[{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/10\/05\/cpg-marketing-after-covid-19\/#Article","articleBody":"The coronavirus pandemic has permanently changed how consumers shop. According to McKinsey, US e-commerce channels experienced 10 years\u2019 growth in just a three-month period.\nWhat\u2019s more, over 75% of US shoppers tried out different stores, websites, or brands \u2013 and 60% say they now plan to integrate these new brands and stores into their post-COVID-19 lives.\nClearly, the rules of engagement have changed.\nNew shopper attitudes, behaviors, expectations, and channel preferences mean brands need to reimagine how they sell their products. Let\u2019s look at some ways CPG marketing can change in this dramatically different environment.\nCPG marketing in a new era of consumer engagement \nThe accelerated adoption of digital technology by businesses and consumers during the coronavirus crisis has prompted many brands to revise their go-to-market strategies in a bid to capitalize on new opportunities and fulfill new customer and consumer demands.\nFor some, the solution was to take the plunge and enter the direct to consumer (DTC) market.\nFor example, Brakes, a UK B2B food delivery business, launched a dedicated B2C channel. Others are banking on subscription ordering models that lock in customer value and loyalty.\nIn a bid to maximize their channel relationships, some CPG manufacturers are looking at how they can engage with retailers to capture a greater share of the skyrocketing demand for e-commerce.\nSome are enabling retailers to:\nDirectly place orders online\nImplement real-time inventory management to reduce stockouts\nOptimize SKUs for specific digital channels\nOthers are assessing how partnerships with logistics and delivery businesses could unlock new and disruptive routes to market\nTo be successful in any online sales environment, CPG companies must overcome multiple challenges in execution. It\u2019s not easy: Enabling new e-commerce capabilities and leveraging technologies in a way that allows consumers to be approached according to their preferences and priorities.\nAlign CPG marketing with consumer values\nConsumers today are making highly nuanced decisions about where, when and how they shop based on cost, convenience, environmental impact, and other a range of other societal factors.\nMore mindful than ever about what they buy and why, they\u2019re seeking out locally sourced products and making more frequent micro-shopping trips to neighborhood stores.\nTo keep their fingers on the pulse of how shopper routines, habits, and preferences are evolving, CPG marketing will need to get much better at engaging in two-way conversations with consumers \u2013 using these feedback loops to make informed tactical decisions.\nThey will also need to become more adept at communicating their brand\u2019s social values in relevant and impactful ways.\nRethinking partner relationships\nIn addition to looking for brands that share their values, consumers now expect brands to deliver seamless omnichannel experiences.\nWith increased demand for curbside pickups, home delivery, and order online and pick-up-in-store fulfillment services, brands that collaborate closely with trade distributors to enable these services via local independent stores, or locker locations, will be well positioned to build greater shopper loyalty.\nChanges in purchasing behavior combined with a robust e-commerce platform open the door to new arrangements with trading partners, where the manufacturer is more involved during the online purchasing process and trading partners focus on the logistics of distribution.\nBy taking ownership of all consumer sales interactions and empowering distributors to handle fulfillment, CPG companies gain greater visibility into how their products are performing in multiple channels and geographic locations.\nLeveraging these data insights, they\u2019ll be able to optimize product mixes and ensure the most appropriate merchandising materials are deployed.\nCPG companies that pivot and develop sophisticated omnichannel capabilities will be in a strong position to both maintain their physical presence in local stores and meet the demands of e-commerce shoppers.\nNavigating the new normal \nRethinking go-to-market models is a challenging task, and no one size will fit all. CPG leaders need to evaluate how best to adapt their brands to maintain performance in the face of new consumer and geographic market realities.\nDelivering digital and physical experiences that truly resonate with consumers will require repeated market testing and constant evaluation to ensure all routes to market are in synch.\nThe aim of the game isn\u2019t to cannibalize existing sales assets or create channel conflict. Instead, everyone should focus on using data insights to maximize value, fulfill new consumer expectations, and unlock new growth.\nTo achieve these goals, CPG leaders need to ensure that the right decisions \u2013 informed by analytics insights generated across their digitally connected multi-channel models \u2013 are made by the right people at a global, regional, and local level.\nWithout these synergies, CPG leaders will struggle to eliminate the silos that get in the way of organization-wide transformation or achieve the governance needed to drive growth built around intense consumer-centricity.\nWhat makes customers stick? Discover proven loyalty strategies HERE.","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/10\/05\/cpg-marketing-after-covid-19\/#Article_Person","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/10\/05\/cpg-marketing-after-covid-19\/#Article_Person_ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/23x6xj3o92m9361dbu2ij362-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Javier-Flores-150x150.jpg"},"name":"Javier Flores","sameAs":["https:\/\/twitter.com\/javier_florex","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/javflores\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/contributor\/javier-alberto-flores\/"},"dateModified":"2021-12-03T02:38:59+00:00","datePublished":"2020-10-05T18:32:15+00:00","description":"CPG marketing must adapt to new consumer behavior post COVID-19. But how? Learn the marketing strategies that CPG leaders need to consider.","headline":"That was then, this is now: CPG marketing after COVID-19","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/10\/05\/cpg-marketing-after-covid-19\/#Article_ImageObject","height":"630","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/DTC-Latam-1200x630.jpg","width":"1200"},"mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/10\/05\/cpg-marketing-after-covid-19\/","name":"That was then, this is now: CPG marketing after COVID-19","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/","additionalType":"https:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/wiki\/Q1193236","description":"Relevant, timely information & analysis on commerce trends, both consumer-facing and B2B.","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/23x6xj3o92m9361dbu2ij362-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/themes\/hybris_foc\/assets\/images\/layout\/logo-new-2x.png?_=1","height":"96","url":"https:\/\/23x6xj3o92m9361dbu2ij362-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/themes\/hybris_foc\/assets\/images\/layout\/logo-new-2x.png?_=1","width":"500"},"name":"The Future of Customer Engagement and Experience","sameAs":["https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/a-call-for-a-better-experience\/id1479742201","https:\/\/twitter.com\/FutureOfCEC","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/groups\/4844282","https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/feed\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/"},"url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/10\/05\/cpg-marketing-after-covid-19\/#Article"},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"2020","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"10","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/\/10\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"05","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/\/10\/\/05\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"That was then, this is now: CPG marketing after COVID-19","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/10\/05\/cpg-marketing-after-covid-19\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]