The economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in various markets has been undeniable. Some sectors like travel and hospitality have been hard-hit, while physical retail has suffered badly too due to social distancing and lockdown measures. Workers in these industries are affected as well, with their livelihoods threatened by uncertainty and instability. Within this context, money worries are certainly in the minds of many, as they struggle to make ends meet.

Even amongst the fortunate who still have their jobs, it is likely that they would have been impacted as well, albeit at a different level. Without having to worry about the ‘now’, they would be thinking about the ‘next’ and the ‘near future’. Economic downturns are not new, but one caused by a global virus outbreak is a little harder to manage and predict. As such, the more financially-minded consumer will have to start to think about what their investment portfolios should really comprise, how they can be economically-sheltered from the next disaster, and what kinds of financial planning will allow them to not just weather the storm, but also thrive in the long run.  

So what should retail banks, financial institutions and fintech entities prioritize, as the pandemic improves? What role do these organizations need to play in their customers’ lives, and on what kinds of principles do their strategies need to be based? We explore 3 key areas: consumer spending patterns, investing and cash, sharing our thoughts by examining what is likely to change in the post-COVID world, and what will remain the same.

Consumer Spending Patterns: Between Saving and Spending

Short term changes

Within Asia, two markets that recently relaxed their lockdown situations were China and South Korea. In both cases, there were instances of what is now an increasing familiar term in post-COVID coverage: ‘revenge spending’. The Hermes flagship store in Guangzhou saw its biggest single-day earning ever, when millions of Yuan were spent by previously cooped-up shoppers on luxury items. While in Thailand, which recently lifted the ban on alcohol sales at retail level, saw unprecedented levels of consumers binge-buying wines, beers, and spirits.

Regardless of the market and product category, one thing is common: perceived scarcity will motivate consumers to spend disproportionately in the short term. This also illustrates how the fundamental principles of behavioral economics and the multitude states of cognitive biases (too many to name here) are once again proven true.

Long term trends

In the longer term though, what are we to make of consumer spending and saving mindsets, in turn motivating actions/behaviors, which will be meaningful for financial entities to action on?

We see two likely scenarios, each combining a certain degree of emotional and rational assessment of how individuals see their ‘now’ and ‘(near) future’:

  1. Excessive fear and over-reaction to the economic fall-out of the pandemic and feeling the extreme need to be more assured/confident of their financial states, leading to reduced spending/motivation to seek out additional/side income
  2. Resignation and coming-to-terms with their helplessness when it comes to managing their finances (i.e. surrendering to the insurmountable force of macroeconomic changes), and maintaining the status quo, feeling good about creating/maintaining their sense of ‘normal’

There will certainly be many shades between these two extremes, just as there will also be minorities falling outside of these as well (e.g. increased spending/acquiring material goods to achieve the sense of security), but what’s certain is that financial institutes will have to play the role of showing the path to fruitful savings and meaningful spending, without leaning too far into one side or the other. An established bank that has a reputation for best-in-class credit cards in consumers’ minds may take the opportunity to come up with a savings product that validates a consumer’s side hustle, while a fintech that’s trying to break into the travel space may have to use this chance to re-think what their value-proposition really is to consumers who have to temporarily shelve their wanderlust.

Underlying all these, of course, is the presumption that the entity has a ‘trust bank’ upon which to draw notions of credibility and capability; all the money in the world thrown behind a huge messaging campaign in the post-COVID world will not help, if that trust was not already there in the consumers’ pre-COVID reality. 

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Investing: Between Risks and Returns

Short term changes

In the pre-COVID days, any sort of consumer research on investment products/journeys/choice and preference of investment instruments, often boils down to 3 main points:

  • How clearly the product information is introduced, and how much of its mechanism is understood
  • How well the investor can conceptualize the product for himself/herself, and how he/she imagines it within his/her portfolio
  • How he/she feels about it on the overall level

This combination of rational considerations and emotional reassurances will likely not change dramatically in the ‘new normal’, but there is the need to acknowledge the likelihood of investors perceiving the market to be more VUCA (i.e. volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous), thus leading them to re-assess whether it’s the ‘right time’ to be investing in the first place.

Based on past economic downturns, alternative investment instruments (e.g. art, whisky, coveted luxury brand handbags, etc.) have also started to become more commonplace and offer investors another way to grow their money. However, the mechanisms of such tools are often not clear, and usually complement a portfolio that’s still predominantly stocks/shares driven. Insurance-based products are also believed to be a likely winner in the world of money management; as consumers become more risk-averse, bonds and capital-guaranteed products are logically seen to be aligned with immediate appetites.

Long term trends

All that said, though, it is still necessary to highlight that very few investors carry out investments purely motivated by fear of losing; the savvy ones are aware of the notion of calculated risks, and the really experienced ones within that small bunch of savvy investors also know that ultimately the global market is very much sentiment-driven (read: emotions, cue behavioral economic principles again). This highlights the importance of ‘confidence’ and decision-making based on knowing all the ‘facts’ available at a specific point in time, which is actually the fundamental strategy applied by many governments around the world which have successfully contained the pandemic in their respective countries.

Therefore, in the post-COVID world, we feel retail entities that will do well with investors are those that understand how to pull the ‘clarity’ lever, showing their workings around how they feel a product/tool will help the investor achieve their wealth goals, while acknowledging the presence of VUCA factors and understanding what kinds of emotions can arise from investing in a global economy that’s still ‘finding its feet’.

Consumer perceptions of cash: is it still “king’?

Short term changes

Even before the onset of the pandemic, it is becoming increasingly clear that many markets globally are moving towards implementing cashless systems, or at least encouraging consumers to rely less on cash. Though not all executions were done well (e.g. India’s sudden and forceful removal of certain currencies from the market create a financial nightmare amongst consumers which took many months of correcting), the movement is at least gaining momentum, and acceptance appears to be higher in markets which are traditionally cash-focused

Covid-19 containment measures have basically forced upon various societies the need to pay for items in a cashless way; the removal of physical retail to adhere to safe distancing measures meant that opportunities to use physical cash have reduced dramatically, while paying for online purchases tends to be electronic in nearly all cases (save for cash-on-delivery options). Not having to handle cash within current context also means reduced chances of infection through virus transference on surfaces, so it appears to have multiple advantages that’s aligned with the ‘sign of the times’

What this means, though, is while the transition is quite smooth for the cashless consumer, the cash-minded one will likely have to think about how that impacts other parts of their financial realities. Money management and tracking, for one, will likely need to take new forms if cash spending is slowly being phased out from their daily lives. Another area which will likely see some change is in digital payment security: with increased volumes of payment, it will be naïve to assume that similar online safety mechanisms will suffice. To prevent any backlash that can potentially happen due to insecure cashless payment systems, it is an area within the financial industry that needs immediate attention, such that consumer confidence in the system may be sustained

Long term trends

However, we must not confuse “accelerated pace of change” with consumers loving the new ‘state of play’ for cashless; we are of the opinion that consumer sentiments towards the ‘meaning’ of cash (e.g. freedom/fluidity, security, options, empowerment, tangibility, etc.) may in fact deepen in the post-pandemic world, due to perceived uncertainties and insecurities (as we have mentioned above). What this then means is that the notion of ‘cashless’ may either need to be strengthened such that it goes beyond attributes like ‘convenience’ and ‘ease’, or relegated to specific consumption scenarios that may not need to be as ‘meaningful’ as cash 

This has important implications for the numerous fintech institutions globally that are trying to ride on the wave of new financial attitudes in the ‘new normal’; whatever solutions they’re proposing (e.g. payments, investments, money management, etc.) will likely be based on a cashless model, so on top of proving the validity of their use cases, the fundamental value that going cashless needs to be just as apparent. Only then can it achieve both resonance and acceptance amongst consumers, as they navigate their financial world and arrive at their own conclusions on what they will relegate to the cash ‘world’, and what they will gladly make ‘cashless’.

As opportunities for face-to-face research become more limited in the current climate, online research is coming to the fore. To help our clients navigate this shift, we ran an Ask Us Anything session to give clients a chance to ask their questions on getting the most out of online research. Almost 200 of you joined us, but for those that missed the session, we’re sharing the top 10 questions asked in the session, along with our expert advice.

1. Should I be doing research during the COVID-19 crisis?

As a result of the current crisis, we are seeing dramatic shifts in behaviours and attitudes. There’s a tendency to think that this will soon pass and that life will return to “normal”, but the reality is that consumers are going to be adjusting to a new normal. As insight professionals it’s our job to understand the changes we’re seeing so we can advise our clients on how to react accordingly. Arguably, research is now more important than ever before.

What’s more, in some ways, the lockdown situation will actually allow us to delve even deeper into the consumer psyche to understand emotions. One of the age-old techniques we use in qualitative research is the deprivation question, where we ask people to imagine what they would do if a product or service wasn’t available to them anymore. The truth is that this is now a reality for many consumers, and as a result, they’re able to consider and eloquently discuss the role products and services play in their lives in much more detail than before. Added to this, many B2C and B2B respondents now have more time on their hands, meaning that recruitment is actually easier, and we’re seeing greater engagement in the research itself.

2. How do we ensure that current emotions due to the COVID-19 crisis do not affect the way consumers answer?

We can’t ignore the crisis and the impact it’s having on consumers and businesses alike.  As a result of what’s happening, people are re-evaluating what’s important to them and the relationship they have with brands. Their expectation of brands and the role they should play is changing. A classic example of this are the many brands like Brewdog and LVMH that have ramped up their processing lines to produce hand sanitiser for health services. As brands pivot and change their approaches, consumers are naturally going to change their views of those brands. It’s vital to be able to tap into these emotions to understand the expectations that consumers have of brands now and in the future.

3. I usually do focus groups. What should I do now?

Instead of thinking about the methodology you had initially planned to use and how you might replicate this online, take a step back. Return to your project objectives and what you’re trying to achieve.

We see too many clients trying to find a like-for-like replacement when they’re considering online methodologies. If they’re used to running focus groups, some automatically default to an online focus group, but in reality, it could be that another methodology is better suited to their project objectives.

We use two frameworks to help clients think about moving their projects online. The first is to consider the depth of insight you need to obtain. If you’re looking for high level responses to concepts it could be that an online focus group will suffice, but if you really want to drill into who your consumers are and how they engage with your product, digital depths or ethnos could be more suitable.

Different digital approaches deliver different levels of depth and detail of insight

We also encourage clients to think about what they’re looking for from their respondents. Do you  want to engage respondents on a one-off or on-going basis? Do you want your respondents to bounce ideas off one another, or is a one-to-one setting more appropriate?

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These simple questions can be really useful in helping you think about the right methodology, but remember, one size doesn’t fit all. It is likely that you’ll want to use a combination of methodologies to achieve your objectives.  

4. My budgets are being cut. How do I ensure that I get the most out of my investment in online research?

An online approach is incredibly asset-rich. It will give you a host of video, image and text-based content, sometimes giving you more bang for your buck than some offline methodologies.  But to get the most out of your investment you need to think about two key things: moderation and analysis.

For online communities in particular, this is crucial not only to curate the conversation but to help you unearth those nuggets of insight. By moderating and analysing what’s coming out of the community on an ongoing basis, you’re able to dig into areas of interest that emerge during the course of the research and ask new questions as you go to help answer your objectives. This ensures you leave no path unexplored throughout your research.

At the same time, with such an enormous amount of information coming out of online methodologies, you need structure in your analysis to ensure you can build your insights appropriately. We have a range of tools we use in-house to help structure our analysis and thinking, focused on delivering the ‘so what’ to our clients and their stakeholders.

5. How can I balance a tight budget with the need to conduct qualitative research that is more representative of the market?

In this instance we’d recommend an online community approach. If you opt for a less complex and therefore more cost-effective platform, you can invest your budget in a larger, more representative sample. Keep tasks at a high level to ensure the analysis is manageable and consider using polling questions to give you broad-based findings at a quantitative level (sample sizes permitting!)

The one challenge that can come with increasing the size of your community is in being able to build rapport with and amongst respondents. To overcome this think about grouping people so that they can discuss topics in smaller groups within the community (e.g. customers vs. non-customers).

6. What are your top tips for moderating an online focus group?

Firstly, make sure you choose the right platform for your project. There are a range of platforms out there and they all have different functionalities that are suited to different business objectives. Depending on your market, you may choose to go with a text-based approach rather than video, if internet connections are slow.

Whichever one you choose, make sure it’s one that will allow you to see all the respondents’ faces on screen at one time, so that you can read facial cues. To help with this, keep your groups small – we’d recommend a maximum of 6 – 8 respondents.

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Don’t forget that you can use pre-tasks and warm up activities to better understand your respondents and build rapport. Make sure your moderator does their homework upfront, reviewing the screener and learning as much about each respondent before the session begins. Once you’ve done this the medium will soon become secondary as respondents relax into the group. Keep tasks varied within the discussion guide to keep everyone engaged, and finally, as with offline focus groups, the moderator’s energy is crucial, so choose wisely!

7. How can I use online methodologies for concept testing? How does this work with highly confidential concepts?

Online methodologies are a great tool for concept testing – and arguably can provide an even greater depth of insight to inform product development.

Online communities in particular are a great tool for this. Many platforms are specifically built with concept testing in mind and have tools that allow respondents to mark up elements of a concept that they like or dislike, along with a justification. The responses you get here can be even more detailed than in a face-to-face group.

Communities also allow us to iteratively improve the concepts over time. We can rapidly adapt concepts based on consumer feedback and put them back into the community for further comment, allowing us to build and refine the concepts as the research progresses.

The community platforms we use also have in-built features for dealing with highly confidential concepts. Images can be watermarked with a unique respondent identifier and if you’re testing ads, we can set videos to self-destruct after they’ve been watched once. On top of this, we use all the confidentiality procedures we would for concept testing in-person. With such stringent processes in place, we’ve never seen a leak in over a decade of running this kind of research. 

8. Is there a risk of “groupthink” when you bring people together for online research in groups?

There’s a common misconception that online communities only allow you to discuss things as a group. In actual fact, that isn’t the case. There are options to ask questions or set tasks that are completed privately, meaning that respondents aren’t influenced by others in the community.

9. Do online approaches work in Asia?

Absolutely.  The key thing is to find a partner who understands the cultural and digital footprint of the market you’re researching, so that they can advise you on the best methodology to use, based on the respondents you’re wanting to reach.

Digital footprints and internet connectivity does vary from market to market, and within different regions of the same country, but it’s hard to deny the increasing impact of digital and mobile technology across Asia. In The Philippines, the social media capital of the world, video-based tasks could be a great way of conducting research, whereas in China, familiarity with the digital way of engagement – from online communities to Wechat groups – presents an opportunity to engage and reach out to your consumers where they already are. And even in more rural areas you can explore potential probable solutions, such as text-based solutions to communicate with those you want to reach.

The key is to decide whether digital research is the right solution for your research is to understand from your research partner the digital feasibility, connectivity and savviness of your target segments and locations. 

10. I’m wary that with online mythologies I’m too far removed from respondents. I can’t see “the white of the eyes”. How do I overcome this?

We’d argue that online methodologies can actually help you get closer to consumers than you might in some face-to face approaches like focus groups. Particularly when we’re running an online community, we’re engaging with consumers over a number of days or weeks (rather than a few hours)  and in this time we can really build rapport and trust. This results in consumers opening up to us, helped by the ease of talking about their experiences to camera. Often consumers are actually more willing to open up at a personal level when talking to their camera phone than to a person that they’ve only just met!

In fact, we’ve just run a community in the US, looking at how consumers are coping in the pandemic, and we found people pouring their hearts out to us via selfie interviews. This helped us to really understand the issues that matter to them, and the context of those emotions.

If you’ve like to learn more about how online research can help you meet your objectives, please get in touch with your local Kadence office.

As of the first week of March 2020, the total number of confirmed cases in mainland China, the epicentre of the COVID-19 outbreak, is slightly over 80,000. This works out to be no more than 6 cases in 100,000 people. The probability is much lower in most other places, such as 3.38 cases in 100,000 people in Italy, 1.89 in 100,000 in Singapore, and 0.03 in 100,000 in the US.

Despite the low probability, many people are appearing to be more fearful than they should be, with an exaggerated perceived risk.

Panic buying happened within hours when the DORSCON level was raised to Orange in Singapore early last month. Canned food, rice, instant noodles, and even toilet papers were swept off the shelves that evening, with queues longer than we have ever seen in supermarkets. The same phenomenon hit the US, Germany, Italy and Indonesia this week, after more local cases were confirmed. Masks, sanitizers, and disinfectants are sold out, social events and activities are cancelled, and many instances of racism against people of Chinese ethnicity have been observed around the world.

Is this fear rational? It seems the fear is spreading faster, and affecting people’s lives to a larger extent, than the virus itself. Why is that?

The following five cognitive biases can explain most of these irrational behaviours during the COVID-19 outbreak.

1.     Negativity bias – we have the tendency to pay more attention to bad things

Humans have a natural tendency to place more emphasis to negative things, such as remembering negative incidents more clearly, being more affected by criticisms than compliments, or feeling more emotional pain for a loss of $10 than happiness gained for the picking up $10.

“Good things last eight seconds…Bad things last three weeks.” – Linus van Pelt, Peanuts

During the COVID-19 outbreak, we tend to pay more attention to bad news (in part also due to news channels’ willingness to focus on negative news as well, following the same principle) – the number of new cases/deaths/infected patients in critical condition – much more than the number of recoveries. Some people actively search for information that scares themselves more, such as ‘evidence’ that shows masks are not effective in protecting you from the virus, reading up on past global pandemics, or even unknowingly landing on fake news which exacerbates the severity of the situation. All these contribute to the psychological fear of ‘Could it happen to me?’.

2.     Confirmation bias – we pay more attention to information that supports our belief

People are prone to believe what they want to believe, and actively look out for evidence to support their beliefs, while dismissing those that contradict. This confirmation bias is more prevalent in anxious individuals, which makes them perceive the world to be more dangerous than it is. For example, an anxious person is more likely to be more sensitive about what people think of him/her, and constantly look out for signs that show people do not like them, biasing towards negative words or actions.

We naturally seek information to protect ourselves, because the ‘unknown’ is more fearful than the ‘known’. If we think the situation is severe, we tend to focus on news that talks about the severity of the situation, which results in a self-fulfilling prophecy. With greater amount of information now being spread much more quickly over social media, the effects of this bias are a lot more pronounced. A cursory scroll through the Reddit thread on COVID-19 can quickly convince someone that it will bring about the end of the world! 

3.     Probability neglect – we have the tendency to disregard probability when making decisions

A potential outcome that is incredibly pleasant or terrifying is likely to affect our rational minds. We are more likely to be swayed by our emotions towards the potential outcome and pay less attention to the actual probability.

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Looking factually at the numbers of COVID-19, the probability of getting the virus is very low, and much lower than many other risks that we are accustomed to, such as the common flu or cold. Yet people are terrified and have extreme panic or preventive behaviours towards the situation. The fact that the virus is new, and that it can be fatal, could have added to the fear, clouding judgement. Many are avoiding malls, reducing dining out, cancelling travels. This effect extends into greater economic implications. The ‘unknown’ is playing with our feelings, and we react to the feelings, not probability, towards the risk. 

4.     Stereotyping – we tend to make unjustified generalisations

On 11 February, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced the official new name of the coronavirus to be COVID-19. According to WHO, they had to find a name that did not refer to a geographical location, an animal, an individual or a group of people.

This is not just a WHO naming guideline, but an important step to reduce negative stereotypes. During the early stages of the outbreak, there was hatred against Wuhan, or China, and this prejudice has even extended to all Chinese people outside of China. In many countries, many people also irrationally avoid visiting the Chinatown, or dining in Chinese restaurants, as if you visit a neighbourhood Chinese restaurant, you will get the virus, even if your neighbourhood is safe[ML1] [DG2] . Aside from how stereotyping individuals is in and off itself a negative social action, such perceptions can also lead to feelings of false assurance, that one is ‘immune’ to the virus, which in turn can result in behaviours that run counter to public health advisories.

5.     Illusory truth effect – it’s true if it’s repeated

 “Repeat a lie often enough and it becomes truth” – people tend to believe what they constantly see or hear in the news, regardless of whether there is any evidence of its veracity. A recent study [ML3] [DG4] has shown this effect to be present even if people are familiar with the subject, as the repeated lies introduce doubt into their psyche.

This is one of the key reasons why “fake news” has been able to take hold during this outbreak – from quack sesame oil remedies to protect against the virus to misconceptions that packages from China are dangerous to handle. In Singapore, after the same few photos of panic buying being circulated via social media many times makes it a ‘nationwide phenomenon’. WHO and governments around the world have been actively trying to take back the narrative from these “fake news” sources, but the prevalence of social media and the ease of sharing such information to one’s friends and families will present an uphill challenge to combat them.

What it means for brands

Firstly, it is important to remember that cognitive biases exist in human beings, and consumer behaviours aren’t always rational. During the crisis, such behaviours are magnified, and the impact/ repercussions of these irrationalities become amplified.  you should consider what consumers are thinking, and how they are reacting. Understanding where the biasness is from, and how it manifests in thinking and actions, can help you decide on strategies what can potentially lead to behavioural changes.

Secondly, we also need to understand that relying on past information may not be able to help you accurately predict into the future, because people’s reaction to the same stimulus may have changed. For example, the last time DORSCON was raised to Orange in Singapore during the H1N1 crisis in 2019, there wasn’t ‘panic buying’ that led to the severe shortage of masks or sanitizers. Planning in the future, you can think about whether your brand will be perceived any differently once the outbreak is over – how would people’s mindset change because of the outbreak? What will people be looking out for, post- this crisis? Consider how you can address the post-crisis world, and find your competitive advantage.

Our kids media experts Bianca Abulafia and Sarah Serbun shared their top tips at Qual 360 of how to conduct qual research with kids and the culture considerations to bar in mind in each market.

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As you put the Halloween decorations away for another year, are you one of the many people thinking twice about that age old tradition of carving a pumpkin? 

#pumpkinrescue is trending on social media as organisations and consumers alike raise awareness of unnecessary food waste that the Halloween tradition creates. According to Hubbub, in the U.K., 18,000 tonnes of pumpkin go to landfill every year (that is the equivalent of 360 million portions of pumpkin pie) and many people have had enough, using the hashtag to encourage consumers to eat the remains of their pumpkin instead. 

Concerns around food waste are no fad. Our latest research, The Concerned Consumer, found that food waste is a key issue globally, with 63% of consumers telling us they do their bit to address food waste. This is particularly important for consumers in the UK and the US, where the figure rises to 71%. 

Keen to explore this topic in more detail, we’ve been digging into the conversations around food waste on Twitter, using a comparative analytics tool called Relative Insight. 

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So aside from discussions around #pumpkinrescue, how is food waste being discussed online?

Freezing food is a key topic of conversation. It is seen as a sustainable way to keep food fresh for longer, minimising food waste overall. And while thinking about pumpkins (which is a fruit by the way – yes, we googled it), we found that consumers are generally confused about whether they can or can’t freeze certain vegetables and fruit.

Another popular topic around food waste is finding a purpose for food scraps. Consumers are calling for more recipe suggestions incorporating vegetable scraps, or ways of composting it. Take a pumpkin as an example; the flesh can be used in pies and bread, the guts can be used for broth and mulled wine, the skin is edible in small varieties, and the seeds can be roasted. 

Want to discover more about the environmental, ethical and health concerns driving purchase behaviour in food and drink? Download our Concerned Consumer research.

Cannabis talk in the US media is unavoidable these days as changing legislation and recreational dispensaries continue to open up across selected states in the country.  How can companies outside the cannabis space take advantage of this growing trend? Our research with over 2,000 US consumers sought to understand this new opportunity for brands.

One-in-five (20%) adults nationwide report they have used cannabis in the last 12 months. Of those, two-thirds (66%) consume regularly (at least once a week). While two thirds tell us that consuming cannabis has not changed their social life in any way, 17% are staying home more and 8% say they are going out more. 

Ultimately, this opens up a variety of opportunities for marketers to offer products and services that are tailored to the needs of this group. Meal kit delivery companies could make “dinner party boxes” suited to a night in with friends. Game makers could create games that facilitate creativity and fun. Netflix or Amazon could offer content particularly suited for cannabis-influenced viewers. And clearly, snack makers could have a field day.

In the survey, adults were asked whether they would prefer to consume cannabis or alcohol while doing different popular activities. While clubbing and hosting a dinner party are more likely paired with alcohol, for many other pastimes, cannabis wins.  At home, watching TV/ movies, doing chores, playing board games and socializing with family and friends are all activities where cannabis is preferred.  Going to the movies or to watch live music are also events where adults would prefer cannabis.  A host of other activities are decidedly not alcohol activities, but may be considered “cannactivities” – yoga, gardening, outdoor activities, going to the spa, cultural events and reading.  See the table below for details.

How can your business take advantage of this fast-growing industry? Download the full research report to learn more.

“For each of the following, would you rather do this activity while consuming cannabis, drinking beverages containing alcohol, or neither?”

Cannabis research: would rather consume cannabis vs would rather consume alcohol

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We’ve all been there. That moment of frustration when you visit a store or restaurant or hotel and are so entirely and completely underwhelmed by the experience. Perhaps it was the inattentive or poorly trained staff. Or the unclear and confusing information. Or the restricting opening hours. But what makes the whole thing worse is that this is not what you were promised – the ads; marketing and branding all suggest a very different experience. As an extreme example, the hot water that United got into for forcibly removing a passenger is a complete mismatch of its brand promise of: “connecting people. Uniting the world.”

On the flip side, there are golden moments when the unexpectedly wonderful happens. The barista remembers your name and favourite order; you’re given a hotel room upgrade; the restaurant goes out of their way to accommodate your food allergy.

The reason for both of these reactions is because of the unexpected. The experience you were primed for by the brand promise is different. Causing an emotional reaction as we deal with that.

Experiences have become perhaps the most important aspect of shaping the brand. Not only can experiences be documented and shared more easily than ever with camera phones and social media; but an experience is more visceral and powerful than any marketing and will live on much longer in the memory.

However, a recent survey by the Chartered Institute of Marketing suggests that only 53% of marketers claim successful alignment between brand promise and experience; just 37% believe their employees understand how to deliver this brand promise; and a measly 17% feel they enable their employees to suggest way to improve brand experience.

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Part of the reason for this is that it’s hard to measure the brand experience. Brand health studies measure the brand promise not experience; Satisfaction studies test the brand’s SOPs rather than the consumers’ experience; and mystery shopping relies on a small sampling of outsiders’ opinions. Relying on these studies alone is not enough for the CXO to draw any kind of conclusions about how their customers are experiencing the brand. Also, is it even relevant?

After all, while ‘satisfaction scores’ and ‘likelihood to promote’ a brand can be assumed to imply that the customer ‘likes’ the brand, that inference does not necessarily show the CXO what is the nature of the experience, and what specifically about it created the ‘emotional hook’ strong enough for the customer to want to ‘promote’ the brand to other users or have been satisfied. In short, it will likely leave more questions than answers, rather than illuminating actionable next steps for improving the process.

Rather, you need a measurement tool that tells you what customers of your brand (as well as your competitor, and even category) value when it comes to experience. Something that complements current studies you already have; but offers deeper insights that can help you create a strategic plan of action. A piece of research that sheds light on not just the ‘what’, but the ‘why’ of your customers’ emotional connection (or disconnection) with your brand based on their experience.

In short, Kadence’s Emotional Connection Matrix (ECM) is what you need. We have completed a study amongst Singapore consumers across categories on how individual brands scored in terms of emotionally-connecting with them, how these brands compare to others, which product category has the highest tendency to provoke positive emotional connections based solely on brand experiences, and what kinds of actions actually lead to said positive emotional connections. Drop by the CX Conference 2019 at Four Seasons Hotel on 26th July to satisfy your curiosity, as we talk more about the Emotional Connection Matrix.

How do you create customer delight? Our latest research sought to explore what matters to customers in 11 markets which match our international footprint: the UK, US, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, India and China and Hong Kong.

As part of the research, we uncovered 5 must-have principles for any global customer experience strategy. In this blog post, we share these principles, together with examples of brands getting it right, to inspire your strategy development.

1. Understand customers’ needs and feelings

We discovered that what matters most to customers globally is that service personnel take the time to listen and really understand their needs. This far outweighed any other factor by a long way. So how do go further than in-store interactions and deliver this on a strategic level?

Research, of course, is crucial – and doing this in-store can further strengthen the customer experience. A good example of this comes from British supermarket, Morrisons. The brand implemented a “customer listening programme” in 80 stores across the country to speak to customers about their in-store experiences and overall perceptions of brand. Not only did the strategy enable Morrison’s to build relationships with customers, it helped the supermarket understand what elements of its positioning to leverage in its future communications and campaigns.

2. React positively to customer requests

Another element that matters to customers is that the service personnel react positively to their requests. But beyond staff training to ensure this is happening in store, what else can brands do?

Starbucks has one solution. They launched My Starbucks Idea, a crowdsourcing platform where customers can request everything from new drink flavours to customer service improvements. Since the site was established, hundreds of ideas have been launched by Starbucks. Providing free WiFi in store was a My Starbucks Idea, as was introducing new payment solutions, and numerous product lines and flavourings started out life on the site. As a way of reacting positively to customer requests and feeding its innovation pipeline at the same time, it’s a real win-win for Starbucks.

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3. Show customers they matter

It’s also important that service personnel express how important customers are to the brand. There are numerous ways of achieving this, ranging from small tactical actions to more comprehensive loyalty schemes.

There’s lots that established brands can learn from smaller businesses here. From handwritten notes to customer appreciation events, small gestures can really make a customer feel valued, building that bond with your business.

4. Empower staff to go above and beyond

Customers also value service personnel going beyond their usual responsibilities. But how do you get your staff to make this a reality? One tip is to move away from rigid customer service processes and to embrace a more flexible approach. This will empower your staff to react to customers in the most appropriate way,  creating a personalised and therefore superior customer experience.

A great example of this comes from UK coffee chain Pret. Each week, staff in the store are allowed to give away a certain number of free drinks to customers. Giving employees the freedom to offer a free coffee to a flustered customer is a small gesture that delivers big returns, quickly making someone’s day and creating a positive brand experience.

5. Give gifts that reflect customers’ needs

Another component to consider adding to your customer experience strategy is gifting. But to really resonate, gifts needs to take customer wants and needs into account. If you’re in search of inspiration, look no further than Sephora. The French beauty brand delivers personalised emails – based on an individual’s search history – that give customers chance to get their hands on a relevant free gift.

As part of our research, we investigated how these factors vary by market. Get in touch with your local office to find out the 5 must-have principles for a best-in-class customer experience strategy in your market.

What does it take to delight today’s customers? Our latest research sought to explore the factors that create truly exceptional customer experiences across 11 markets which match Kadence International’s global footprint: the UK, US, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, India and China and Hong Kong.

Take a look at the infographic below to get a taste of the research or get in touch to learn about the factors that matter most in your country.

"Delight Customer" Infographic
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