Euro RSCG uncovers historic shift among consumers

Research from leading global communications company Euro RSCG Worldwide is showing a historic shift in consumer values and behaviours, as people begin to rethink what is important and how they want to live. Analysing the findings of its survey of 5700 adults in seven markets (Brazil, China, France, Japan, Netherlands, United Kingdom, United States), the company reveals how changes in consumer consciousness are driving people away from the hyperconsumerism of recent decades and toward a more mindful approach to living and consuming. The results of the New Consumer study were released this week in a white paper and presentation on www.TheNewConsumer.com.

In their personal lives, people are fed up with today's dumbed-down culture and surface-level interactions; they are craving a more meaningful and satisfying approach to life.

• In the Western markets surveyed, a majority of the samples believe society is moving in the wrong direction. This concern runs particularly high in France (70% agreement), the US (66%), and the UK (63%).
• 69% of the global sample worry that society has become too shallow, focusing too much on things that don't really matter. Again, agreement is strongest in the US (79%), France (77%), and UK (75%), although a majority in each of the seven markets agreed.
  
• Six in ten respondents believe we, as a society, have become intellectually lazy, while nearly seven in ten believe we are physically lazy.
  
• 59% worry that people have become too disconnected from the natural world. This feeling is particularly prevalent in China (70%), Japan (65%), Brazil (64%), and the US (60%).
  
• A majority (51%) worry that digital communication is weakening human bonds.

In their consumer lives, people have grown weary of disposable goods, excess consumption, and endless attempts to move up to nicer cars, bigger homes, and the latest in everything; instead, they are finding value in downsizing and "substance shopping"-a shift with important implications for marketers and brands.

Seeing signs of discontent

• 67% of the global sample believe most of us would be better off if we lived more simply-with the highest scores coming from the US (78%), China (72%), and the UK and Brazil (both at 68%).
  
• Whereas 70% respect/admire people who live simply, just 19% feel the same about people who live a "high-luxury lifestyle." Only in China and Brazil do a sizeable minority (35% and 31%, respectively) claim to admire people who live luxuriously, but even in those markets more than twice as many respondents admire people who live the simple life.
  
• Signalling one aspect of the simplicity they seek, 68% of the sample (81% in China and 78% in France) said they no longer want lots of "bells and whistles" on the products they buy; they would rather just have the functions they really need.
  
• Four in ten respondents have adopted or thought about adopting a slower lifestyle.

"For some years now, we have been seeing signs of discontent with our culture of hyperconsumerism," said Marian Salzman, president of Euro RSCG Worldwide PR, North America.

"These signs have ranged from the Slow Food and Buy Local movements to the mainstreaming of eco-consciousness. In the developed markets of the West especially, people are tired of the emptiness of MORE. What they want more of doesn't come in a shopping bag: They want to feel more connected to other people and to higher-minded goals. They want to live a life filled with more meaning and less excessive accumulation. For the first time in quite a while, the phrase 'Less is more' is striking a strong chord with people."

As part of this new mindset, people are rethinking every aspect of their consumption, from what and why to where they buy:

• 72% of the global sample (80% in the US) are shopping more carefully and mindfully than they used to.
• A majority in every market but the Netherlands and Japan are paying more attention than in the past to the environmental and/or social impact of the products they buy.
• 57% say it makes them feel good to support local producers, artisans, and manufacturers.
• Seven in ten (87% in the US) say saving money makes them feel good about themselves, and just under half (48%) don't intend to go back to their old shopping patterns even when the economy rebounds.

"As marketers, it is our job to help our clients grow their businesses and brands in a way that is both profitable and future focused," said Naomi Troni, global chief marketing officer of Euro RSCG Worldwide.

"Our explorations into the New Consumer have demonstrated to us that the consumption triggers of old will no longer be successful in terms of activating consumption and building brand loyalty. Instead, we and our clients must develop product portfolios and communications approaches connected to the new values people crave, including community, simplicity, sustainability, responsibility, and rootedness."

To access The New Consumer in the Era of Mindful Spending white paper and presentation, as well as other materials based on the study, visit www.TheNewConsumer.com.