Provocateur:

In new research spanning three continents, we’ve empirically investigated the changing consumer-to-brand dynamic—and laid out insights to help marketers better connect with those they’re trying to build relationships with.

Working with data specialists Marketing IQ, we went straight to the source, surveying consumers about their attitudes to brand engagements and their willingness to share data.

Ninety percent of all respondents said that online brand experiences need to improve. That shouldn’t be too surprising; user experience models are so often built with a taxonomy that simply doesn’t work for many, yet those flaws remain remarkably prevalent.

Brands may be comfortable doing things a certain way, but that doesn’t mean consumers are. There was a time when advertisers pointed to repeated exposure as leading to conversions and therefore justified volume. But what happens when retargeting takes exposure from eight to 800? The opposite of what brands want to happen: Consumers grow frustrated and disengaged.

Eighty-one percent of consumers told us they interact with their favorite brands beyond transactional activities, but it’s how they engage that’s indicative of their likelihood to share their data. Some traditional forms of engagement have clearly fallen out of favor (many consumers are no longer willing to share information to receive traditional newsletters, for example).

And 68 percent said their contact information (commonly needed in marketing activations) was the data they’re least willing to share across the board. With such data so often being marketing’s currency of success, this should ring alarm bells—especially as regulation tightens and consumers more closely guard the information that brands value the most. Data scraping and inference just won’t be possible for much longer and have never really been that effective anyway.

Earning customers’ data

Consumers are actually quite willing to share their data, under the right conditions, but they expect brands to earn it.

Initiatives such as loyalty programs, which incentivize repeat business, remain universally popular and therefore present immediate opportunities for brands to build on. Whereas most loyalty programs take a one-size-fits-all approach (incentivizing the transactional behaviors that brands are trying to stimulate), they’re going to have to offer a lot more to achieve the type of relationships consumers want today.

Take the U.S., where 26 percent of 18- to 59-year-olds said they prefer to interact with their favorite brands by playing interactive games and taking part in contests; that’s incredibly exciting and should prompt marketers to explore the wealth of opportunities that it presents.

The point is that marketing needs to get better at listening to what individuals want…and a lot better at acting on it. The likes of the awesome gamified gas station app that rewards users for hitting exact cost amounts at the pump (a game many people already organically play themselves) are great for certain consumers but may be completely irrelevant and unappealing to others. In our study, for example, older demographics proved far less interested in such initiatives. The key is engaging in the right way and at the right time. One size does not fit all. 

This applies to incentives as well as engagement mechanisms. In Singapore, for example, our study revealed generational differences in the types of things consumer value; e.g., younger generations are far more likely to favor experiences. Understanding the preferences and tailoring the experience is hugely important when establishing true value.

The research shows that more people are looking for better connections to brands than are simply looking for “bargains.” Eighty-three percent of respondents said they engaged for non-incentive reasons outside of shopping activities. Of those respondents, 61 percent said to “connect with the brand or learn about new products or services” was a reason why they engaged with a brand. Marketers need to note that consumers value certain things more than discounts. They see great value in exchanges that make their lives easier, which save time and deliver what they need, when they need it. 

Overall, marketers are going to have to seize each engagement opportunity and earn consumer data going forward. Consumers get to “vote” in every online interaction (there is always an “x” in the top right corner). If they’re regularly voting against you, that should send a clear message that more work needs to be done.

Consumers must have an opportunity to shape what the value return is for their loyalty. Value perception can be radically different. Brands want trust from consumers, but brands must trust consumers first—that requires transparent and mutually beneficial relationships. A good starting point is understanding how consumers want to engage and when they’re willing to share data.

About the Author

Michael D. Fisher, Ed.D., is CEO of 3radical. He brings over 25 years of experience in organizational transformation through research, education, and revenue growth. Fisher specialized in helping companies build collaborative, connected, cohesive cultures, with a commitment to personal and professional development and success. Disciplines include progressive leadership and decision making, responsive data and analytics, nimble sales effectiveness, and agile customer data and business intelligence technology assessments. Additionally, Fisher is on the board of directors of TheCustomer.net.