Thanks to the digitalization of writing and the rise of Internet searches and interactions, words have become very valuable inputs for statistical models and algorithms that allow inferring and reaching very precise conclusions about consumer behavior, among other uses.
Today, language has become the subject of big data analysis. Since the links used by Google are composed of words and the searches performed on that page are also composed of words, the study of text as data is becoming increasingly important.
In Costa Rica, a good part of the population is significantly indebted, since it is estimated that two out of every five consumers dedicate 38% or more of their monthly income to debt repayment.
The Office of the Financial Consumer (OFC) conducted during November 2020, the first survey of "Indebtedness of Costa Rican households", for which 1,200 people from all over the country, aged between 18 and 65 years old, were interviewed.
Brands offering a deeper and more emotional added value, delivering to their customers with immediacy and executing business strategies from a more local perspective are the most likely to succeed in this new commercial reality.
The outbreak of covid-19 and the mobility restrictions imposed by this pandemic significantly changed consumer behavior and perceptions of brands.
Regarding what is expected economically for 2021, in Nicaragua, El Salvador, Panama and Honduras there is more optimism among consumers, while in Guatemala and Costa Rica the percentage of people who believe that the situation will improve this year is lower.
According to the survey conducted by Kantar to measure the perception of households in Central America, at regional level 12% of consumers consulted believe that the economic situation in their country will improve during 2021, 23% expect it to be the same and 65% predict that it will be worse.
In this context of changing behaviors and new commercial realities, consumers are expected to increase their preference for open spaces, green areas, contactless payment systems, and stores where there are no queues.
The covid-19 outbreak caused far-reaching changes in the way people behave. These changes brought about a new business normal, a reality to which companies have had to adapt rapidly.
Although the restrictions imposed by the pandemic have been relaxed, consumers continue to show signs of mistrust in the current situation, behavior that could put pressure downward on spending on products and services considered to be discretionary.
In 2020, when the effects of the pandemic that caused the spread of covid-19 began to become evident, it was anticipated that consumer habits would change, since in a complicated economic scenario full of uncertainty, people would be more careful when spending.
Designing or adapting properties to be of mixed use, offering more entertainment options and mixing in an adequate way the type of tenants to whom the premises will be rented, are strategies that could give a new boost to shopping centers.
The pandemic drove consumers away from shopping centers, as government home quarantines in the region, the rise of e-commerce, and bans on people from visiting these facilities significantly affected mall operations.
During the last months of 2020 in the countries of Central America, the volume of searches and conversations on the Internet associated with anti-viruses decreased, a decrease that can be explained by the behavior of all the markets in the region.
Through a system that monitors in real time changes in consumer interests and preferences in Central American countries, developed by CentralAmericaData, it is possible to project short and long term demand trends for the different products, sectors and markets operating in the region.
In the new business reality, most Central American consumers have borrowed more than usual, spent less on snacks and personal care items, and migrated to cheaper brands than they used to before the pandemic.
Central America faced a severe economic crisis during 2020, which stemmed from the global covid-19 outbreak. The restrictions imposed by governments resulted in the rise of a new commercial reality, in which people changed their consumption patterns.
The use of unique codes that can be scanned with a mobile device, so that consumers know all the product information and companies interact with their customers, are part of the innovations that some packages already have.
Currently, consumer interest in products that are manufactured with environmental and social responsibility has grown. More and more customers want to have more details about the production processes and the origin of the goods.
In this context of pandemic and mobility restrictions, the number of Internet searches associated with scooters and mopeds increased significantly in most Central American markets.
Through a system that monitors in real time changes in consumer interests and preferences in Central American countries, developed by CentralAmericaData, it is possible to project short and long term demand trends for the different products, sectors and markets operating in the region.
Because more than half of consumers born between 1996 and 2012, known as "Generation Z" or "Centennials", are immune to traditional advertising and television, brands and companies should focus on communicating with this group through digital channels, such as social networks and influencers.
Positioning a brand, product or service is currently a challenge for advertising agencies and companies, as they must overcome the challenge of communicating effectively with younger consumers.
In the context of changing purchasing patterns, local consumer spending on clothing and shoes decreased by 44% and the budget allocated to telephone and Internet services increased by 52% compared to pre-pandemic levels.
The "2020 Current Events Survey", developed by the University of Costa Rica, collected information on the change in consumption patterns that arose from the coronavirus outbreak.
Between July and October 2020, the number of people in Guatemala who were exploring online options for buying party supplies increased 19%, while the number of Costa Rican consumers seeking to hire a social event planning service fell 35%.
CentralAmericaData's interactive platform, Consumer Insights, monitors in real time changes in consumer habits in all markets in the region and in other Latin American countries, with fundamental information to understand their behavior, new trends and anticipate eventual changes in their purchasing patterns.
World Gym, which in El Salvador is located in Antiguo Cuscatlan, has a potential market of 266,000 consumers 15 minutes away by car, of which 13% are interested in yoga and 12% in weight training.
Using the Geomarketing solutions that we have developed for our clients, CentralAmericaData's Trade Intelligence team analyzed the environment of some of the main locations of the fitness centers, which operate in the countries of Central America. Below is an extract of the study's findings.