North American COVID-19 consumer habits survey reinforces that safety and comfort are here to stay as established customer expectations

Ottawa, Canada (May 5, 2021) - Intouch Insight, a leading provider in Customer Experience Management software and services, released its latest survey results exploring changes in consumer habits. This study was a second follow up to the original study from May 2020 which was undertaken to understand the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on retail businesses.

The latest data continues to provide insight into how businesses can pivot to meet the demands of their customers and reinforces that comfort and safety have become established expectations for consumers across North-America. “Businesses need to balance their attention on the key drivers of comfort, while continuing to deliver on traditional measures of customer experience, like price and convenience,” says Sarah Beckett, Director of Marketing at Intouch Insight.

Online capabilities also continue to be of major importance to consumers, not only for e-commerce retailers but for all retail stores. “Our survey respondents continue to make their voices heard regarding how important a store’s digital properties are. 48% of our respondents report spending more time researching purchases online prior to making an in-store purchase, compared to before the pandemic,” adds Beckett.

Key findings from the study:

• Limiting the number of patrons allowed inside at a time and the availability of disinfectant and hand wipes are the top two initiatives consumers say make them feel more comfortable making in-store purchases.
• 82% of respondents report price and convenience as the top two important factors driving the decision to visit a store, compared to 80% in October 2020, and only 21% in May 2020.
• Results continue to show an increase in online purchases, with 62% of respondents reporting an increase in the number of online purchases made over the last year, compared to 54% last fall and 51% the previous spring.

For additional details on the results of the study you can download the full report here: https://go.intouchinsight.com/changes_in_consumer_habits_apr2021.

Intouch Insight will be releasing subsequent reports covering specific industry verticals. For more information, or to request specific data and insights, please contact Sarah Beckett at sbeckett@intouchinsight.com.

About Intouch Insight

Intouch Insight (TSXV: INX) (OTCQB: INXSF) offers a complete portfolio of customer experience management (CEM) products and services that help global brands delight their customers, strengthen brand reputation and improve financial performance. Through its flagship SaaS product, LiaCX®, Intouch helps clients collect and centralize data from multiple customer touch points, gives them actionable, real-time insights, and provides them with the tools to continuously improve customer experience. Founded in 1992, Intouch is trusted by over 300 of North America’s most-loved brands for their customer experience management, customer survey, mystery shopping, mobile forms, operational and compliance audits, and event marketing automation solutions. For more information, visit intouchinsight.com.

For further information, please contact:

Sarah Beckett
Director of Marketing
sbeckett@intouchinsight.com 
613-270-7922