The seven characteristics of the new customer post-pandemic

How COVID-19 will change the way Australians spend on leisure

Most people are starting to agree that COVID-19 will have long-lasting impacts in many ways, including on our mindsets and values. It’s extremely likely that customer behaviour will look different on the other side of the pandemic, and businesses have an opportunity now to start thinking like, and planning for, the new customer.

This article will explore characteristics of the new customer and how businesses in the leisure industry (Recreation, Entertainment, Sports, Tourism) can think about appealing to these characteristics. Many Australians have had to cancel their early 2020 plans and will be craving a way to make up for it, while many have also been accruing leave even on stand down. There will be time for leisure, but will there be preferences for the same kinds of leisure? Here are the seven characteristics that have regularly come up in our research:

They have less money to spend

First of all, we know that the average Australian will have less disposable income to spend on leisure activities as we start to recover from COVID-19. The majority of the workforce is on reduced hours and people are placing greater importance on a savings buffer as we plan for an uncertain future. Even industries that were hypothesised to be in high-demand right now, such as online retail sales, have passed their peak and customers are already turning to rewards or gift cards, or simply not spending (powerretail.com.au). This means that businesses in the leisure categories will be competing for a smaller pool of income and will need to work even harder to appeal to customers over competitors. Businesses in the leisure industry can gauge whether they’re ready for the new customer by exploring their service mix: do you have low-cost offerings, or just premium packages? Can you strip back some of your high-cost options to make them more simple and accessible?

They are local

The leisure industry will be opened up to locals before interstate or international visitors, so appealing to the local consumer will be necessary for regaining traction. As we saw from the many initiatives targeted at sparking tourism to fire-affected areas in January, there is an Australian spirit to support recovering businesses. However, the number of impacted businesses has increased significantly and each will still have to think about their own strategy for attracting local customers.

A couple ways to make your local offering stronger are to showcase your story of recovery and adjustment to life post-COVID-19, or to increase involvement with the local community. Local sports teams may be a great place to partner, as Australians may not have the full-stadium major sports experience for a while (as per our last article). For tourist attractions that are used to having single visits from many international visitors, you may explore how to provide a variety of experiences so that locals have a reason to visit multiple times. A great way to do this is partnering with smaller local businesses to package up joint experiences. One partner can offer a well-known name and venue, such as Melbourne Cricket Ground, while the other offers variety, such as pop-up art exhibits.

They’re craving connection

Social belonging has long been discussed as playing a critical role in our overall happiness — it’s even recognised as one of Maslow’s hierarchy of human needs, and research shows that social connectedness can act as proactive treatment for mental health. While there are many fun stories of the creative ways people have been connecting virtually, it should come as no surprise that many are eager to reconnect in-person. Results from surveys run by C|T Group from April 9–14 show Australians plan to direct their increasingly scarce money on socialising with family and friends after the pandemic. We’ll be far less interested in thrill-seeking or individualist experiences, instead opting to spend on simple holidays and shared experiences.

This doesn’t mean the elimination of leisure activities, but instead a focus on doing activities together. More than half of Australians plan to take a holiday once the pandemic ends, but the focus will be on simple, affordable and close-to-home destinations. This is helpful for businesses that are planning the messaging and packaged deals for when they reopen: focus on togetherness and reconnecting (in a hygienic way, which brings us to our next point).

They are hygiene-aware

In the week before lockdown my yoga studio made some changes to prevent the spread of the virus: BYO towels, no use of studio blocks or bolsters, and lower max capacity. My first thought was: what else could I catch from studio towels and bolsters?

The April 2020 Capgemini report on the Consumer and COVID-19 shows that 77% of consumers will be more cautious about cleanliness, health and safety after the pandemic. There hasn’t been a time in recent history where the average person has been quite so conscious about personal hygiene, and we will continue to insist on transparency around santisation in public places. Businesses will need to be overt and deliberate with their hygiene practices, making them completely visible for the consumer. We are already seeing New Zealand slowly reopen with rules around contactless payments, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see new layouts that consider social distancing or visible sanitisation of handheld objects such as audio-guides. It may be a fruitful exercise to walk through your customer experience with the eyes of a hyper-hygiene-aware consumer to identify opportunities to make them feel at ease.

They embrace digital

There’s been a lot of talk about how society has embraced WFH (work from home) and that it may be a lasting trend for those who prefer it and thrive with it. The same goes for other aspects of life that have involved digital experimentation over the past month: fitness, board games, cooking classes, and much more. Airbnb has even launched online experiences to provide a digital taste of cultures around the world and BrewDog has opened ‘virtual bars’ to host beer tasting, pub quizzes and live music & comedy. Now that we’ve seen how much can be supplemented by technology and we ‘ve adjusted our daily habits, we may see a cohort of people who prefer digital options. As per the hygiene-awareness section above, there will also be many people hesitant to gather in public places, maintaining a demand for engaging digital experiences. Tips from Capgemini’s report suggest that digital approaches will be more successful if they incorporate smart recommendations, voice-based interfaces and personalised experiences.

They are environmentally aware

Once you’ve seen the mesmerising video of a jellyfish floating through crystal clear waters of the Venice canals during Italy’s lockdown, it’s hard not to think about how our pre-COVID-19 norms impact the environment. Photos and videos of this same theme are popping up all over social media, as are reports on air pollution and CO2 levels falling rapidly while we all #stayhome.

This is leading many people to speculate as to how we could reopen cities differently, and perhaps make some COVID-19 changes permanent, such as more bike lanes and walking space. If there’s enough social pressure to make significant changes about how cities operate, there will be the same pressure applied to expectations about how businesses operate. It’s very likely that we’ll see more businesses showcasing how they’re doing their part, or at least taking on the airline strategy of inviting consumers to pay a little extra for the carbon offset.

They’ll care about how you treated employees and customers during the pandemic

People will remember how you made them feel during COVID-19. While online review sites such as Google Reviews and Yelp have been temporarily shut down to avoid local businesses losing their good reputation during abnormal demand, people are still talking about their experiences. In the wedding industry, where emotions already run high, customers are passionately collating lists of venues and vendors that treated customers fairly or poorly during mass postponements and cancellations. While a lot of people understand that the pandemic has been difficult for businesses as well, past war times, depressions and pandemics have resulted in vast sympathy for employees over companies. People have a lot of time to read and write while in lockdown, and the efficient, long-lasting impact of digital communication means that actions businesses take today will be remembered during reopening.

Conclusion

We have ordered these seven characteristics based on how greatly we expect them to impact buying decisions, from highest impact to lowest, though all will be important. A lot of the lessons from the ‘new customer’ will intersect and stimulate innovation in the industry. For (a very theoretical) example, a hot air balloon company might adjust their offering by enabling local neighbourhood sports teams to crowdfund game coverage and live streaming from a hot air balloon hovering above the field and displaying a show for the winning team, while marketing their carbon neutral policy and having one lucky fan per game watch from the balloon, as long as they follow hygiene practices. The point is that with a bit of adaption, every leisure business has the potential to address all characteristics. The leisure businesses that thrive during reopening will be those that are excited to adjust and to embrace consumer values post-pandemic. As many of us have slowed down during this ‘hibernation’ phase of low activity, it’s a great time to have a clear head and imagine the future of leisure.

Do you agree with this order, or have suggestions for how the leisure industry could respond to the new customer? We would love to continue the conversation in the response section below.