Adapting to consumer trends is essential for successful marketing and advertising efforts. However, staying informed about the latest developments can be challenging. Recent industry and consumer data have provided valuable insights into consumer expectations for 2024. From this data, we have identified 18 key consumer trends for 2024 that you should be aware of and incorporate into your marketing strategy.
Stay informed about these significant consumer behavior trends for 2025 to guide your marketing strategies:
In need of assistance to refine your marketing strategy to align with the consumer behavior trends for 2024? WebFX offers a dedicated team of digital marketing strategists prepared to help you navigate the new year.
Contact us at 888-601-5359 or reach out online to get started!
Seeking feedback from customers is futile if no action is taken. One of the most prominent consumer trends for 2025 is actively listening to customers and implementing their feedback as needed.
Gathering feedback can be as simple as sending an email:
[Image: Customer Feedback Example]
Customers want to feel heard – they are the lifeblood of your business. A study revealed that 63% of consumers believe businesses should improve their efforts in listening to customer and client feedback.
Begin by promptly responding to customers when they reach out regarding their experience with your website, product, services, or any other aspect of your business.
Hearing your customers is just the beginning. You also need to acknowledge them.
Express gratitude to those who share positive experiences, encouraging them to continue supporting your brand. For those with issues, inquire about how you can assist in resolving the situation for them and future customers.
Customers seek to know that the businesses and brands they support are backed by real people. Genuinely connecting with your audience will help cultivate loyal repeat customers.
Don’t hesitate to let your brand’s personality shine through in all your content, whether it’s on social media, emails, website content, or any other customer-facing material.
Maintain professionalism while infusing some fun into your written content. Use a more relaxed tone when possible to showcase your humanity.
Ensure your service professionals exhibit empathy and understanding, especially for brands offering services. This sentiment applies to customer interactions before and after sales. A survey found that 36% of consumers were dissatisfied with the lack of empathy they experienced during customer service interactions.
Acknowledge that it’s acceptable to relax a bit. Show your customers that you are human and care about them. A touch of humanity and personality can go a long way with your customers and could be the factor that keeps them returning.
Overall, the most significant consumer insight for 2025 is to provide exceptional shopping experiences. Online users can benefit from 24/7 support and customer service.
Offer support through various means, such as chatbots, email, and informative content for common questions:
[Image: Live Chat Support Example]
A survey showed that 93% of respondents would be more patient with shipping delays if the company they ordered from was known for excellent customer service. Additionally, 45% would wait two weeks for their delivery if they received outstanding customer service.
While it’s not expected that you have a human customer service team available 24/7, there are ways to offer support to your website users when assistance isn’t immediately available.
Chatbots can also assist customers and your business by:
– Providing consistent customer service, 24/7
– Answering frequently asked questions
– Saving money
– Gathering customer feedback
– Offering multilingual support, assisting all customers
Consumers desire more opportunities for omnichannel shopping. When making a purchase, consumers utilize in-store, social, and online resources to inform their buying decisions.
Consider how many times you’ve purchased something online with more confidence because you knew you could return it at an in-store location or vice versa. Consumers want easy access to their purchases, so our goal is to establish as many purchase points as possible.
Social media shopping has greatly impacted the omnichannel experience. In the past, you had two options – e-commerce and in-store. Now, users can shop through TikTok, Instagram, and even Facebook.
Explore the social sites you already use to stay on top of this trend for 2024.
The next 2024 marketing trend involves consumers’ increased power over their purchases. Unlike previous years, consumers now have more say in what and when they buy something. They are less easily influenced and have plenty of options for any need.
To close more sales, you need to appeal to this individual power. Show customers what you have to offer and be patient and consistent. Highlight what makes your product a quality item and be transparent about the benefits.
More and more people are gravitating towards health and wellness-focused purchases. This trend affects all sectors, not just those explicitly related to health. Food and beverage, pet care, makeup, and skincare – everyone wants to shop for their well-being nowadays.
The demand for health products stems from the rise in chronic health conditions and a global emphasis on preventive healthcare. To stay aligned with trends, companies like La Roche-Posay are utilizing health-based resources to promote their products:
[Image: Health Example]
Highlighting any health benefits or perks of your products can make a significant difference to consumers. For instance, if your clothing company uses hypoallergenic materials (like 100% cotton), you could emphasize how your clothes are suitable for sensitive skin.
Don’t make consumers think about how your product could improve their overall well-being – tell them.
Personalized ads are familiar to us as we browse and scroll. Your company might not consider these ads as the most effective way to reach people. However, did you know that 75% of consumers expect personalization to make navigation easier both in-store and online?
Personalization helps:
– Suggest relevant products and services to customers
– Prevent companies from wasting money on ineffective ads
– Encourage brand and product exposure across the web
Recognizing that consumers want and expect personalization, you can start implementing data collection strategies and customer segmentation – which we’ll discuss later.
In addition to the emphasis on wellness, there’s a growing pressure for sustainable practices and products.
With social media, we have access to more information than ever. This access has led to a more educated, informed consumer who wants to see more emphasis on environmental benefits.
[Image: Nike Sustainability]
We can also observe the demand based on how companies try to deceive consumers with “greenwashing” – the practice of exaggerating environmental benefits to encourage purchases. This practice ultimately damages trust and negatively impacts the company’s brand.
Consumers want to buy sustainably, especially if it’s available. Highlight what makes your company or products more eco-friendly and evaluate areas where you can make changes for the earth (and your buyers).
Even though consumers are becoming more informed and have more power, they still have standards. If they can choose between a B+ product that’s more convenient and an A+ product that’s difficult to find, they’ll go for convenience.
Convenience is a significant aspect of our lives, and shopping is no exception. With sites like Amazon offering two-day shipping and affordable products, why would they go somewhere else? Especially if they have to wait longer and pay more!
The key is to strike a balance between convenience and quality. Some ways to achieve this are:
– Ensuring an easy checkout process
– Providing multiple payment options
– Allowing customers to create an account and save their address and payment information
– Highlighting your return policy prominently
Influencer marketing is popular for a reason – these creators play a significant role in shaping consumer trends. Influencers are here to stay, and we can look to them for insights into what consumers want across various industries.
Influencer marketing is evolving. Now, businesses can achieve excellent results by collaborating with small influencers who have a niche audience of trusted individuals.
These influencers can still be a valuable resource for promoting your products through reputable sources:
[Image: Small Creator Example]
You don’t even have to work with an influencer to benefit from their influence. Following popular creators in your industry can help you stay abreast of trends as they unfold. Additionally, you can gain insight into what buyers in your field like and create content that resonates with their interests.
As more people become aware of how companies use their data, we’re seeing a greater push for privacy and security from users. This trend is especially true for consumers who trust companies with sensitive data, such as payment information and shipping addresses.
[Image: Privacy Policy]
While you likely have a secure website already, informing consumers about how you use their data and protect them is a plus. Transparency can serve you well by keeping them satisfied and interested in purchasing from your company.
People are increasingly willing to spend money on experiences rather than goods. According to Mastercard’s Travel Industry Trends Report, spending on experiences increased 65% from 2019 to 2023. Between the pandemic and environmental issues, there is a greater desire for experiences over goods.
However, that doesn’t mean people aren’t buying anything. Spending is still up on food, services, and goods related to travel and entertainment. Think of a concert – people want to buy the ticket, but then comes the hotel room, merchandise, food, parking, and the list goes on.
So, if you can create an experience from your product or find a way to capitalize on live events, that’s one way to address this trend.
People want to feel like they belong. Segmenting your audience and promoting that sense of community can help foster a sense of belonging.
Segmentation isn’t a new trend – marketing professionals have been dividing their audiences into categories for years. However, the idea that segmentation can help people find their niche is relatively new. You can group people based on shared interests, hobbies, and preferences.
Consider how your ads appeal to different groups and what you can do to market to those shared interests. For example, you could run a TikTok ad campaign targeting Gen Z users interested in hiking and camping!
While we all associate holiday shopping with Black Friday and weekend December nights, that’s not the case anymore. Since companies run deals earlier and Prime Day occurs in October, there is less pressure for consumers to buy immediately. They know they’ll get a good deal later.
The best way to follow this trend is to offer deals and promotions in Q4 and provide ample time for users to find and shop the deal.
Many companies have already integrated AI into their daily workflow. Whether you’re creating product descriptions or outlining comprehensive campaigns, AI can help you achieve more and target consumers effectively.
On the flip side, consumers are skeptical about the use of AI. In fact, 52% of Americans are more concerned than excited about AI in daily life. Much of the concern stems from privacy and security issues, rather than discovering new products or services with AI.
If you use AI in your backend, you need to prioritize security and make it known. Since public opinion of AI is negative overall, informing people of the security measures you have in place can help ease their minds and prevent distrust.
Creating a positive experience could help consumers feel more secure with your company and AI in the future, given that not everyone is certain of AI’s impact.
Finally, rounding out our list of consumer trends is the importance of conversational search. Over 1 billion voice searches occur every month, and those searches are usually more conversational than not.
For example, if someone asks their smart speaker what shoes they can wear hiking, that search will likely pull from articles that answer the question “What shoes should I wear on a hike.” If you’re not targeting these topics along with your product information, you’re missing out on sales.
Consumers are even making purchases based on these conversational searches. To ensure you’re appearing in voice search results, you must appeal to the conversational search trends.
If you have the means to start even a basic loyalty program, you could help honor those who shop with you repeatedly and reward that behavior.
In addition to sustainability, which we discussed earlier, consumers are shifting toward a small consumption mindset.
Whether due to inflation or increased awareness of the global impact, consumers want to feel like they are getting more value and quality for their money. They seek items that are durable, so they don’t have to make large purchases of replaceable items.
Promoting the quality and longevity of your products are a couple of ways to incorporate this trend into your marketing campaigns.
As businesses strive to meet consumers’ demands in 2025, standing out from the competition and making an impact is crucial. Partner with WebFX’s digital marketing strategists to achieve this.
Our team will develop and execute a revenue-generating digital marketing strategy to help your business thrive in 2025. We consider all the trends listed above and have a team of 500 marketing experts to create a personalized plan for your company.
Want to learn more? Call us today at 888-601-5359 or contact us online to get started!
