The McKinsey’s ConsumerWise research on consumer sentiment and behaviour gives some great insights into consumer habits and trends, so with this year’s research being published, we took the time to analyse the findings from the survey of more than 25,000 consumers across 18 countries and share our thoughts for the PR world…
With a detailed perspective on how consumers spend their time, it’s interesting and saddening – but perhaps not unsurprising – to see that people are spending more time alone and online. It does pose a few questions around the hangover of Covid and multiple lockdowns, and how these have held their grasp on individual behaviours, whilst making us take stock of how people now consume and act on the research, news and promotions from around the world.
In the past
Over the years, there has been a notable decoupling of consumer sentiment and consumer spending. Where, in the past, we thought these needed to be inline and were fairly in sync, to encourage higher levels of spending when trust and positivity were high, it seems times have changed. Now, the gap continues to widen, with consumer sentiment continuing to fall, yet spending is on the up…
- Why?
- How does it impact organisations around the world?
- What does it mean for PR?
- And how much attention should we be paying to how consumers are feeling?
So, how are you today?
As we know, feelings change and moods shift throughout the day and we can be tipped by the smallest of actions. Yet, the general census is down. Spending more time alone, yet online, is a worrying theme – particularly when experiences and technology are being geared towards offering immersive and efficient practices.
Think about your personal life and a recent purchase. Where do you spend the most money? Is it when you’re alone or with others? And where do you spend it? Is it online or in real life?
And most importantly, how did it make you feel?
So as you’re planning the next campaign, consider this adrenaline rush and the role it plays in picking our spirits up, even temporarily. How can we harness that rush for the development of marketing and ROI?
The impact on PR
It has never been more important for brands to be aware of this ongoing change, and we must adapt our approach and marketing strategies in line with this – but tread carefully as consumers are being increasingly savvy and whilst levels of trust are falling, it is likely that one wrong step and diminish all sense of loyalty, however deep-rooted and long-standing.
We now know that brands cannot depend solely on customer confidence – particularly with the rise of disinformation, AI confusion, and a daily battle of political and economic dispute. It’s important, therefore, to dig deeper into the data and get a 360-degree view of the consumer and their usual environment, whilst taking note of the different generations and their nuances.
Trust and the role of social media
The rise of social media has disrupted the world over the last decade and the rise of influencers has followed suit. How we consume news and make purchases has been flipped on its head, however, in recent years, our trust in influencers has peaked and begun its descent on the other side. Consumers are savvy and know that influencers are often paid for access to their audience and/or have been gifted products to promote to their followers, but have we reached a point of saturation, where it is happening too often, therefore questioning the authenticity of the reviews?
Shopping remains omnichannel – where the majority of discovery and research is done online, and more specifically on social media, before a purchase in person (or indeed online). Influencers have never been the most cost-effective tool for promotion – especially when brands are looking to work with macro influencers – but they are often a very powerful and influential force, and therefore are a popular choice! Yet with the decline of influencers on social media being the least trusted source, it does present the question of how we approach promotion and communication in a new era.
Channel selection
Contrary to previous discussions, print or traditional media remains the most trusted source – and therefore a key cog in the marketing machine. Yes, digital media offers trackability, journey management and many more data points, but if people are not taking direction action to what they’re reading, is it a worthy investment?
As an aside – my argument here would be yes, digital media absolutely continues to be a worthy investment, largely due to the education and inspiration themes, whilst helping to build a fuller picture of the market and product/service availability and reviews!
However, in relation to the full overview of marketing, digital and traditional marketing have key very important shares, with social media dropping in. So, as always, a multi-channel approach is best for delivering ROI.
Why? Because marketers haven’t quite caught up with consumers yet and the research is constantly moving, on a daily basis.
If you would like some expert advice in making sense of your current market or audience segmentation, please feel free to get in touch with our friendly team: hello@adpr.co.uk.