Sensible, experimental or fearless – which describes you in 2012?
In a nutshell…
Recent research sheds light on how UK residents feel about the state of the country, it’s societal, cultural and economic prospects for 2012.
Insight from this research will guide three types of marketer this year – sensible, experimental, fearless.
The research, published in The Guardian and gathered from Ipsos Mori, paints a fascinating picture of how the focus group feel towards 2012.
You’ll get many key insights from looking at the data yourself – so what I want to do is guide you towards slide 5,slide 6 and slide 7.
Slide 5 – immigration and integration
The key insight here is that, according to the research, the UK population will welcome those born elsewhere to our soil, so long as they don’t take our jobs.
Open a pizza restaurant by all means. But don’t work in someone else’s pizza restaurant and displace a British person from that job.
Immigration adds to cultural life, and enriches the things that we love to do (sport, going out to eat, music/film and so on). But it threatens our sense and place of self – negative influence on schools (“I couldn’t get my kid in to my school of choice because…”), housing (I couldn’t live where I wanted to because…”), employment (“I couldn’t get a job because…”).
Slide 6 – Optimism vs Pessimism
This slide shows that we are more optimistic about our family unit than anything else out there.
We aren’t connected to our local area, so don’t have an opinion.
There’s so much Big Stuff happening that we’re pessimistic about the UK’s chances.
And with all of the news about Europe, who can blame us for looking on the dark side?
Other information of note here – women are more optimistic and less pessimistic on all counts than men.
Slide 7 (continuation of previous slide)
This slide suggests that we don’t always welcome newcomers to the neighbourhood with open arms and, while the rest of the neighbourhood thinks that we’ve settled in, it’s entirely possible that we never really feel at home.
Lies, damn lies, and statistics – so what does this tell us?
The sum of this research shows, I believe, that we’re a nation of family units hard hit by the current recession, experiences of crime/disorder and years of being told what to do.
We will take charge within our own four walls, and make the best of things.
We will protect and nurture our families, seeing a brighter future for them than for the rest of our local, national and international societies.
(NOTE – if everyone thinks like this, then there’s a paradox here. If all of our families are going to do OK, then surely the local neighbourhood and entire country will as well?)
What happens outside of our walls is less in our control and so we’re generally more fearful of it.
We feel better about the things in our control that those that aren’t.
This therefore gives us potential to create great marketing, depending on what type of marketer we choose to become.
Type One – Sensible.
The sensible (read somewhat risk averse) marketer will use this research and explore the relationship their product has to the consumer and their family.
They’ll target women mostly, finding key trigger points to bring out those little moments in life (dare I say – The Kodak Moment or the Lurpack Saturday) which will both reinforce and fuel the feelings of optimism towards the family unit.
All of the product and brand values will be dedicated to binding the family unit together, providing inward looking experiences which aim to buffer the family from the turmoil of the outside world.
This marketer will provide discussion spaces (Facebook Groups, G+ pages, forums) etc for the consumer to share their experiences, link with others around them, share their problems and their solutions. (However, this will be primarily in-home until the consumer makes the conscious decision themselves to organise a real world meet-up – which they may never do…)
If the marketer works for a clothing detergent brand, the work will all be about freshness and softness, the feel of clean sheets on the bed etc.
Type Two – Experimental.
This marketer will look at the data and aim to provide a link between the individual family units and the immediate society in which they live.
In the current economical and social turmoil, people need support – and this will most often come from the local community in one way or another. Through the schools, the local authorities, local labour force and so on.
It’s obvious to say that no matter how optimistic we are within our family unit, we can’t employ ourselves or address our problem with rising prices etc.
Therefore, the experimental marketer will explore their brand’s potential for bringing people together within their local communities to allow sharing of experience, of knowledge, of strength in numbers.
This marketer will encourage the community to shore itself up against outer turmoils. If we’re sticking with the detergent brand, this marketer would probably organise a mud slide challenge.
Get people muddy together and let them clean up at home.
Type Three – Fearless.
From this research, the fearless marketer would see huge opportunity to link people through from their home experience, into their local community and then out into the wider society.
This marketer would seek to take consumers on a journey that enabled them to achieve something – not just experience it.
This might mean helping the consumer to push themselves beyond their preconceived limits.
It will probably mean partnering with other brands to make the connection and make it happen.
It’s a huge task – which is why it would take someone fearless to try it.
There will be failure, lots of it. But if the fearless marketer can fail fast and evolve faster, the opportunity’s there for the taking.
It could be scary to find another brand and share the glory with them. But if the marketer can choose their bedfellows wisely, the combination of effort might well propel the consumer on the journey we need them to take.
This marketer will see the opportunity to convert pessimism into optimism – and to own that optimistic space, not just be a part of it.
Can you get any bigger than that?
One piece of research. Three potential outcomes.
But my question is simple: Which kind of marketer will you be this year?
The lead image for this post has been used under Creative Commons from Amy Fleming’s Flickr photostream. What’s it got to do with marketing? Everything and nothing. It’s just the right image for this post. Trust me.
