Sitting in a full cinema finishing your popcorn before the movie you came to watch started has become nothing but a distant memory for many of us. The pandemic has had a devastating impact on the entertainment industry from Ster Kinekor announcing their entrance into business rescue to broadcast satellite services struggling to adapt to the needs of the post-COVID consumer there is no question that 2020 was the year of change.
More content at our fingertips
Empowered by social media, digital devices and an endless supply of content to consume, consumers have more choice when it comes to what content they want to consume and on what platform they do so. This trend was accelerated when we were confined to our homes with more time to watch series, scroll through social media and game.
This resulted in, streaming services increasing by 14% while popular gaming streaming platform, Twitch reported seeing 20% growth in profiles from 2019 to 2020, overall consumer’s internet usage increased by 70%.
While the pandemic was devastating to some industries, online gaming platforms and streaming services continued to flourish. One industry that COVID has taken to the next level is the eSports industry. The global video game market was estimated to be worth $159 billion in 2020, approximately four times box office revenues (43 billion in 2019)
Once markets opened up again, 70% of consumers still opted to watch movies at home.
Streaming subscription services are offering people an endless stream of content at a low premium, which is far more appetising to the 2021 consumer than satellite services that charge more and serve ads.
In 2021, consumers are spoilt for choice when it comes to online entertainment, whether they are creating the content or consuming it. Having an endless supply of online entertainment at a low cost means people have become both critics and creators. Today consumers are demanding a more personalised service and expecting to be given the opportunity to shape the products and services they consume.
“The power of me”
Recent research has revealed that more than 50% of consumers expressed interest in purchasing customised products or services. In addition to this, consumer behaviour shows that people are prepared to pay more for services that offer a customisable experience, but they also want to be actively involved in the process.
This trend is seen in both streaming and gaming services. People want their content to be suggested to them based on their interests without having to search for it.
Within the video streaming space, personalisation mainly refers to a one-to-one experience, where all offerings are tailored based on the user’s behaviour and interactions. By providing a personalised experience, these services can make each user feel the service is exclusively designed for them, ultimately improving organic engagement.
Thanks to AI learning and recommendation engines, delivering personalized streaming experience is now largely automated. To further ensure brands can offer consumers the most personalised experience/ marketing, Google is using your search history and browsing data from
Google-owned sites like YouTube to predict just what you would be interested in. Through doing so they’re able to predict everything from your gender to your marital status. While the data shows consumers want personalised products/service it’s eerily to think Google could know more about you than your mom.
For brands to survive a post-COVID market they need to be flexible and willing to adapt their business models to the interests of a post-COVID consumer. COVID has forced businesses and marketers to think even more out of the box than ever before. The concept of the “one size fits all” marketing approach that may have worked in the past will no longer suffice. Having a tailored approach to the interests of your consumers and how well versed you are on those interests, will ultimately define your success in a post-COVID market.
