PYMNTS issued its first COVID-19 consumer survey on March 23 and has been tracking United States consumers’ changing behaviors and attitudes since, surveying more than 14,000 to date. The Great Reopening: Shifting Preferences edition takes a new approach to their changing behaviors, drawing on a May 23 survey to analyze how their unique concerns are affecting their plans and whether their shifting preferences are likely to shake up their post-pandemic habits. 

We have identified four persona types in our quest to understand consumers’ evolving behavior since the pandemic began. This is what we have learned about their motivations and their post-pandemic plans for shopping, paying and living.

• Social shifters: consumers who have gone online to make retail purchases, but are most likely to return to physical stores and engage in activities outside their homes
• Safety shifters: consumers who have embraced digital channels to buy groceries and other products and are more concerned about contracting the virus than other consumers
• Convenience shifters: consumers who put a premium on speed and convenience and are choosing merchants based on their digital offerings
• Office shifters: consumers who have shifted to working from home and want to go back to being outdoors and working in office environments