Buyer’s remorse: why anti-brand values are killing consumerism by David Wilson
Shoppers are now after “basic needs not bling”.
A kicked-over trolley in a puddle of blood: that is the image stamped on the front of the new marketing guide Buyer’s remorse: why anti-brand values are killing consumerism. The guide’s thrust is simple - kiss the shop-till-you-drop age of conspicuous consumption goodbye.
Greet the dawn of the “post-consumer” - a virtuous entity “more conscious of community rather than status, value instead of indulgence, and basic needs not bling,” writes the guide’s trendspotter author Alan Fairnington (www.mext.com.au). In Fairnington’s view, in response to the rise of ethical consumption, firms can and must raise their horizons: adapt or die - of shame, perhaps.
Open consumption has become embarrassing, according to analyst Scott Goodson in a July 2009 Business Week confession that he shops online when nobody is watching. Underlining Goodson’s misgivings, a PricewaterhouseCoopers report released in March this year stated that “rampant and excessive consumption” is waning.
During the recovery, a business’ success will depend on recognising that shoppers remain in recession mode, the report said. Quelling impulse, shoppers will spend with deliberation and purpose, it added.
According to Fairnington, the purposeful shopper will shun designer goods because of their cost and questionable class. Cheap goods will be shunned too if their price is kept low through sweatshop exploitation, Fairnington claims, painting the community-conscious shifts in spending as overdue and enlightened.
Marketing consultant Melody Mehta also welcomes a return to community values. Businesses badly need to embrace that morality, Ms Mehta suggests, arguing that enterprise is out of step.
“In the most common business models,” she says, “the shareholder is king, the customer and the employee battle it out for second and third place. And screw the community.”
Small businesses will only thrive when they reverse that order - put customer and community first, according to Mehta, who helped Time Inc design its folksy advice magazine Real Simple. Learn how to court the community that cares about cost and is light on consumption - no keeping up with the Joneses, or the Chans or Patels.
Do the right thing: how to sell to the post-consumer
Join the experience economy
Consider the ageing “grey wave” population. Research suggests that, as people age, they apply deeper criteria to shopping decisions, weighing up what purchases mean. Older people choose lifestyle over materialism, lasting value over excitement and quality over fashion. The ageing boomers’ choices may be setting or amplifying trends. So, for the entrepreneur, selling experiences instead of products is a wise move, according to Fairnington.
Tick the diligence boxes
Before committing to the guilty thrill of a purchase, enlightened consumers will ask four key questions that you must address, according to Fairnington. Do I really need it? Does it work perfectly and meet my needs? Is it worth the money? Does it do no harm?
Go root-and-branch green
A study by the marketing network firm JWT found that Australians are increasingly environment-minded but wary of “greenwashing” (fake sustainability claims). So small businesses must prove their sustainability or lose clients, Fairnington writes. For instance, if you “use” a tree, replace it. If you issue emissions, offset.
Skip the bling
Should you successfully court the ethical consumer and grow rich, learn from Asia. There, the Confucian ethic demands humility despite success, and the look of simple living despite great wealth. “When I lived in Taiwan,” Fairnington writes, “my landlord, Mr Cheng, wore tattered pants, a rather smelly old zip-up windcheater, and a weathered baseball cap. He rode a rusty old motorbike, and frankly, looked a bit like a tramp. I later discovered that he not only owned all the houses on the street, but several office buildings.”
2 years ago
