The evolution and development of ICT means greater access to
information for all and a social accelerator that improves communication
between users. These developments lead to the emergence of new social and
consumer habits.
Greater access to information, better purchase
The fact that each of us has more access to information only
improves our consumer skills, more options and opportunities for negotiation. A
better knowledge of the characteristics and prices of the goods helps the
selection process.
The main benefits of a more informed consumer are:
Saving time in use and ease of searching on the Internet.
Get better prices thanks to the existing price transparency
for practically homogeneous products (especially in sectors such as tourism)
Greater product differentiation, so companies are forced to
choose strategies in which the price is not reliable information on the signal
level to determine the quality of the product.
Access to a wider range of products by removing physical
barriers to trade and not restricting supply to physical stores only or
restrictions such as store size.
We can add here the appearance of the figure of
Omicconsumers: they are the people who dive into the network in search of
planned information before each purchase process.
The rise of social commerce
Virtual communities strongly influence online purchases,
mainly in markets that have certain characteristics:
An atomized market with homogeneous products and services.
To buy it, a common user requires technical knowledge of a
certain complexity.
This type of behavior will largely depend on the purchasing
power of each person, since for a person with an average income, such a
purchase will be equated to a car, for a teenager, to buying a smartphone.
This behavior occurs on the Internet and is the result of
the changing reliance on news sources over the past few years.
It is clear that we trust more than a friend, family member
or consumer with similar needs, than someone interested in selling. From here,
user communities are born (mainly forums and social networks) that, for
fundamental social reasons, such as improving their own status or the
satisfaction of the exchange of information or knowledge, share and discuss
their own experience of using the products. or the services they have
purchased.
A list of these users from all over the world (including the
Spanish market) are under 35 years of age and very active on social networks
where they share their opinions and experiences. They use and trust mobile apps
to buy and find products. This group already represents 25% of online shoppers.
(Source: Capgemini Digital Shopper Relevance Study)
Digital natives
If there has already been a real revolution for companies to
adapt to this new environment, then the big challenge will come from Generation
Z or the also famous digital natives (those born after 1996). Bidders must
adapt to the demands of future consumers, who will be more technological and
social than ever. Will they be prepared?
