Asia has experienced unprecedented digital acceleration and has now become the most advanced digital economy in the world – with 50% of global internet users living in Asia. From a data perspective, there are at any given time 2 billion consumers online in Asia alone. This rapid digitalization across Asia has, in turn, changed consumer expectations and behavior – resulting in more empowered consumers than ever before.
Fun fact according to Global Keynote Series Speaker, Jason Spero, VP of Global Performance & Programmatic at Google, that Google sees more searches for sushi than sandwiches – more searches for Bollywood than for Hollywood!
Our needs as consumers have not changed but our expectations for the brands that serve us have changed dramatically. The immediacy of information and the depth of information has changed. From a user experience marketers are now competing with the best experience the consumer has ever had.
If marketers look at the changes in consumer expectations, they will find 3 very different ones:
Research
Consumer to path research is growing at an amazing rate.
Nearly 7/10 people research before making a purchase, we as consumers are consulting more than 6 different sources. More than 2/3 buyer are standing in a physical store researching on their phone. There’s even faster growth with people referring to reviews on websites/mobile and even more are going to YouTube to see how things are done and get different perspectives.
Brand relationships
Consumers expect depth and personalization
Jason gave the audience examples with Coca-Cola and Sephora. Delivering unique experiences to consumers that were looking for their products. Consumers don’t want a one size fits all pitch. They want a unique, personalized experience. So, in the case of Sephora, when a consumer is standing in the store and aren’t familiar with a product, they can have a virtual assistant help to apply the makeup or product to their face using Augmented Reality. A “try before you buy” scenario.
Convenience and helpfulness
Consumer needs for expediency and speed and lack of friction have gone up dramatically with the rise of mobile.
Mobile web is a mess – the average consumer will wait only 3 seconds for a web page to load before abandoning it and moving on. on average it takes a web mobile page 15 seconds to load – consumers have already moved on. In Japan it’s at 9 seconds.
All of this provides such an amazing opportunity for brands. It gives them the opportunity to be there for the consumer. To follow in their journey, to deepen their relationship with them. No matter what, it’s putting the customer in the center of everything you do.