markets are weak, spending habits change from consumerism into survivalism. Alternatively, when the economy is healthy, people are able to spend on what they want and need because they feel positive about their employment situation.
Today, most of the world struggles to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, wherein businesses are shutting down or changing their strategies to survive. Some services have been deemed essential, while others have become increasingly in demand. Pandemics like this back up the notion that consumer trends are highly reliant on the situation of the economy at hand.
Due to the global economy slowing down and a seeming shift in the world’s power, things have definitely changed, and are unlikely to revert back to normal any time soon. If you are a business owner in 2020 and are struggling to adjust to the shifting trends of the pandemic, here’s how to prepare for the next generation of retail:
Understanding How The Pandemic Of COVID-19 Is Affecting Consumer Spending
With the threat of the virus still at large, some people are still deciding to stay at home as a safety measure to prevent the transmission of it. There is no doubt that people like to buy fun things like toys, electronics, clothing, and other kinds of novelty items during regular life. The pandemic has shifted trends tremendously, creating a whole different kind of priority when it comes to purchasing things.
1. Health Is The Top Priority
The biggest factor that affects the shift in spending is health and well-being. COVID-19 has proven to be deadly and extremely fatal in certain instances. This means that the natural instinct of a human would be to survive and protect themselves from any threat. When a virus is present, people start to spend on safety items like medicines, cleaning materials, supplies, and other essentials.
After all, you can’t enjoy nice things if your health is not 100% in terms of integrity. People started spending on cleaning ingredients like alcohol, sanitary wipes, antibacterial sprays and other items for disinfecting.
2. People Are Focusing On Stay-At-Home Items
COVID-19 has made people stay indoors more, meaning they only go out for essentials like some groceries or items they need to survive. With work shifting to home-based offices, people are investing more on desks, computer peripherals, electronic devices, certain items of clothing, and other materials needed in their fields.
For workout buffs, these people are buying exercise equipment that fits in their homes, such as yoga mats and resistance bands to get a workout in while stuck inside. The lack of the ability to go to the gyms has made people adjust their purchases to assist their efforts inside their homes.
Overall, delivery services have never been as in demand as they are today. With fewer people leaving their homes unnecessarily, they have been relying on delivery services to get by. This means that for a business to adapt to COVID-19, they must be on top of a cutting-edge POS software that supports online orders and queries.
3. There Are Sectors Wherein People Have Been Unemployed
While there are some categories of items seeing an upwards swing in terms of sales during these times, purchasing power has undoubtedly been affected by the virus. Some people have lost their jobs, or are earning significantly less, making them wiser about what they purchase. Any sensible person knows to save and be frugal when their source of income is at risk or is uncertain, which is why leisure items and “wants” are always going to be put last.
Things people will be spending on would be household bills, cleaning items, healthcare, food, and other essentials they need to survive. There are still going to be a few who have good enough purchasing power to support their hobbies and interests, so these are going to be the ones that keep the economy afloat.
How To Prepare For The Post-Pandemic World As A Retailer
A new era means new strategies are needed to stay relevant and afloat. The go-to strategies of yesterday may not be applicable in the post-COVID world, so here are a few ways to continue success as a retailer as the pandemic passes:
1. eCommerce Will Become Increasingly Powerful
If you are a retailer in your local area that has no online presence, perhaps it is time to start building one. Any brick-and-mortar store can channel online quickly using point-of-sale services available on the internet and locally. Online stores were already powerful pre-COVID, they are getting even more powerful during COVID, and afterwards, there is no doubt that it may just be the way the world works through.
To further strengthen your online presence, utilize digital marketing strategies and methods like SEO, as well as better site optimization design to further grow your business.
2. Everything May Just Become Contactless
With social distancing proving to be a good method to stay away from the virus and a great way to have personal space, people are actually starting to enjoy the social distancing measures. This has changed the way people interact with their environments and one another.
Once in-store operations come back, people may still be sceptical about the way things are in the outside world, therefore will be expecting a better and safer way to pay and transact. This means using POS software systems to make the transaction process seamless and easy. Payment methods like Apple Pay may just dominate the scene, making physical cash used less and less.
3. Automation Is Going To Be The Norm
Pre-pandemic automation was already starting to gain traction in many aspects of life. In business, automated processes for micromanaging, financial management, and other aspects of running a business are steadily growing to be integral in the field. By utilizing automated processes like automatic replenishment systems in retail for stocks and other financial aspects, this frees up time for employees and eases the burdens on them.
Conclusion
When it comes to the new world caused by COVID-19, a business must adapt or die out. The best part about today’s world is that almost anything is possible with software and the online world. By utilizing things like a great point-of-sale software to run your business, you will be preparing for the survival of the pandemic and the resurgence into the new era.
The benefits of a POS system are plenty, and the best POS software in Australia you can find would be Retail Express. Being a cloud-based software, Retail Express has all of your business processes handled and stored online ready for your access. Shift your POS to Retail Express today for a better experience!
About the Author
Sunit Nandi I'm the leader of Techno FAQ. Also an engineering college student with immense interest in science and technology. Other interests include literature, coin collecting, gardening and photography. Always wish to live life like there's no tomorrow.
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