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Marketing

Consumer Behavior: What Changes In 2024, And How To Adapt Your Marketing Strategy

MM
Matt Montenegro Founder & CEO
12/04/2023 6 min
TL;DR

Consumer behavior heading into 2026 is shaped by lingering caution: shoppers still buy, but every purchase must earn its place. Numerator found 37% of U.S. consumers named rising prices as their primary concern by late 2025.

  • Why it matters: NIQ says lingering caution is already impacting spending as volatility stays baked into shopper psychology.
  • By the numbers: NIQ finds 30% of global consumers feel better off year over year, and 32.8% worse off.
  • The big picture: Intentional spending rewards trust, personalization, convenience, and tangible value alignment.
  • Case in point: Nearly 1 in 5 shoppers changed habits to avoid certain retailers.
  • The bottom line: Adapt offers, proof, and channel experience to cautious, values-aware buyers.

When we talk about behaviors, we are talking about something changeable, that undergoes influences and does not always remain the same, right?!  And when we talk specifically about consumer behavior, the picture could be no different. 

With that in mind, it is important for us to constantly track these behavior variations, to make sure we are up to date with how our customers are buying things, mostly to make sure we (and our Marketing Strategies) continue meeting their needs. 

The State of Consumer Trends, a study conducted by Hubspot Blog Research, has discovered the latest consumer trends, preferences, and behaviors that have shifted from May 2022 until now. And to better understand the whole scenario of changes, across all generations, they surveyed over 1,000 individuals across the U.S., including Gen Z (18-24), Millennials (25-34), Gen X (35-54), and Baby Boomers (55+). 

As you can imagine, the survey revealed some great insights to be considered while planning the marketing strategy for 2025, and we can’t wait to share the main ones here in this article. 

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What are the biggest consumer behavior changes? 

1. Mobile experiences are a “must-have” for every business 

A quick question, just out of curiosity: what are you reading this text on? If you are reading it on your phone or any other mobile device, you are not alone. 

According to Hubspot’s study, 56% of those surveyed use mobile phones more than any other device to perform online research. And this is not a new behavior among consumers – in 2021, people spent a third of their waking hours on their phones, and this represents an increase of 30% in usage since 2019. 

You probably think Gen Z leads the number in this mobile survey, right?! But, surprisingly, The State of Consumer Trends found out that Millenials are the most likely generation to use their mobile – at 74%. But, in terms of using it to buy stuff online, Gen Z is still the Golden Audience – we’ll talk more about this pretty soon, stay tuned! 

As you could see, mobile is here to stay, and this is a fact. If you and your company still don’t think about the mobile experience you are providing to your customers, can we agree it’s past the time to start looking at it? There are plenty of mobile Marketing tactics and different content formats you can explore to see which one is more aligned with your audience. To take the first step, you can start taking a look at your website, for example, to make sure it is mobile-friendly. 

2. Social shopping is getting more popular among consumers 

Ok, at this point in the article we already know that people are choosing mobile devices as the preferred platform to buy things online. But, where are they buying it? According to Hubspot Blog Research, the answer is social media apps – Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, and Tiktok, more specifically. 

A different study related to Social Media Trends 2023, performed by Hootsuite, also supports this affirmation: people are getting comfortable using social media platforms, and the numbers are increasing. According to Social Media Trends 2023, more than half of Millennials and Gen Z have social media influences when shopping online, and Gen Z already uses TikTok more than Google to search for things. 

The in-app experience is the reason behind tremendous growth: it’s very mobile-friendly, and has easy-to-use interfaces, granting confidence to those who use it. But, not everything is all roses in social media land – poor customer experiences can make social commerce unpopular. 

To be honest, the real wild card here is convenience. Social shopping cuts down steps, taps right into impulse, and sort of blends entertainment with actual purchase decisions. You see something, decide you want it, and two minutes later you’re tracking shipping in your DMs. Not to mention, social platforms have started testing new payment solutions that make the jump from browsing to checkout smoother than ever—Instagram and TikTok in particular have been going hard on this front all through 2025.

This whole ecosystem, though, isn’t totally seamless for every shopper. There’s a weird mix of trust and skepticism at play: some users are still hesitant to trust platform-native shops, remembering the occasional scam or shipping fail. Yet, as more legit brands, even local stores, join in and offer support or returns directly through chat, some of that uncertainty falls away. You can feel the shift, especially among those who’ve grown up glued to their phones or just despise traditional e-commerce forms.

To navigate through this pass, you need to make sure to provide a great experience and this includes not just the in-app experience itself, but also the customer support you provide after and during sales, and the harmony between your sales channels – to guarantee a standardized customer experience wherever your customer is buying from. 

Besides in-app purchases, another great insight from The State of Consumer Trends is about community. Building online communities has shown to be a strong and consistent strategy to engage with customers and social audiences. According to the study, 19% of social media users surveyed joined an online community, and we can already see this being put into practice in the market – big players such as WhatsApp, for example, are investing in community feature releases lately, confirming that Communities can be an ally in Marketing strategies. 

Speaking of it, communities and creators are becoming a thing, and worth taking a look at moving forward. 

3. Small businesses are gaining more supporters than ever 

The later effects of the pandemic may be showing. One of the biggest changes the data from Hubspot’s study has shown is related to small business supporters. In May 2022, up to 8% of the consumers had chosen a product based on it being made by small businesses. This year, the number has grown to 42%. 

This is a huge achievement for small businesses, and their chance to start investing in their online presence. If you have a small business, it is important to have in mind one thing: consumers already want to buy from you, so it’s important to make sure that they will easily find you, and make sure to create a seamless experience for them. 

Having a marketing strategy is not only for the biggest companies – small businesses can take advantage of it, too. For example, Local SEO can help consumers to find what they need on Google Search, since this strategy helps to highlight businesses in local searches. 

4. Consumers are shopping more consciously 

Last, but far from least, consumers are supporting businesses with corporate responsibility – which may be one of the reasons for supporting small businesses, as well. Since it’s easier to make sure their production is sustainable, and the owners have social responsibilities to the community that surrounds them. 

So, before choosing a company to buy from, consumers are increasingly in the habit of checking their political stance on issues they care about. For example, sustainability, racial justice, climate change initiatives, and LGBTQ+ rights. 

This means representation is now one of the decisive factors during the buyer journey – people what to buy from companies that represent them, investing and caring about causes that matter to them. 

Moving forward, brands need to pay attention to how they promote diversity, and inclusion and publicly express their support for social causes. And this needs to be genuine. Remember when we spoke about communities and growing social media engagement?

Consumers, more than ever, are following brands on the internet, mostly the ones they are related to. They will know if the brand truly invests and believes in specific causes, or if it is just a mask to gain some followers – in this case, things can get a little ugly.

Frequently Asked Questions

How should marketers adapt when consumer spending turns cautious?

NIQ's Consumer Outlook guide for 2026 says continued volatility has deeply ingrained lingering caution into consumer psychology, which is impacting spending. Against that backdrop, 30% of global consumers say they are in a better financial position than a year earlier, while 32.8% say their position has worsened. Adapt by tightening proof, pricing clarity, and value alignment for buyers who still spend carefully.

What do shoppers expect beyond price in 2026?

NIQ says spending is intentional: every purchase has to earn its place. Shoppers reward retailers and brands that deliver trust, personalization, and convenience. ESG and sustainability are table stakes; today's consumer wants tangible benefits that simplify their life and align with their values. One concrete example is clearer price-to-value proof when Numerator finds 37% of U.S. consumers name rising prices as their primary concern.

How should brands respond when shoppers avoid retailers on principle?

Numerator reports that nearly 1 in 5 consumers changed shopping habits to actively avoid certain retailers. Among NIQ respondents who feel worse off, 73% attribute the decline to increased costs of living, with economic slowdown and job insecurity also named. Treat avoidance as a values-and-pressure signal, then prove tangible value in offers and experience rather than arguing shoppers back.

Where do mobile and social commerce fit this caution cycle?

NIQ calls seamless commerce the next frontier, with social commerce, quick commerce, and retail media networks converging into one ecosystem. Consumers expect frictionless, personalized, and instant shopping pathways across those surfaces. Keep your mobile and social plans inside that social, quick-commerce, and retail media network pathway when you adapt for cautious buyers.

MM Matt Montenegro

Matt Montenegro

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