Coronavirus Pandemic – Marketing Trends During COVID-19

Coronavirus Pandemic

Consumer behavior has changed rapidly at the beginning of the coronavirus Pandemic around the world. Due to the closing of many businesses and consumers staying at home, visit stores for non-essential products were no longer necessary. Consumers flocked to e-commerce and home delivery of what they needed: food, electronics, and clothing, without having to leave their homes.

It posed new challenges for business. Retailers stopped having a sales channel in physical stores. Demand for some products and services fell, such as travel and non-essential items. On the other hand, some sectors saw a greater need, such as desks, webcams, and computer monitors for people who began to telecommute and puzzles and toys for home entertainment, away from the screens.

Marketing Professionals had to make decisions quickly to safeguard their businesses and prioritize the protection of their staff and customers. We spoke with 4 Criteo clients from different parts of the world to see how they have adapted their strategy to this economy of Coronavirus Pandemic and what advice they have for other businesses:

Online giftcard market focus everyday basics during COVID-19

Raise

The Raise gift card marketplace focuses on serving consumers’ needs during this time. However, they are aware that consumers’ needs are now different and, therefore, they have adapted their marketing message to better connect with their audiences at home. For example, travel gift cards are often popular this time of year.

With current travel restrictions in mind, Raise was more inclined to sell daily staples such as household items, DIY supplies, home office equipment, and groceries. They continue to control the various cycles of what consumers need at home and keep their global marketing strategy flexible to adapt quickly.

Raise has always been focused on delivering value to its consumers, but now this is more important than ever. They also offer their support to local businesses, such as restaurants, and try to mitigate local partners’ loss due to increased orders from home with the “Raise Local” project. It helps small businesses send gift cards to their local community; they can stay open and operating in these challenging times.

The team is also investing in a secure contactless payment method for daily purchases in physical stores or online through its mobile app, Slide.

Criteo

Raise relies on Criteo to help make its brand and products stand out, as buying discounted gift cards is something consumers may not know or think about before making a purchase. Criteo helps make Raise present for online consumers and encourages them to return to its website to take advantage of special promotions. Alberto Aviles, Senior Manager of Acquisition Marketing at Raise, enables other advertisers to put themselves in the shoes of the consumer and ask themselves, “what do consumers need?” and “How can you as a Marketing Professional connect with their needs and state of mind during this period?”

The fashion brand Cordoce makes long-term plans in addition to responding to the most immediate needs (Brazil)

Cordoce

After closing its physical wholesale stores, fashion brand Cordoce accelerated its online retail site’s digital transformation to serve its digital customers. Since they had already built their eCommerce infrastructure, Cordoce increased their online presence with their teams by telecommuting safely.

In terms of marketing strategy, Cordoce prioritized the brand, took the time to listen to customers, and even conducted surveys to determine what consumers wanted in their new collections. To better serve consumers right now, the team began offering free shipping as well as discounts. Cordova also adjusted his marketing messages based on social distancing and activated his bloggers and digital influencers’ network to encourage masks’ donation, which managed to collect 10,000 masks for hospitals and NGOs.

Cordoce’s recommendations for other businesses?

Its CMO and COO, Camila Ahn, encourages brands to “Rethink logistics and processes and take care of efficiency. Don’t forget about the customer experience. And while it is important to focus on the most immediate needs, try to “think long-term and adapt actions.” Cordova has also changed its relationship with the competition; now, they see them more as partners to share learnings and acceptable practices.