Times of crisis mark a unique opportunity for brands to display their strengths and grow closer to consumers, by being available and listening to them. As McKinsey points out, "[In these times], a customer’s interaction with a company can trigger an immediate and lingering effect on his or her sense of trust and loyalty." According to the American research firm, "rapidly innovating to redesign journeys that matter to a very different context will be key."* For many players whose businesses have been entirely converted to digital overnight, online conversation has become an essential tool to assist customers seeking advice and reassurance; a key means of remote communication to satisfy, convert and retain more visitors.
On the part of online sales, as shown in our second chart, the increase in transactions has persisted since the beginning of March, with levels higher than those of sales for our clients in the food, high-tech, and DIY sectors. From mid-April onwards, weekly sales exceed the number of transactions recorded during the first week of winter sales for all the divisions studied (2x for sports, high-tech and household appliances; 5x for DIY), with the exception of fashion, which remains at half the level recorded during sales periods.
Since the beginning of the crisis, many of our clients have adjusted their targeting strategies to strengthen their online assistance. This is shown in the graph below, which depicts the evolution of click rates and the proportion of visitors who select the chat button to receive online support among our customers in the consumer products industry. This is twice as high from the week of April 20th onward, compared to very busy periods like sales seasons.