A recently released Qualtrics survey has shown significant changes in consumer behavior during a pandemic, including preferences and expectations of brands they engage with, in the Philippines and Singapore.
As businesses slowly ease into the new normal, including creating marketing strategies and roadmaps for the future of commerce, Qualtrics’ recent survey on consumer behavior during the pandemic in the Philippines and Singapore gives organisations critical insights on the pulse of the market in these changing times.
The recent Qualtrics study relates to the last study conducted by Qualtrics in May 2020, which outlines the biggest drivers of brand trust following the COVID-19 pandemic and how consumers want to be engaged. In Qualtrics’ latest study, the actions brands are taking continue to have a significant impact on consumers regardless of the changes in restrictions due to the pandemic.
Lisa Khatri, Research and Brand Experience Lead for Qualtrics in APJ said:
“Being able to identify, understand, and respond to rapidly changing expectations is business-critical during the pandemic, and long after it. The fact that preferences toward the message and the medium have changed and yet the importance of actions remains hugely important reveals brands cannot afford to stand still in how they engage consumers.
As we move forward through the pandemic preferences and attitudes will continue to shift. This is why it is hugely important businesses use technology like Qualtrics to have an “always on pulse” of consumer sentiment and behavior tracking. Insights delivered by Qualtrics help identify the lead indicators businesses need to design and deliver the brand communications and experiences people want, and which ultimately cultivate the trust needed to succeed.”
In this article, we will take a look at how the consumer behaviors, preferences, and expectations from brands they engage with shifted during the first 6 months of the pandemic in the Philippines and Singapore.
The Philippines Consumer Pulse
95{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22} of the Philippines consumers said that brand actions impact trust in the time of a crisis. The drivers of the brand trust are consistent with May 2020 Qualtrics’ research and these are:
- (41{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}) Not taking advantage of a crisis to maximise profits remains the most important
- (40{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}) Maintaining reasonable pricing
- Taking care of customers (34{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}) and employees (23{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22})
A Shift in Communication and Engagement Platforms
The survey revealed a significant shift in communication preferences, messages, and engagement platforms in the Philippines.
The top brand communications people expect today are updates on the brand’s response to the pandemic and messages on safety and hygiene protocols. Information into products and services is down one place to the third most desired message, (50{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}). Sales and promotion emails (45{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}) and information on reward programs are next in the consumers’ preferences.
Facebook (84{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}) remains the most popular engagement platform followed by online media (63{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}), email (56{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}), and TV advertising (51{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}).
Singapore Consumer Pulse
In the city-state, more than 90{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22} of consumers agreed that during a crisis brand actions impact trust. Similar to Singapore’s response in May 2020 and comparable the to Philippines’ consumer response, the drivers of the brand trust in the country are:
- (40{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}) Not taking advantage of a crisis to maximise profits remains the most important
- (37{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}) Maintaining reasonable pricing
- Taking care of customers (32{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}) and employees (27{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22})
A Shift in Communication and Engagement Platforms
The top message that Singaporeans expect from brands today is sales and promotion via emails (52{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}), which has shown an 11{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22} increase from May 2020. The other messages that make up the top 5 messages consumers want are information into products and services (47{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}), safety and hygiene protocols (43{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}), and reward programs (41{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}).
As for the preferred engagement platform, Singaporeans are increasingly choosing email (60{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}), followed by Facebook (47{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}), and Whatsapp (45{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}). The study revealed that consumers are moving away from traditional broadcast (19{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}) and online media (38{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22}), which showed a significant drop versus last May.
*Qualtrics surveyed 328 Singaporeans and 328 Filipinos (aged 18-65) in early September 2020.
