by Engagement Labs | May 6, 2021 | Analysis, Covid-19, Public Relations

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought countless challenges to Americans over the past year. From the everyday issues of social distancing, sickness and childcare, to the financial issues of concern over jobs / personal finances and understanding the stimulus – the past year has altered everyone’s way of life. But has it impacted how we talk about brands? This analysis looks at trends in brand WOM since the pandemic to reveal the impact of COVID-19 on how Americans talk about brands.

Overall, WOM levels held steady during COVID-19 era, but certain categories gained momentum during the pandemic

Overall, offline WOM levels were largely steady (a small decline of 1%) during the COVID-19 era.* So even with social distancing and lock downs, Americans kept talking offline about products, services and brands as they navigated the many changes in their lives, and with it new brand choices that they needed to make.

This average includes certain categories that gained momentum during this time, including health/healthcare (+10%), financial services (+4%), beauty/personal care (+3%) and media/entertainment (+3%). At the same time, other categories decreased, some dramatically. Among those declining in offline talk are sports (-13%), as well as travel (-7%), home products (-7%), telecom (-7%), auto (-5%) and beverages (-5%).

Read the full AgilityPR/Bulldog Reporter article, here.

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