As a CX practitioner, the need to know how technology and business trends are changing is paramount to crafting an effective strategy to guide their work.
However, without a strong understanding of what your customers want and need, that strategy will deliver only limited success and today, customers are influenced by a wide range of factors, from their spending power to the ethics of the companies they deal with.
Consumer behavior has changed rapidly and significantly since the start of the decade, but whereas in previous decades the major force for change was the emergence of mobile phones and social media, the 2020s – to date – have been shaped by the Covid-19 pandemic. As McKinsey’s State of the Consumer 2025 report stated, “the era of uncertainty and its impact on the consumer lingers”.
Consumers rethink spending and go offline
McKinsey’s report states consumers remain concerned about rising prices and inflation and that the previous binary relationship between consumer sentiment and consumer spending has weakened. Today, customer spending does not always dip in line with sentiment but customers are hyper-focused on value they will “trade down” on some things in order to splurge on others. In short, the old rules no longer apply.
In addition to rewriting the established value equation, the McKinsey ConsumerWise Sentiment Survey of more than 25,000 consumers in 18 markets found:
- People are spending more time alone and online
- Digital channels win users but not their trust
- Consumers lean local over global
The customer of 2026 is also driven by human connection. While CSG says this is because consumers are overwhelmed by excessive digital messaging from organizations, Forrester’s outlook for 2026 states “people draw strength from connection, community, and consistency, especially during tumultuous times”. As a result, it says, “consumers will crave connection in 2026 … and it’s going to look a little different to 2020”.
In 2026, Forrester says connection-seeking “won’t solely come from traditional sources, as consumers seek connections offline (over online) while making synthetic friends”.
While this will see Gen Zs leaning into the human-centric AI trend through AI companions, and AI glasses finally having their breakthrough moment, the firm also predicts a third of consumers will opt for offline (over online) brand experiences. The evidence? Starbucks plans to phase out its drive-thru and mobile-only stores in 2026, and TikTok is adding a feature that enables college students to meet up in real life.
According to Bolt Insights – an AI-moderated qualitative platform, that analyzes large-scale, real-time conversations with consumers across different markets and demographics – there are several more new and emerging trends that practitioners need to understand and work to, specifically in beauty, FMCG and retail.
On the most pressing behaviour trends, Bolt CEO and co-founder Hakan Yurdakul says price and product function are no longer the top priorities.
“Across beauty, FMCG and retail we’re seeing customers shift from fixed preferences to more fluid, emotionally driven choices. People are switching brands more readily, influenced by ethics, identity and experience, rather than price or function alone.”
In beauty, for example, Yurdakul says personalization and alignment between personal and brand alignment are becoming core drivers, while in FMCG and retail, convenience still matters but consumers are increasingly seeking control, transparency and connection. “Brands that can meet emotional and functional needs simultaneously are standing out,” Yurdakul says.
Bolt draws on an AI-moderated qualitative platform, to run large-scale, real-time conversations with consumers across different markets and demographics. Yurdakul’s observations are based on insights generated by BoltChatAI. This utilizes multi-modal response formats such as text, audio, photo and video combined with meta-analysis, dynamic personas and the integration of external datasets, including surveys or trend reports. Together the data create a layered and representative view of real consumer behavior over time.
What the new behaviors mean for customer journeys
Historically, customer journeys were largely predictable and brands could build loyalty built through habit or familiarity; customers would return for consistently good experiences. However, those days are gone. Yurdakul says: “Customer journeys today are far less linear and more reflexive, often circling back through stages of validation and re-evaluation.”
He adds: “What is striking is the emotional depth behind decisions. People are more conscious of how brands behave, what they stand for and how they treat their customers. That scrutiny is constant and affects every stage of engagement.”
There’s also a wider cultural shift underway. “Shoppers are more values-led, and they want to see those values reflected in what brands do, not just in what they say. Combined with constant exposure to new options, this is reshaping how people evaluate products and experiences,” he adds.
Several factors are driving this shift and, like McKinsey, Yurdakul agrees that the “initial disruptor” was the Covid-19 pandemic. Since then, however, “bigger influences” such as digital maturity, social influence and the rise of personal data awareness have taken over.
“Customers understand how algorithms work and are more aware of how their preferences are shaped and used,” he says.
In the eyes of some, some customers are now actively “anti-algorithm”. In its 2026 global consumer predictions, market research firm Mintel said consumers “must navigate the tension between the convenience algorithms provide and the protection, empowerment, and self-expression they risk losing”.
Understanding the customer of 2026 to drive stronger loyalty
Customer behaviors may be changing, but the laws of CX are not: practitioners must still listen and respond to what’s happening in the marketplace in order to craft experiences that will keep their customers returning.
Connection
As customers crave more meaningful connections – both with and beyond AI – there’s a new opportunity to build lasting relationships. Whether this is through a more human-led customer experience (more on this below), or the delivery of experiences that are primarily driven by emotional value, rather than sales, more and more brands are jumping on this band wagon. For example, in the UK, John Lewis trialed a VIP lounge for loyalty card holders in its flagship London store in December 2025.
Brand marketer Ash Tailor says: “Experiences are now everywhere and that's from the little coffee shop to the major Starbucks, all the way through to theme parks, retail stores, hotels, restaurants, and so on.
“Everyone is looking to differentiate, everyone is looking to make a difference and it's above and beyond a scientific formula of a product,” he adds.
Values
As outlined, the demand for company values that consumers can align with is also paramount.
For our 2025 research into the Global State of CX, we asked the CX practitioners in our network to tell us about the consumer behaviors shaping their work. When presented with a list of more than 20 behaviors, two sustainability related responses made the top 10 most selected responses: awareness of ethical working conditions and demand for sustainable/ethical products and brands.
While the likes of Patagonia and Fairphone built their empires on environmental and socially responsible business practices, new regulations mean all organizations need to be more transparent about how ethical and sustainable their products are. Fabricating this will only end in reputational damage.
Emotional intelligence
Contrary to what people may think, the prevalence of AI in CX at present has become a catalyst for emotionally intelligent CX, rather than a driver of less personal or “less human” experiences.
Joshua Curtis, customer care center manager for Australia’s Super Retail Group says this is because customers expect to feel understood, not just served quickly. “As automation and AI take on routine tasks, the interactions that reach a human are often more emotionally charged and complex,” he says.
According to Curtis, this means AI must recognize tone, sentiment and intent. “The organizations that blend emotionally intelligent people with emotionally aware AI will deliver the most authentic, intuitive and memorable experiences,” he says.
Claire Cunningham, founder of The Customer Connexion and senior manager of the Voice of Customer program for Coles says: “It is more important than ever that we are prioritizing emotional intelligence when designing, managing, and delivering the best customer experiences.
“As more journeys and experiences move to digital and migrate online, human touch points are quickly becoming one of the scarcest parts of the customer journey so it’s important to make it count. One bad interaction could be the only one a customer has with your organization thus cementing a negative perception for life,” she adds.
Human-first CX
While the corporate world rushes to implement digital-first and now AI-first customer journeys, it’s imperative to remember that customers are looking for human-first.
In 2024, we heard how Klarna was preparing for its IPO by shifting to a leaner operating model that would replace large numbers of human agents with AI and automation. At the time, Klarna’s chatbot made headlines around the world for being able to perform the work of 700 human employees and co-founder and CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski said he hadn’t hired a new human worker in a year. Less than a year after that statement, Klarna was re-hiring human workers after it was forced to put engineers in customer-facing roles to deal with the customer queries its AI was not equipped to manage.
Siemiatkowski later vowed Klarna would become “the best at offering a human to speak to!!!”
Consent
Ashlea Atigolo, co-founder of INATIGO and managing partner at Consult Venture Partners, says that customer consent is the next frontier of customer trust. Driven by the growing use of data and generative and agentic AI, Atigolo says strategies need to pair automation with accountability, “showing customers when AI is active and how their data are used”.
“Consent will evolve from a legal checkbox to a live part of the experience, shaping how people choose to engage.
“Experience, memory, and orchestration will help brands act with consistency, empathy, and transparency across every touchpoint. The organizations that design for both intelligence, empathy, and trust will define the CX standard for 2026,” she explains.
Maximizing customer retention
In response to the shifts in customer behavior, Yurdakul says CX practitioners must shift – to a mindset of “continuous learning”.
“From identifying subtle shifts in sentiment to refining how segments are tracked over time, they need to inform decisions across marketing, product and CX teams,” he says.
“Retention today is about responsiveness. If a customer segment begins to show signs of disconnection or doubt, brands need to adapt quickly, not in the next campaign cycle. The brands that build loyalty now are those that listen with intent and act with clarity,” he adds.