We’ve heard a lot about an impending recovery, and I’m confident one is underway, at least technically, and at least on paper. But like many other indicators, recent Harris Interactive survey results suggest consumers are still playing it safe, in terms of spending. The data was gathered in June, and a summary article was published this morning by Marketing Daily. Click here to see it.
Implications: A number of issues have tarnished the recent positive economic news… among them, a job market that remains slow. But beyond today’s news, yesterday’s events still matter; you’re dealing with many consumers that are still shell-shocked by the jolting wake-up call that was the Great Recession. Many of the pre-recession ideas they had about money were dramatically altered, and in a relatively short window of time: What they could afford to buy, how much money they should saving, and how much of a debt burden they could sustain over time.
The economy may have begun its recovery. But for many consumers, recovering from the financial trauma they have suffered is likely to take some time.
Think about ways your product, service, or company can become among the first practices they resume. If the new priorities include “providing for my family in a responsible and sustainable way,” how can you help? Are you affordable? Can the products you sell enhance one or more experiences the family can share together? Does your service let them preserve some effort, so they can apply that energy in other aspects of their life (few people are working less hard today than they did in 2006).
The consumer has a new world view. Marketing forward will involve figuring out how your company/product/service fits into that new context.
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