There’s a lot of pent up demand after the past year we’ve endured. There is a healthy appetite for things to get back to normal as the percentage of the population fully vaccinated rises.
An examination of social media accounts analyzed by artificial intelligence last March, as people were in the early stages of lockdowns and not knowing how long it would last, found that the number one thing people most looked forward to doing again was being pampered. Getting a haircut, nails done, and nice pedi, touch up the roots. The second most popular item they were craving was eating in restaurants.
Those things are back, but there is still a healthy dose of anxiety for many about when they will feel safe to return to previous habits. One in three Americans say they are still very concerned about health risks.
Marketing specialist Lisa Miller has been studying the trends, and surveyed a bunch of people asking who will definitely continue wearing a mask after restrictions are lifted:
--71% Fly on a plane
--62% Go shopping at a retailer, not online
--62% Go to the movies
--57% Getting your hair done
--57% Attend a live concert or music festival
--55% Going to church
--47% Dining at a restaurant
She says the demo most chomping at the bit might not be who you would expect. “The demographic group that is really on the cusp of bursting back out there is actually dads,” she laughs. The demo most desirous of shopping: their daughters. What do they want to buy? Purses and clothes.
Are we normal yet?
photo: Getty Images