By Kathy Sheehan
In unveiling market research online, a critical component for businesses is to have an intimate knowledge of the consumer-both on- and offline. It is time to review, reassess and understand how consumers are going to re-ascend as we move forward in 2010 and the next decade. So what can we expect from consumers in the wake of the recession?
We start off by exploring the concept of “The New Normal”. Many marketers are using this term to describe the post-recession consumer mindset. However, we at GfK Roper Consulting don’t necessarily agree that we are operating in a “New Normal”, for a few reasons. Proponents of the New Normal speak to the idea of how everything has changed and consumers’ behaviors are forever altered. While, certainly, elements of this are true, it is an over-simplification of a much more complex and nuanced situation. Indeed, in some categories and with some consumer segments we see attitudinal or behavioral shifts that appear to be sustained, but in other areas, we see consumers reverting back to past habits. And, perhaps more importantly, the “new normal” is by no means a global construct. Yes, we have experienced a global economic crisis of unprecedented proportions, and it has been the first recession that has been truly global. Yet, when we drill down a bit deeper, we see that really the global economic crisis has been a series of local economic crises – each market being impacted and reacting in slightly different ways.
At GfK Roper Consulting, we developed the first Consumer Recession Index in 2009, which combined global consumers’ concerns, distresses and coping strategies into one metric that enabled us to take a global view of how consumers were responding across the globe. We have since updated the Consumer Recession Index with the release of GfK Roper Reports® Worldwide 2010, and, once again, this proves to be a very helpful, and actionable, tool for marketers to understand where their market sits on a spectrum across the globe, what the best ways to communicate with individuals in those markets are, and what themes will most resonate.
While there is a great deal of variation across the globe in terms of how consumers have reacted to the economic crisis, we do see some common trends in terms of market opportunities among global consumers. Four major themes have emerged from the GfK Roper Reports Worldwide data; the “Self Help Revolution”, “The Home Revolution”, “Security and Trust as Currency” and “Hidden Doors”.
The “Self Help Revolution”
This is all about people relying upon themselves and taking charge. We see this in the fact that Self-direction values are set to grow over the coming years, and there has been a rise in Personal Effort Values – Back to Working for What You Want. Market manifestation of this is seen related to the Rise in Entrepreneurial Spirit.
“The Home Revolution”
One reaction to the economy is the turning inward to the home. People spend less time outside of the home with 64% saying “staying in can be just as fun as going out”. What are the opportunities for your business to help bring out-of home activities in?
“Security and Trust as Currency”
Particularly in developed markets, security is increasingly valued, and this is within an environment where consumer skepticism is high. Increasing consumers have a lot of concerns, often inflamed by the media, such as health & safety, information security and erosion of trust. How do you react to this trust deficit?
“Hidden Doors”
There have been a lot of examples of success and bright spots in a challenging economic environment. These “hidden doors” may point to new opportunities for your business. One such hidden door is the fact that this recession has been a green stimulus. There will be 1,570 new green products launched this year, triple the number launched in 2008, which saw double the number launched in 2007. In terms of convergence, we are now seeing that global consumers are increasingly “platform agnostic”– Internet penetration exceeds PC usage with more people worldwide accessing the internet via mobile devices. It is not necessarily the media, but the message!
In thinking about the future of consumers and where they are going, it is important to keep in mind the trends that are localized, as well as those that are more universal. GfK Roper Reports Worldwide helps our clients identify these trends and develop actionable insights to move their businesses forward into the next decade.
