COVID-19: India goes online in lockdown

NEW DELHI: India is learning to go online for paying bills, banking, shopping, work and even praying during the covid lockdown and this will be the new normal, according to Gipsi Research.

"This will continue to be the new normal", the report says on consumer behavior by the insights division of Tonic Worldwide.

There has been a surge in online' searches and interests with 40 per cent increase in WhatsApp Usage, 313 per cent increase in interest for online meetings on Google trends, 4 per cent increase in searches related to online banking and a whopping 73% increase in live aarti searches and increase of 3 per cent in online grocery.

'Covid Fear Factor ' has upped the HQ (Hygiene Quotient) and high personal and public hygiene standard is going to be the new normal, the research found. The Gipsi survey reveals that 90% consumers intend to continue with the new hygiene standards adopted.

The HQ quotient was high online with 5,437 per cent increase in searches related to sanitizers, 3,460 per cent increase in searches related to handwash and increase in 'How to wash hand' searches by 643 per cent.

The research reveals that India is not living in the ' present'! "Nostalgia and dreaming of the better future is how the lockdown is being dealt with", it said.

Nostalgia of old tV Shows is overwhelming with 21 per cent jump in viewership number on TV, 13,323 conversations and content around #OldTVshow, 60 times higher viewership for DD' s 9AM to 9PM between 26 th March – 9 th April. "However this is going to be a temporary sentiment", the research said.

There is a 81 per cent surge in searches and 93,133 conversations around 'Throwback' and 69,086 conversations around 'Motivation '.

"If you are a brand talking to the consumer, concerning present situation, then make sure you are being ' useful' or else, better be a part of consumers 'happy memories/nostalgia ' or 'hopeful future/motivational", is the takeaway from the research.

The searches for ' quit smoking ' have shot up 28.50 per cent within a month. Content around 'quit smoking' and the hazardous nature of the habit, with respect to COVID-19 is high, however, data suggests that the consumption hasn 't gone down, the research says.

The research says that work from home (WFH) will be the integral part of work culture even after Lockdown. WFH content is the most humorous in the lockdown ' s cluttered panic content.

There was a 115 per cent jump in WFH searches in March, 110,819 conversations around WFH, Interest for WFH memes increased to 27 per cent.

In addition, the research notes a 220 per cent increase in online meeting apps searches during lockdown, 94,454 conversations around online meeting apps, Gipsi panel suggests that 65 per cent of people tried video/online meetings for the first time.

New members are debuting in the kitchen for cooking in every household. "They will continue to take interest in cooking even post lockdown", the research said.

Wardrobes have gone through a deep scrutiny during lockdown. Women are either wearing " night clothes " or Athleisure Lack of comfortable 'Home wardrobe '' is a new realization and that is very much on the list of things to buy asap, the research found.