How to warm up to bi-polar consumer
We all know that consumer behaviour changes and that all consumers have conflicting opinions and needs with regard to retail, writes Nick Butcher, co-founder and creative director of retail specialist Beyond Communications.
By TNN |
New research we at Beyond Communications have carried out has uncovered the “bi polar consumer”, an entirely new animal in the retail jungle, one that many of us might resemble, and one that will give big brands a real headache if they don’t understand his/her motivations and behaviour Bi-polar consumers want: a retail experience to be easy (they are lazy shoppers); fast (they are time poor); new (they tire of things quickly); technologically driven (they love internet, payment systems, etc); and cheap (they are savvy shoppers).
Secondly, from an emotional perspective they also want: personal service,(a friendly face); authentic quality (for example farmers’ markets); luxury (they are part of the self-reward, “I deserve it” generation); old (they appreciate heritage;, ethically comforting ( they want to feel they are “doing their bit”); and “customised for me” (they dislike mass market).
So, we have the blending of opposites here. And just to make them even more hard to target, bi-polar consumers are attracted to differing and alternate options and often attracted by extremes. For example: they want quality food but want it fast; they wear £800 Armani jeans with £2 Primark pumps (Primarni); they shun middle-of-the-road products (preferring low end and high end, but not the middle, i.e. Primark and Armani but not Next). Everybody seems to be happy with these apparent contradictions (eg, good food ambassador Gordon Ramsay caught ordering Burger King).
What does all this consumer schizophrenia mean for brands? Well, to be successful in securing the bi polar as a customer they will have to:
Secondly, from an emotional perspective they also want: personal service,(a friendly face); authentic quality (for example farmers’ markets); luxury (they are part of the self-reward, “I deserve it” generation); old (they appreciate heritage;, ethically comforting ( they want to feel they are “doing their bit”); and “customised for me” (they dislike mass market).
So, we have the blending of opposites here. And just to make them even more hard to target, bi-polar consumers are attracted to differing and alternate options and often attracted by extremes. For example: they want quality food but want it fast; they wear £800 Armani jeans with £2 Primark pumps (Primarni); they shun middle-of-the-road products (preferring low end and high end, but not the middle, i.e. Primark and Armani but not Next). Everybody seems to be happy with these apparent contradictions (eg, good food ambassador Gordon Ramsay caught ordering Burger King).
What does all this consumer schizophrenia mean for brands? Well, to be successful in securing the bi polar as a customer they will have to:
• Offer authenticity (their own, not generic) while embracing technology.
• Offer extremes of luxury and /or real value.
• Get very close to consumers.
• Get green.
• Have “limited editions”.
What does this mean for retail as a whole? Currently, we are entering what we call the “Fourth Protocol” — the fourth stage in the evolution of retailing.
The first stage “A Necessity”, up to the 1950s and 60s, was manufacturer driven. This was when retailing was reactive to customer needs, product lines were being expanded, cash handling was simple, we had end of season sales, there was little instore information and there was little in the way of entertainment. It was about brands you recognise. It was driven by product.
The second stage “A Nicety”, from the 60s through to the 80s, was retailer driven. Retailing became pro-active to customer needs, national chains developed, sales became permanent, mass advertising took over from local, marketing became multi channel, and retailers talked about “fulfillment of desire”. This stage was about brands you want. It was driven by the market and finance.
The third stage “An Event”, from the 90s, until now was consumer driven. Retailers began to anticipate consumers’ needs, multi-channel marketing made its debut, relationship promotions were the vogue with an emphasis on CRM, “edutainment” and “infotainment” were introduced to tickle the consumer’s jaded palate, and above all brands are selling lifestyle.
So what does the “Fourth protocol “ bring us? The fourth stage in retailing will be more than consumer driven — it will be consumer created. Brands and products will be created by the consumer. The ultimate attempt to get close to the consumer will result in brands being the consumer.
This new relationship of brands with their creators/customers is being pioneered in street wear fashion where “creatomers” are becoming multi-millionaires within the space of a few years. For example, Marc Ecko, who started selling T-shirts in the mid 1980s and founded his clothing brand ecko in 1993. In 2004, Marc Ecko Enterprises reported international sales of approximately $1billion.
Another example of “creatomers” is in user-generated content. With the increasing desire for “True New Heritage” (fashionable new brands with perceived real heritage) by 12- to 30-year-olds, brands are turning to the users themselves to create content, designs and even brands. TV companies are funding skaters to use their creative video skills to produce entire TV series. Nike has been offering user-created trainers for some time.
Marketing trends are leaning towards word of mouth and buzz marketing to get in the face of the public. User-generated networks such as MySpace and YouTube are leading onto the retail sector. See Daydreams Magazine launched in February 2007, an entirely UGC product.
At the heart of all this is “authenticity”. We will pay for it, we will demand it, we will even create it ourselves if need be.
While this may be part of the retail future in which we will operate, it is only a background to the psyche of consumers themselves. We have been analysed to death, we have been niche marketed to, we have been grouped, categorised and profiled, but are we understood?
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Humans have an innate ability to be irrational, we can be driven by left brain and right brain, by our hearts and by our minds, and we can do it simultaneously. The Bi-Polar consumer manages successfully to shop while swapping from a hedonist to an eco warrior in a split second.
Marketing (C) Brand Republic
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