Brand Aspiration Isn’t the Primary Focus of Shoppers: Study
A NEW REPORT found that shoppers do not seem to be increasingly voting with their wallets despite the broad hype around boycotts prompted by DEI or politics.
The Kearney Consumer Institute (KCI), an internal think tank of global strategy and management consultancy Kearney and part of the firm’s Foresight network, surveyed consumers about what it means to shop by their values. The poll explored the disconnect between what consumers and brands say is important to them and how they behave.
KCI lead Katie Thomas, who led the research, said, “Consumers are feeling the pinch right now—money is tighter, time is tighter—and they will shop how, where, and as it best suits them. Many consumers are prioritizing the price/value equation over values-based purchasing decisions, with eight out of 10 consumers admitting that shopping according to their values is more expensive.”
The research found that while 68 percent of consumers think that brands should voice their values, only half of them have stopped shopping a brand that didn’t align with those values.
“Too often, the corporate value proposition is disjointed from the brand values, which may put out high aspirational promises to the consumer. Taking a values-first approach without focusing on the fundamental risks losing the consumer,” said Thomas.
The research found that 79 percent of consumers think it’s less important for a brand to voice its values than to deliver on quality expectations. Good quality, fair pricing, and product reliability and durability topped the list of factors consumers named in their purchase decisions.
“Their low ratings of politically driven factors—DEI commitments, labor practices, and brand politics—point to the relatively minor role of consumer activism, or consumers shopping by their values,” said Thomas. “We’ve seen underperforming companies try to place blame on boycotting and other external values-based factors for their suffering, when in reality these factors are affecting everyone.”
Yet there can be exceptions to this, observed James Tenser, President of VSN Media, LLC, who commented on the research.
“You can’t ignore the surprising consumer boycott of Bud Light, which in April 2023 ran a social media promotion that featured transgender personality Dylan Mulvaney and rainbow-colored packaging,” he said. At the time, Bud Light was the top-selling beer in the U.S.
“While meant as an effort to appeal to a market segment, the campaign now stands as a wake-up call of sorts,” Tenser said. “Criticism from conservative voices triggered a social media ‘meme-storm’ that turned off many former loyal consumers, resulting in double-digit sales declines.”
He added, “Trading on cultural values can be a touchy proposition for marketers, but product value is always relevant.”
