Pretty soon there’ll be too many trees

As you probably know by now, before arriving on planet CIM I lived in the world of newspapers. I left 3 years ago at a time when both national and regional titles were suffering a devastating slump in advertising revenues and I don’t think things have changed much since.

In the latest attempt to protect profits the evening newspaper in my home town of Ipswich, which incidentally is now printed overnight in Norwich to save cost, has recently changed its name from the Evening Star to the Ipswich Star and no longer prints on a Saturday. At the same time the town’s weekly free newspaper has ceased publication.

I guess this is necessary if the media company wants to survive the latest economic storm but from a consumer perspective this all looks a bit desperate.

Of course it’s not just the state of the economy that is forcing many companies to retrench. The impact of digital on virtually everything is really challenging the norm – just ask Kodak, HMV and Waterstones (with or without an apostrophe) about it.

I guess you could say this is the inevitable result of progress, but at the risk of being called a Luddite, I’m pretty sad about the demise of newspapers. The great thing about reading a newspaper, magazine and indeed a book, is that it forces you to take time out. It’s difficult to multi-task while reading (being a man I find this difficult most of the time) and anyway we all need a bit of time to ourselves to relax with a coffee and a good read.

So take my advice, put down that tablet, smartphone and laptop and pick up a paper. Switch-off, disconnect and resist the temptation to check your emails or tweet about what you had for breakfast and read a book (a real one, not a Kindle).

Make it your New Year’s resolution to try it out. Apparently it takes 21 days for a change in behaviour to become a habit so if after 3 weeks you don’t enjoy the experience, go back to the screen.

The printed word needs your support like never before – without newspapers, magazines or books I think the world would be a sadder place. And we’d be overrun by too many trees.

With a new report stating that one in five of the UK’s young adults is out of work, it’s fair to say that the job market is a difficult world for some. Because of this, brands need to pay close attention to this demographic, as research highlights that young consumers are responding to economic hardship in different ways.

Young people are showing diverse attitudes towards the economy, and brands aspiring to connect with 18-to 24-year-olds must now tailor their offer to 5 groups, according to an agency. 

The research surveyed 1,000 18 to 24-year olds, calling the group the ‘Con-Demmed Youth’, a clever play on words between the Conservative and Lib Dem government they exist under. The 5 groups are:

• Go Getters – 23% of the sample, classed as the most ambitious and socially aware people
• Cotton Wool Kids – financially protected young adults who make up 23% of this sample
• Passive Massive 22% of the sample, the laissez-faire segment
• Minimum Rage group – 17% fall into this segment, the most likely to be unhappy and lacking in ambition
• Shundergrads – the 15% who are very savvy and see little need for a university degree.

The Go Getters are perhaps where some brands should take note. Mostly female, this group are academically successful, socially aware and with high career goals. Although not particularly materialistic and happy to mix designer and high street brands, they’re likely to spend money on some premium brands and eating out.

On the other end of the scale, the Passive Massive group shows little discrimination and lacks opinions on brands, and has little interest in the state of the economy. Unsurprisingly this is where the highest level of unemployment sits, with 55% saying a career is not necessary for their happiness.

The report makes for interesting reading. Take a look at the five groups that make up the ‘Con-Demmed Youth’ study and their favoured brands. Which group affects your brand? Tweet us @LondonCIM and let us know.

Speaking of books, I just finished a great book that as a marketer you might be interested in, by Paul Arden called It’s not how good you are but how good you want to be. Sounds like a self help book but it’s a small book full of interesting work soundbites from a marketing and advertising point of view.

Anyway bye for now.

Zoe

Nicola Austin

Recently some colleagues of mine had the unexpected honour of a phone-call from the Harvard Business Review asking if they would submit an article. Why? Well, it turns out that their approach to understanding the post-recession consumer is something of a rarity.

The resulting article demonstrates the lessons that can be learnt from past recessions if we have the skills to identify the similarities and differences. Now that’s something which marketers everywhere can benefit from. Once we have a sense of the length and severity of the recession our thoughts must turn to understanding the likely consumer response to it. There is much to learn if we know the trends well enough to review and adapt them to the future.

Previous research in the UK suggests that there is a nuanced consumer response to the recession. For some, those who still have plenty of discretionary spending, ‘Thrift is the new black’ but it is more about stepping out of competitive consumerism than actually making cutbacks. Indeed, the spending may be maintained in many sectors but there will be a switch to quality over quantity. For this group the behaviour is likely to last – it chimes with longer term feelings of guilt about excess, of concern about waste and a desire for simplicity. Of course it is not true for all but such behaviour throws up the need to review the trends and their trajectories if we are to communicate appropriately and plan well for the future.

Which trends are accelerating? Which ones have arrested? Importantly (and something that is clearly missing from current thinking) how is the recession affecting different groups of people? Who those groups are and whether they are the right audience for our brands. Copies of the article and the UK research are available for free

Marc Duke

Don’t panic this is not a post about sustainability or recycling but rather on some of my musings on pitch ethics based on personal experience. Having been a consultant for the last seven and a half years, I rarely find myself in straight pitch situations, I have found myself on the selection panel a fair few times or reviewing proposals for work as well, so not sure if I am the best man to comment, but here goes.

I know you have heard this before but people buy people, never mind the tender, brief, or scope of work required, it comes down to a simple match, can you do what is asked? And for that matter is this a client/company/person you wish to work with? There have been numerous times when I have asked myself that question and in some instances walked away from the business.

Then there is the question of my existing clients. If we take on the work will they be compromised in any way? I have had a number of situations where there were great revenue opportunities for me but in the back of my mind I knew that the risk of conflict of interest was great and again walked away. Why? It has to feel right or else it won’t work.

Then there is the trust issue – either it is there – or lets pack up and go home. Some like the focus of payment by results, I have not explicitly worked in that way, but I make sure people know what they are getting and if not why, as there may well be issues that the client overlooked that might significantly hinder generating results.

One other point is reputation, what goes around comes around and in my view ultimately the truth will out. It is the backdrop to any new business situation, it will get you to the pitch table and in some instances will protect you if the presentation performance is not what it should or could have been.

While all of the hygiene factors are important for a pitch – answering the brief, good presentation style, good listening/people skills etc… Ultimately it’s a people thing as after all business is done for people by people. Now back to that proposal…..

No one said the recession would be easy. Cost cutting is a fact of life and so are procurement departments. Scrutiny has never been more fashionable. The sooner marketers accept that and use what they already know about building relationships to improve communication and processes, the better. After all, many businesses won’t consider purchasing marketing services without involving a procurement team. But don’t let that worry you. A recent article in The Marketer puts it all in perspective.

Consumers are changing their habits – no change there. Right now the credit crunch is making people much more aware of where they’re spending their money, and what they’re getting for it. Impulse buys are on the wane. Charity shops are having trouble staying stocked. We’re also getting greener and more aware of sustainability. More of us are planning summer holidays in the UK rather than going abroad. No surprise when you look at the costs of travelling. UK consumers are spending – but not as much and not in the same ways as before.

For marketers, this is a new challenge. We can’t just say the credit crunch is wrecking my business. Being absolutely honest means looking at how we can change our products to keep consumers interested. For example, it could mean creating a new low-cost menu  or, it could be inventing a product aimed at helping consumers save money like the Owl™, a gadget that tells you just how much money you’re spending on electricity at any given moment.

If anything, the downturn is a test of our creativity, a real opportunity for marketers to take stock of what’s wrong with a business and take steps to make the right changes.

I’d really like to see what the marketing community has to say about this. If you have a good example of how marketing can work to counteract the downturn, now’s the time to share it.