Elavon Europe, with Ipsos Mori, explores how the pandemic and lockdown restrictions have impacted Ireland's spending habits and plans - from holiday types to payment preferences.
Coronavirus feels like it’s impacted almost every facet of our daily lives. Does that include what we buy and how we buy it? Of course it does!
So, on behalf of Elavon Europe, Ipsos Mori asked 1,000 adults aged from 16-65 in Ireland about spending habits and plans, and how those may have changed as a result of the pandemic.
The survey was carried out online across the end of May and start of June 2020.
Just under half (49%) said they had increased their online spending during lockdown.
59% said they will actively seek to use cards and contactless payments following the pandemic.
And, as you’ll see, when it comes to our priorities on spending once restrictions lift, a get-away in one form or another was by far the biggest priority – even more so than getting that long-awaited haircut!
Online spending since lockdown
Nine out of ten (92%) of our survey respondents said they shopped online. That’s hardly surprising, given the survey was carried out online, but if your business doesn’t cater for online shoppers, are you missing out? Talk to us.
We asked: “As a proportion of your overall spending, how has your online spending changed, if at all, compared to before the start of ‘lockdown’?”
Almost half (49%) said they increased their spending online during the lockdown. Some 14% said they had reduced their online spending.
Almost a third (30%) said they had increased their online spending a little, while almost a fifth (19%) admitted their online spending had increased a lot.
Around a quarter (26%) said they had not changed their online spending at all.
Tap to pay or splash the cash?
We asked: “Thinking about how you will pay for things in shops or places in the future once the coronavirus pandemic is over, what do you think will be your preferred method of payment for everyday in-person purchases?”
Some 59% of respondents said they will actively seek to use card or contactless payments after the pandemic, while just under a quarter (24%) said they will use cash or cards and contactless equally going forward.
Protecting your staff and your customers by minimising interactions is crucial to social distancing. That needs to be included in your day-to-day operations going forward, and for however long social distancing restrictions remain.
Post-pandemic priorities
We asked: “Imagine the coronavirus pandemic was over in 3 months time and there were no restrictions in place, if anything, what would you prioritise spending money on?
First, we asked respondents to choose up to three priorities.
Almost six out of ten (57%) listed outings, in all their forms, amongst their top three. Outings included daytrips, visits to a pub or restaurant, mini-breaks of two to three days away or holidays lasting three days or more.
Coming in second, was health and wellbeing, with almost most four out of ten (39%) putting it as a priority. It covers sport, including the gym, or healthcare, including a visit to a dentist or opticians.
Just over a third (35%) put Home or Garden Improvements in their top three priorities. That included home improvements, gardening or outdoor furniture, white goods or household electronics.
When we asked which of their choices was their most important, one in five (20%) said a holiday or mini-break was their ultimate priority.
Get me out of here... on a plane!
Well, almost. Because just under a quarter (23%) said they’re not planning to take any type of holiday or mini-break at all in the first six months after travel restrictions are lifted.
Of those planning a mini-break, lasting 2-3 days, three quarters (75%) said they’ll be staying within Ireland, with more than a third of those (36%) planning to literally stay at home for that time off.
When it came to a longer holiday, lasting three days or more, almost half (44%) of respondents said they plan to take time away within Ireland, and almost three quarters (72%) intend to travel abroad. Some are doing both. Of those leaving the country, around three quarters (76%) say they’ll get on a plane to do it.
Summary
The research shows some key changes in consumer attitude towards online shopping, with 49% of respondents confirming they increased their spending online compared to before the start of lockdown restrictions. It’s not clear from the research how many, if any, were new to online shopping, but giving your customers a seamless online payments experience in the past few weeks may, in the forthcoming months, encourage a rise in transaction volumes or result in larger shopping baskets.
59% also confirmed they will actively seek to use card or contactless payments in the future. Social distancing may accelerate the pace of evolution in customer shopping habits and payment preferences. An evolution we can help you adapt to.
. · The research was conducted on i:omnibus, Ipsos MORI’s online Omnibus.
· Online interviews were carried out amongst adults aged 16-65 in Ireland.
· Our respondents base includes 1,000 adults who completed the survey between 26th May – 2nd June 2020.
· The data has been weighted to the known population profile by age, gender, region, working status and social grade to be nationally representative and reflect the adult population of the Ireland.