Australian Normality Index – September – Normality stabilises after a two-month decline

We are approaching the six month marker of Australian’s learning to live their lives in the shadow of Covid19. Since we launched the Normality Index in Australia and the US in April 2020, we have interviewed over 30,000 people to capture their mind and mood in relation to the differing phases of the pandemic and the associated economic contraction.

The Victorian example shows that in a period as short as six months we can quickly learn to adapt to seismic shifts in our lives. We may not like the situation or the restrictions enforced on us as a part of preserving our health and preserving lives, however, Victorians are not only showing civic minded compliance, they are a case study in adaptation. Our aim continues to be to work to make sense of these changes and how brands can reframe, rethink and reorient in order to manage in this complex market place.

And given the likelihood that a vaccine is still some time away perhaps we should be looking at the COVID normal, as opposed the new normal, as a state of enhanced Adaption. One where we pivot and adapt with flexibility.

And what does this mean for consumer behaviour? Does continued enforced changes in circumstances make us more open to change in general? If that hypothesis is correct, then the importance of understanding the changes in market needs and values and shaping my offer and message to reflect that has never been more vital. We originally addressed this in our Week 7 webinar ‘Life After Lockdown’ and Week 10 whitepaper ‘Life After Lockdown: Lessons for Consumer Strategy’ , not realising the full prescience of our observations. We will continue to observe and build on this topic over the coming months.

In the September Normality Index we examine the data and consider Adaptation, Anxiety, the impact on Gen Y and Z, and also some learnings in the CEX space.

Australian Normality Index – September – Normality stabilises after a two-month decline

Posted 16 Sep 2020
Forethought Australian Normality Index Week 24 Final September 2020 10 10
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