Ecommerce vs Entertainment – For Primetime

Ecommerce vs Entertainment – For Primetime

As 2020 and the first half of 2021 saw countries around the world move in and out of lockdowns under the Coronavirus pandemic, the acceleration of ecommerce vs entertainment for primetime is hardly surprising. Even more interesting during this time has been how shopping online has, for many, become their entertainment of choice. According to the 2021 IAB Real Living Study, 2021 saw online shopping move into a primetime slot, drawing consumers’ attention. Illuminating this pandemic-era hobby, 56% of those surveyed reported that they find it an enjoyable experience, and 3 in 5 stated that it is something they actively look forward to doing again.

The study delved further to examine the times of day online shopping peaks, finding that the pattern for grocery and online retail is fairly similar, although retail builds from late afternoon onwards, whereas groceries have a sharper peak at 9pm. This 9pm peak for online shopping means it becomes a direct competitor to other forms of evening entertainment, with this also the highest viewing time for television and one of the most active times for viewers of short-form video and social media sites.

Consumer Fascination as a Marketing Asset – While this snapshot of ecommerce as entertainment is intriguing in and of itself — the fascination at the heart of it is what’s most valuable to marketers. As a brand, how do you capitalise upon this dynamic, with ecommerce as the leading source of entertainment? How can this inform your channel mix, your approach to merchandising and content, your creative, and even your optimisation tactics? What we must keep in mind is that digital marketing and the various channels it encompasses should not be considered standalone, as the consumer purchase funnel is not linear. 

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