Nunca antes esta frase de Bill Gates había tenido tanta relevancia como hoy. El aislamiento social producto del coronavirus está empezando a transformar y acelerar de forma dramática el cambio en los hábitos de consumo de las personas. Mientras muchas empresas con bases digitales sólidas continúan operando e implementando nuevas formas de cubrir las necesidades de sus clientes, otras sufren pérdidas sustanciales, y en algunos casos irremediables, debido a su poca capacidad de adaptarse a esta nueva coyuntura.

Today, a large part of the population is forced to work, play sports, study and shop from home, almost exclusively using digital media as a link. This situation has shown that many aspects of our lives that we considered natural and even elementary, are not necessarily so. The acceleration in the digitization of our consumption will force us to consolidate and improve connectivity services, electronic commerce and distribution of packages or “delivery” in the country. 

According to figures from the Lima Chamber of Commerce , electronic sales could have increased by up to 50% during the State of Emergency. In countries with more developed digital markets such as Japan, Italy, France, South Korea or China, electronic commerce grew between 100% and 700% during the quarantine period, maintaining high growth rates, even after the partial opening of their markets . 

Naturally, these growths have not been seen in traditionally leading e-commerce sectors such as travel, hospitality, beauty or fashion. It is estimated that in the first two months of quarantine around 80% of sales are concentrated in basic necessities such as pharmaceuticals, food and personal hygiene. 

The impact of the coronavirus is forcing companies to adapt to a new scenario, in which consumers are being driven to buy basic products electronically. The reality is that a large majority of the population will continue to feel the risk of contagion in the medium term by shopping in a supermarket, returning to their offices, exercising in a gym or even going out to eat at a restaurant . In this way, electronic commerce and virtual platforms will play a transcendental role in our lives and in the different consumer sectors.

For example, the Linio portal indicated that in April 2020, sales of the sports category on its online platform grew by more than 800% compared to the same period last year. The most popular products were concentrated in stationary and spinning bikes, treadmills, dumbbells, yoga mats, resistance bands and mats. Consumers are beginning to move the field of sports and exercise into their homes and this trend is expected to continue for a long time. 

In addition to the supply and demand of sports products, there was a considerable increase in the consumption of exercise routines through virtual media. The chain of gyms Sportlife has begun to carry out live classes through its Instagram account and a series of elite athletes, personal trainers, sports centers and specialized clinics offer free fitness content through their social networks and websites.  

Regarding the education sector, the Peruvian e-learning platform Crehana told the newspaper Gestión that the demand for its digital courses grew by 15% during the quarantine. The Mercado Libre portal reported a growth of more than 360% in its Courses and Classes section and in Spain, online education searches skyrocketed by more than 150%. 

The economic reactivation will also have a notable impact on “delivery” orders to restaurants. It is estimated that in the coming months, deliveries will grow close to 30% in Peru. In the United States, Amazon recently released a statement informing the hiring of more than 100,000 jobs for the package and food distribution sector.

At the workplace level, the Zoom videoconferencing application has exceeded 300 million users, having a growth of more than 100 million users only in the month of April and 290 million more than in December 2019.

As the country and the world win the battle against COVID19, it is very likely that these high rates of growth in electronic commerce will slow down, while physical spaces will recover ground. However, the habits adopted during this quarantine will not disappear. After the coronavirus, digital platforms will have impacted practically every aspect of our lives. We will have more consumers buying and consuming online, more digitized consumer and business sectors, and notably stronger and more relevant e-commerce. 

In that sense, if your business does not have a solid virtual presence, it is time to consider adapting to this imminent change.