If you think customer expectations were sky-high before, welcome to 2025— the freshest chapter of the saga titled Consumer Behaviour Trends. Let’s read it together!
We all remember those seismic changes in consumer behaviour that rocked the world in 2020 amid the COVID-19 outbreak, with a massive jump to e-commerce and e-commerce shopping. But it’s been five years since. It’s like an eternity in the modern breakneck-speed era. And you’ll be so much surprised to discover how customers behave and what they expect from brands at the present moment.
In this blog, we reveal the most recent plot twists, specifically the latest trends in consumer behaviour. After that, learn how to write (or even rewrite!) your marketing and sales playbooks in response to them.
5 Most Impactful Shifts in Today’s Consumer Behaviour
Let’s audit the biggest transformations driving the future of shopping, mostly online.
Higher Demands for Personalization
Can they be any higher?
That’s what you might be thinking, especially if you’ve already thrown your one-size-fits-all approach into the digital dustbin and replaced it with a more personalized one. What now?!
Although brands have sharpened their focus on a personalized customer experience over the past years, most people (71%) don’t notice any improvement and anticipate more visible effort.
Today’s consumers expect companies to go the extra mile, far beyond personalization in its traditional form. They want you to know practically everything about them: their lifestyle, preferences in food and clothes, and even their pet’s birthday. Consider this: 19% of consumers said, “I want companies to know my mood and respond accordingly.”
Source: Verint.com
Socially Responsible Consumerism
Consumers are becoming more socially responsible while prioritizing the following:
- Ecological consciousness
- Animal protection (high interest in cruelty-free companies)
- Local and small business support (purchasing more from local, small, or family-owned businesses)
- Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)
- Transparency and accountability
Just look at these stats regarding environmental friendliness: 85% of consumers have already gone “greener” (eco-friendlier) in their shopping behaviours. At the same time, one-third (34%) are willing to pay more for sustainable products or services.
The “I” Trend: Innovation and Interactivity
It’s time to take your hats off to the internet generation (iGeneration) or Gen Z consumers, coming on stage (nearly one-fourth of the population!) and driving an innovative change in the future of online shopping.
Thanks to their inborn digital “DNA,” Generation Z literally asks for more interactive shopping experiences and dictates the rules for innovative tech advancement. However, this demand isn’t solely immanent to Gen Z-ers. Frictionless payment, voice assistance, and VR/AR technologies are among the most wanted e-commerce innovations across all generations.
Source: Statista.com
A Switch to Social Commerce
Social media have drastically transformed consumer behaviours on the web. They have become more accelerated, impulsive, and “socially grounded.” Consumers don’t simply resort to socials for purchasing advice—they buy there, never leaving those networks and lighting the fuse for social commerce.
Globally, the social commerce market is predicted to reach $1 trillion in 2028 from $571 billion in 2023. By revenue, the most profitable social platforms as of 2024 were as follows:
- Douyin
- Little Red Book
- TikTok
- YouTube
Source: Statista.com
High Sensitivity to Prices and Trust Issues Overall
What if we told you that 68% of consumers feel taken advantage of when companies use dynamic pricing strategies?
Consumers are highly sensitive to price changes in light of present-day economic instability. However, it greatly depends on customer loyalty. Loyal customers are more insensitive to costs than non-loyal ones.
Yet, both groups struggle with trusting even the brands they deal with. Consumer trust has actually dropped to one of its lowest levels since 2016. It concerns misleading ads, data privacy, and other aspects.
Source: Qualtrics.com
How to Keep Up with Consumer Behaviour Trends in 2025 and Beyond
Follow this guide to synchronize with your customers’ hearts and minds today and in the future.
Hyper-Personalize with Artificial Intelligence (AI)
When AI meets real-time data analytics, it is the golden moment for brands to tap into hyper-personalization.
“The future of e-commerce shopping will be powered by hyper-personalization with AI. And every online business should consider investing in it, whether these are AI tools for individual product recommendations or AI chatbots and voice assistants for guided customer journeys,” claims Gary Hemming, Owner & Finance Director at ABC Finance.
In fact, AI hyper-personalization has already been widely implemented in the banking sector.
For example:
Bank of America transformed mobile banking with Erica, a virtual AI assistant. Erica analyzes clients’ data in real time, gives advice on their finances, and reveals spending insights based on their financial activity.
Source: bankofamerica.com
You can also deliver hyper-personalized customer experiences via other channels, from targeted programmatic advertising on social media to email personalization.
Localize Your Content
In the words of Kathryn MacDonell, CEO at Trilby Misso Lawyers, if you’re a local business, your content needs, sort of, a “zip code”—it should be localized. “Your local audience expects you to speak their unique language and understand them culturally. Not to mention the importance of local voice-activated search in the future of consumer behavior. The more localized—the higher your search engine ranks.”
For Kathryn MacDonell, the topmost aspects of effective content localization are as follows:
- Website translation (for international targeting)
- Cultural sensitivity in texts and visuals
- Adaptation to local regulations (GDPR in Europe or PIPEDA in Canada)
- Tone of voice (professional or casual)
- Local SEO with keyword optimization strategies
For example:
While operating in Queensland, Trilby Misso Lawyers localize website content with keywords, such as “Queensland law firms” or “truck accident lawyer QLD,” for law firm SEO.
Or here’s another example of how Dr. Philip Solomon does that for his plastic surgery clinic in Toronto.
Source: Solomonfacialplastic.com
Move Toward Sustainability One Step at a Time
When asked about supporting a sustainable shopping choice as one of the consumer behaviour trends for 2025 and beyond, Brooke Webber, Head of Marketing at Ninja Patches, put it bluntly, “Let’s get realistic—you can’t reduce your carbon emissions down to zero in a single finger flick. Neither can you proclaim your company 100% eco without actionable, distinct steps. That would be greenwashing. Instead, move toward sustainability slowly but steadily, step by step, and demonstrate your gradual progress to your customers.”
Brooke Webber suggests several practical steps to help you meet your customers’ expectations for sustainability:
- Eco-friendly product collection
- Recyclable/biodegradable/reusable packaging
- Digital substitutes for paper (e-receipts or e-contracts)
- Partnerships with “greener” suppliers
- Sustainable content strategy with regular digital decluttering and removing outdated posts
- Carbon-free shipping
- Using renewables (solar or wind energy)
For example:
As of this year, the sustainability mission at Ninja Patches is carbon-neutral shipping on all orders.
Source: Screenshot by User
Prioritize Authentic Reviews over Paid Influencer Partnerships
Since the modern consumer is more trust-sensitive and alert to fraudulent activities and scams, other buyers’ voices have never been more significant for them.
Here, Rodger Desai, CEO of Prove, also warns brands about the so-called “de-influencer wave,” another emerging trend in consumer behaviour. He notes, “Collaborations with paid influencers are experiencing a rollback because today’s customers prefer to see more authentic social proof from brands. That’s why if you aim to build more trustful customer relationships, I’d recommend sharing more case studies, testimonials, or reviews from real clients, not sponsored ones.”
For example:
Below is a video testimonial from Prove Identity’s client on YouTube.
Source: YouTube.com
Note: Consumers find user-generated content (UGC) like reviews roughly ten times more impactful than influencer posts for their purchasing decisions.
Yet, Roger Desai adds, “If you do plan to partner with influencers, let them authentically review your product/service.”
For example:
Bang & Olufsen collaborated with a micro-influencer who unboxed and tested their high-end headphones.
Source: TikTok.com
Let Consumers Interact and Immerse Deeper via AR/VR
Of course, you shouldn’t discard traditionally interactive elements in content marketing.
Traditional Interactivity Methods
- On-click animations
- Spinning wheels
- Scratch cards
- Mini-games
- Social media contests
- Polls or quizzes
They’ll help you engage customers on any marketing channel, whether an e-commerce store, email, or social platform.
For example:
Look at Giddy Yoyo launching a giveaway to boost Instagram engagement (follows, likes, and comments) and newsletter sign-ups.
Source: Instagram.com
Immersive Interactivity Methods—AR or VR
Meanwhile, Jerry Han, CMO at PrizeRebel, draws your attention to cutting-edge technologies like augmented and virtual realities: AR and VR. “Think about AR scavenger hunts for better customer engagement and immersion in the future of shopping. If you recall the popularity of Pokémon Go, your customers may likewise zealously hunt for your hidden products all around the city, especially if they are exclusively made for the game. Alternatively, offer augmented or virtual product demos, try-ons, or other AR/VR interactions.”
For example:
BMW, a global giant in the automotive industry, tapped into VR to immerse customers in an innovative driving experience with BMW M Mixed Reality.
Source: YouTube.com
Sell Live on Social Media
Why bother about live sales on socials?
The reason is straightforward. Consumers want more live-stream shopping events. In fact, 61% of those aged <55 are interested in a live shopping experience on social media due to its interactivity and convenience. By the way, fashion is the leading product category.
Source: Mckinsey.com
Here are several social channels with live-shopping features:
- Instagram Live Shopping
- TikTok Shop Live
- Facebook Live Shopping
- Douyin Live Shopping
- YouTube Live Shopping
But before hitting the “Go Live” button, grab the following expert strategy from Adam Young, CEO and Founder of Event Tickets Center. “Roll out the three stages for higher engagement and more sales during live-shopping events. The pre-stream stage is for a 360° event promo campaign, from a website banner to a newsletter. During a live stream, offer ‘only-here-and-only-now’ deals. At the post-event stage, retarget those who engaged but didn’t buy.”
Be More Transparent about Your Prices
Now, let’s improve your brand’s credibility and rebuild customer trust with price transparency.
Note: 70% of people are more likely to become loyal to brands with transparent pricing systems. On the contrary, no consumer would be happy to discover secret “processing” fees popping out unexpectedly and feel like you’ve tricked them into spending more money.
So, strive for openness and honesty: explain where your price tags come from. For instance, see how Everlane breaks down the price tag for each product with the exact costs of materials, hardware, labour, etc.
Source: Everlane.com
Jeffrey Zhou, CEO and Founder of Fig Loans, also recommends addressing customer concerns before they actually arrive. “For that,” he says, “it would be great to add a pricing FAQ section to your e-commerce website. Try to answer all the possible price-related questions that bother your customers. These might be hidden fees, taxes, shipping costs, discounts, and so on.”
For example:
Take a glimpse of this “Pricing FAQ” page at LavishDog with questions like, “What extra fees can I expect?”
Source: Lavishdog.com
Ready for the Future of Consumer Behaviour?
In short, the future of sales belongs to those companies that make it more authentic, transparent, personalized (and localized!), sustainable, and interactive for their customers.
So, what’s your plan?
Don’t worry if you don’t have one just yet—TechWyse is here to help you work out the best strategy. Are you in? Call 866-208-3095 or contact us here!
