Since the COVID-19 outbreak, the application of digital technology has enabled consumers to get up-to-date information about the pandemic and made it possible for telecommuting, online teaching, and online medical consultations. Meanwhile, digital technology is also playing an important role in the growth of online consumption. Affected by the COVID-19 outbreak, consumers have increased their frequency of online shopping and the amount of money spent on online consumption. Through interacting with online retailers, consumers have gained valuable knowledge about the service capability of online retailers. These interactions and experiences have led to consumers favouring certain online retailers over others.

For consumers who have never purchased online before, online shopping became a habit during the pandemic period and is likely to continue even after it ends. This fundamental change in the shopping habits of former offline only consumers will lead to an expansion of the online market. It is essential for retailers to focus on the psychological and behavioural changes of consumers during this period, in order to meet consumer needs and expectations, and improve the consumption experience. This article presents a discussion of four major consumption needs during the COVID-19 pandemic and the corresponding measures undertaken by retailers that turn adversity into opportunity.

1. Convenience

Following the sudden outbreak of COVID-19, staying at home on a daily basis has become normal life for most residents in China. Consequently, consumer demand for the convenience of shopping without going out is prominent. With the rise of the ‘housing economy’, the O2O (online to offline) business model has been developing rapidly. Online platforms owned by large supermarkets such as RT-Mart and Carrefour have enabled consumers to make orders online and receive deliveries on their doorstep. Alibaba’s innovative supermarket, Hema, has integrated online (the mobile app) and offline (the physical store) channels to create synergy. With the help of Ele.me, Meituan.com, and other online platforms, mini-malls, bakeries, cafes, and restaurants have expanded their geographical scope of business. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the penetration of the O2O model into local communities. For example, with the help of WeChat mini-programs and WeChat groups, community-based grocery stores have opened up and expanded their online retail business, which has ensured the supply of daily necessities for residents during the crisis.

Obviously, the Internet has become an indispensable part of the retailer’s omnichannel distribution. Through the integration of online and offline channels, many retailers have enhanced their brand image and improved customer stickiness in the process of fighting the pandemic. In short, the COVID-19 outbreak has been the catalyst for the digital transformation of traditional retailers. There is no doubt that the digital innovation of retail operations is imperative.

2. Timeliness

During the pandemic period, consumers mostly purchase fresh food online. As fresh food deteriorates easily, there has been increasing consumer demand for logistics that ensure the timeliness of deliveries. Whether online retailers can send goods in time and whether products can be quickly delivered have become determining factors in the purchase decisions of consumers. As the pivot that connects online retailers with consumers, logistics is essential for online retailing. However, limited logistics capacity has posed a serious threat for most retailers since the COVID-19 outbreak. During the Chinese Spring Festival, shortages in delivery personnel were common. Now, the impact of the pandemic has added to the challenges, making it even more difficult to ensure efficient logistics.

In the face of these difficulties, online retailers have been setting good examples. First, the logistics owned and operated by JD.com have demonstrated significant advantages in terms of delivery speed to meet consumer demands for timeliness. Second, Hema and some catering enterprises cooperate with each other by ‘labour sharing’, yielding social and economic benefits. Labour sharing refers to when Organisation A has idle employees but Organisation B needs extra staff, Organisation A will lease staff to Organisation B on a short-term basis. The COVID-19 outbreak has left many employees in the catering industry unemployed. Whereas online retailers like Hema are in urgent need of more staff to handle soaring online orders. Through labour sharing, restaurant employees have temporarily joined Hema to help with product distribution, which has ensured Hema’s service quality. This innovative model of collaborative employment has created a ‘win-win-win’ situation by meeting the emergency employment needs of online retailers, alleviating the unemployment pressures of catering enterprises, motivating idle staff, and optimising the allocation of human resources.

3. Security

Due to the pandemic, consumers now pay more attention to product hygiene and personal safety when receiving deliveries. To meet this consumer requirement, takeaway platforms, such as Ele.me, have offered ‘contactless delivery’ services. Contactless delivery refers to couriers placing goods at designated locations such as at the gate of community residences during the COVID-19 pandemic period. This measure has proved to be effective in protecting the consumer and courier from making close contact, reducing the possibility of transmission and infection.

Meanwhile, catering enterprises have been providing a special ‘takeaway information card’ attached to the takeaway package. This little card indicates the name and the temperature of the chef, the packager, and the courier. Some of these cards even incorporate QR code technology. By scanning the QR code, the consumer can watch a short video about the production and packaging process. Using this multimedia approach, catering enterprises seek to convey that the food production process was safe, reliable, and traceable. These approaches have enhanced brand warmth, allowing consumers to feel more at ease. 

In addition, the self-service package lockers, such as Hive-Box, have provided the last-mile solution to logistics. As this locker system enables contactless delivery, it has been favoured by consumers, especially since the COVID-19 outbreak. This business will likely continue to grow after the end of the crisis. Even more advanced, delivery robots have efficiently accomplished tasks related to the point-to-point distribution of materials in hospitals at the frontlines of fighting the COVID-19 outbreak. The application and upgrading of technologies such as automated delivery vehicles and drone deliveries during the pandemic will accelerate the penetration of artificial intelligence into the civil logistics industry.

For hygiene and safety reasons, consumers now hold higher expectations for product packaging because of the COVID-19 pandemic period. As a result, online retailers have enhanced product packaging, for example, by using a plastic film to separate food into smaller quantities. Some online retailers even use ‘packaging’ as their selling point and launch products such as ‘packaged chilli’ and ‘packaged potatoes’. To a certain extent, this measure reassures consumers of food hygiene. Nonetheless, it has increased packaging waste and may lead to future environmental problems. Online retailers should avoid excessive packaging and use biodegradable materials.

4. Fun

Consumer enthusiasm for fun at home has manifested itself into the popular game console, the Nintendo Switch, during the COVID-19 pandemic period. The consumers’ pursuit of fun provides an opportunity for industries that have suffered heavy losses due to the outbreak of COVID-19. For example, online tourism retailers can show videos of tourist attractions and vacation product highlights on webcast platforms. They can also use digital technologies, such as virtual reality, to create immersive travel experiences online. These approaches would appeal to the consumers’ demand for fun. In this way, marketers can arouse the emotional resonance of consumers and raise the awareness of travel products in the consumer’s mind. Following this, online tourism retailers should design customised travel products and offer personalised travel itinerary advice via online consultations. This will improve the efficiency of decision-making by potential tourists and promote the recovery of the tourism industry post-pandemic.

In conclusion, the changes in consumer psychology and behaviour during the COVID-19 pandemic will profoundly influence the marketing strategies of retailers in various industries after the end of the pandemic. The sustainable development of retail businesses derives from insights into consumer needs and the efforts made to meet diversified consumption needs. To accommodate this, retailers should accelerate their digital transformation and embrace innovation.

自新冠肺炎疫情爆发以来，数字技术的应用使消费者能够获得有关新冠肺炎疫情的最新信息，并使远程办公、在线教学和在线问诊成为可能。与此同时，数字技术的应用也推动了网络消费的增长。受疫情影响，消费者普遍增加了网购频率和网络消费金额。通过与在线零售商的互动，消费者加深了对在线零售商服务能力的认知。这些互动体验亦培养了消费者对于某些在线零售商的偏好。
    

对于以前从未在网上购物的消费者来说，疫情期间养成的线上消费习惯很可能会延续到疫情结束之后。这种纯线下消费人群购物习惯的本质性改变，将会推动线上消费市场的扩大。为了满足消费者的需求和期望，改善消费体验，零售商必须关注这一时期消费者心理与行为的变化。本文将对新冠肺炎疫情期间消费者的四大消费需求以及零售商化危为机的举措进行探讨。

一、便利性
    

突如其来的疫情，使足不出户成为常态。因此，消费者对于在家购物的便利性需求凸显。随着“宅经济”的兴起，线上与线下联动的O2O商业模式得到了快速发展。大润发和家乐福等大型超市的自有线上购物平台为消费者提供了在线下单、送货上门的服务。阿里巴巴集团旗下的新零售业态盒马则整合了线上（移动客户端应用）和线下（实体店）渠道，创造了协同效应。借助饿了么、美团等线上平台，小型超市和餐饮店扩大了业务辐射范围。此外，新冠肺炎疫情的爆发还加速了O2O模式向基层社区的渗透。例如，借助微信小程序和微信群，社区杂货店开辟并发展了网络零售业务，保障了疫情期间居民生活必需品的供应。
    

显然，互联网已经成为零售商全渠道分销中不可或缺的一部分。通过线上与线下渠道的融合，很多零售商在防控疫情的过程中提升了品牌形象，增强了客户粘性。简言之，此次疫情是传统零售商数字化转型的催化剂。毫无疑问，零售经营的数字化创新势在必行。

二、及时性

疫情期间，消费者大多在网上购买生鲜食品，对于物流时效性的需求增加。网络零售商能否及时发货，产品能否被快速送达，成为影响消费者购买决策的决定性因素。物流作为连接线上零售商与消费者的枢纽，对线上零售至关重要。然而，自疫情爆发以来，运力瓶颈却成为了大多数零售商面临的严峻挑战。

面对这些困难，在线零售商的一些做法值得借鉴。其一，京东自营电商+自营物流的模式在发货和配送速度方面彰显了优势。其二，盒马与餐饮企业通过“共享用工”的方式进行合作，产生了可观的社会经济效益。新冠肺炎疫情导致不少餐饮企业员工闲置。而像盒马这样的在线零售商则迫切需要更多的员工来处理飙升的线上订单。通过劳务分担，餐饮企业员工暂时加入盒马，协助产品配送，保障了盒马的服务质量。这种创新的协作模式，满足了在线零售商的紧急用工需求，缓解了餐饮企业的用工压力，激励了闲置员工，优化了人力资源配置，从而创造了多赢的局面。

三、安全性

由于新冠肺炎疫情，消费者更加注重卫生和商品配送安全性。为了满足消费者的这一需求，美团、饿了么等外卖平台提供了无接触配送服务。无接触配送是指快递员将货物放置于指定地点，如小区门口，在送达后通知消费者自行取件的做法。事实证明，这项措施能够有效地避免消费者与快递员面对面接触，减少了感染的可能性。与此同时，餐饮企业纷纷提供“外卖安心卡”。卡片上明示食品制作员、打包员和配送员的姓名及其当日体温。有的安心卡还融合了二维码技术。通过扫描二维码，消费者可以观看食品生产和包装过程的短视频。使用这种多媒体的方式，餐饮企业传达了食品生产过程安全、可靠、可追溯的信息。这些做法增强了品牌暖意，让消费者更放心。

此外，智能快递柜为物流提供了最后一公里的解决方案。由于这种储物柜系统可以实现无接触配送，在疫情爆发后尤其受到消费者的青睐。更前沿的且看疫情防控一线，在多家医院上岗的智能机器人高效地完成了物资的点对点配送。疫情期间，无人快递车、无人机送货等技术的应用和升级，将加速人工智能向民用快递领域的渗透。

疫情期间，消费者对于产品包装的安全性也提出了更高的要求。因此，在线零售商着力改进产品包装，例如，使用塑料薄膜将食品分成小份包装。一些在线零售商甚至将“包装”作为卖点，推出诸如“包装辣椒”和“包装土豆”之类的产品。这些措施在一定程度上让消费者对食品卫生放心。另一方面，此举增加了包装垃圾，并且可能加剧环境污染。在线零售商应当避免过度包装，并且使用可降解材料进行包装。

四、趣味性

在新冠肺炎疫情期间，消费者对于“宅乐趣”的热衷可以从任天堂推出的体感类游戏Switch健身环的畅销窥见一斑。消费者对乐趣的追求，为那些因疫情爆发而表现低迷的行业提供了机遇。例如，旅游业在线零售商可以通过网络直播平台展示旅游景点的视频和度假产品的亮点；也可以使用数字技术，如虚拟现实，打造沉浸式的线上旅游体验。这类营销方式容易引起消费者的情感共鸣，提升消费者对旅游度假产品的认知度。此外，旅游零售商还可以通过在线咨询提供个性化的旅游线路规划建议、设计定制化的旅游产品。这将提高潜在消费者的决策效率，促进疫情结束之后旅游业的复苏。

总之，新冠肺炎疫情期间消费者心理与行为的变化将对疫情结束之后各行业零售商的营销战略产生深远的影响。零售业的可持续发展源于对消费者需求的洞察以及对多样化消费需求的满足。为此，零售商应当锐意创新，加速数字化转型。

(Authored by Dr. Yangyang Jiang, Assistant Professor in Marketing, Nottingham University Business School China)

(Executive Editor: Ye Ke)