Today’s Consumer Seeks Enduring Value(s)
These days “the next big thing” apparently matters a lot less to consumers, and this cultural shift should certainly influence the way brands develop products and marketing strategies for the near future. Consider what Nancy Koehn writes in a Harvard Business Review article entitled “American Consumption and the New Normal:”
So despite the immediacy of the internet, the “new normal” actually means that consumers are abandoning the “next new thing” mentality that powered so much spending for the past 20 years, in favor of more enduring priorities. We are using tools at our disposal to save more but also to discern which companies and brands are worthy of our loyalty, and establishing notions of value distinct from those that prevailed for the past decade. After losing so much ground so quickly to the forces of global capital markets, households are looking to “take back the night” of their own financial futures.
The entire article is worth the read. However, what this short passage alone reminded me is that what you see isn’t always what you get. Lots of people seemingly fanatically engaged with their smart phones and social networks in that 24/7 “always on” way should not be discounted as seeking superficial and quick solutions. Instead, at least some of those folks are using their “always on” ways to dig further into the truth above, behind and around brands like yours. This includes, in other words, your corporate social responsibility – and now, do they ever, have the tools for digging.
As Koehn put it in her closing paragraph (her emphasis included):
This means that households will research not only the price and attributes of product or service, but also in many cases the larger story behind it—where did the offering come from, what kind of company created it, how their are employees treated.
In 2010 and beyond, be very aware: A consumer’s pursuit of enduring value(s) will be no passing fancy.
