The United States continues to break records as coronavirus surges grow with states like California, Texas, and Florida hitting record highs in confirmed cases, the latter setting a national record for most cases and most hospitalizations in one day.

COVID-19 has been a constant since March and the world has revolved around this virus, however, there are early signs of hope as an early-stage vaccine trial sees positive results and some common sense methodology from The CDC that says the virus could be quelled in 4-8 weeks if everyone wears masks.

Despite this, the issue has become divisive and will continue to be polarized as many refuse to take precautions and restrictions are re-imposed, meaning businesses will suffer as the public good takes precedence and government assistance hasn’t been able to adequately fill the gap for many.

This means that consumers will once again be pushed back into their homes and have to adapt or continue to solidify new ways of addressing their needs.

Consumer Trends

Spending by Category

• Consumers intend to spend more in the next two weeks across a majority of categories as many begin recovering to some degree.

• Online purchasing, spurred by BOPIS (Buy Online Pick Up In-Store) expected to grow 60% this year, is a strong trend that offers shoppers the flexibility of in-store shopping with an elevated level of safety.

• The number of consumers that are shopping primarily online is growing as well, with 40-70% expected to make the shift almost completely.

Consumer Behavior

• Globally, consumers are increasingly willing to go the extra mile and part with their data to help with contact tracing and other initiatives.

• Additionally, nearly three quarters have found themselves working from home at least part-time.

Business Trends

Category Growth

• In 2020, the only sector forecast to see real growth globally is Food & Beverage, not including alcohol.

• Retail sales are projected to end the year down 5.7% from 2019, which is 12% below pre-COVID projections.

• Global GDP decline is expected to hit 3% which is stark in contrast to the 0.1% global GDP decline of 2009. 

eCommerce Growth

• While growth is expected to drop on a global and national level in most regions, eCommerce across many categories has experienced unprecedented growth like the 149% increase in US home improvement sales. 
  

Advertising

• Digital channels are becoming increasingly more relevant as consumers shift their focus from traditional media, many spending time in apps, so ad dollars are following that pattern.

• Google’s ad revenue dropped by an astounding 5.3% in June 2020. Other major digital advertising platforms experienced similar hardship with the exceptions of Instagram, Snapchat, and Amazon.