Path Forward webinar: click here to view

How is the Pandemic Influencing Consumers?
Suzanne Clark, President of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce; Dr. Joshua Ackerman, Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Michigan; Kelsey Robinson, Partner at McKinsey & Company; and Rich Thau, President of Engagious talk about consumer behavior changes during the coronavirus pandemic.

Here are some key takeaways from today’s conversation:

1. Consumers want physical, visual assurances that places of business are safe.  These might include placing hand sanitizer in a prominent place, having employees cleaning, showing a visible plan of action to protect customers and employees, and a certification from local health officials that the business is abiding by recommendations.
2. Consumers maintain considerable optimism and pent-up demand for goods or services that have become limited or unavailable in the pandemic. When we reopen, businesses must seize that opportunity.
3. Some customer expectations may significantly, and permanently, change (e.g. greater demand for online and contact-free services). We must not limit our thinking to “returning to normal” but instead look ahead to a “new normal” and be ready to meet new demands and expectations in the post-COVID environment.

The most important conclusion is this: The human spirit is indomitable. People are adaptive. I am optimistic that ingenuity, industriousness, and resilience will win the day.

You can watch today’s episode here.

–Suzanne Clark, President, U.S. Chamber of Commerce