'Over the last 18 months it's safe to say we're fed up', writes Havas Hong Kong's Head of Strategy, Duncan Bell. 'And brands haven't escaped this malaise.'
Fed up with lockdowns. Fed up with Zoom calls. Fed up with sour dough. Fed up with traffic light schemes. Fed up with quarantines. Fed up with politicians. Fed up with the news. Fed up with everything.
And brands have not escaped this malaise either. According to the 2021 release of the unique Meaningful Brands Study run by Havas globally, 71% of consumers are tired and fed up of brands’ empty promises. In addition to this, consumers feel that only 47% of brands are actually trustworthy. These and several other findings within the Meaningful Brands survey have led Havas to label this as The Age of Cynicism and I think that most people would gloomily agree with that sentiment. As we continue to struggle through the Covid-19 pandemic, even the most ardent optimists out there will find it difficult to strike an enduringly positive tone when the daily news cycle continues to bombard us with numbers of cases, hospitalisations & deaths. Combine that with new words we’ll undoubtedly start hearing more of such as “boosters”, “endemic” & the inevitable “epsilon variant” and that feeling of cynicism is going to be difficult to shake off. Not to mention the whole climate change thing! For those of us whose job it is to communicate with people at scale and convince them that they should buy or use our (or our clients’) brands, products and services, this current reality requires expert navigation and sensible caution. Storytelling or creative communication of any kind, whether for commercial or artistic purposes, has a higher risk than usual of being painfully tone deaf. There are other geographical factors to consider too when considering how to craft a brand’s messaging post-pandemic. In China, the latest announcement from the government concerning the redistribution of wealth and their drive for “common prosperity” has led to many Chinese firms adopting the slogan. Meanwhile international luxury brands that could be associated with the indulges of conspicuous consumption by wealthy Chinese citizens, especially with the revenge spending trend that’s been seen in the past 12 months, have already seen their share prices take a hit immediately after the “common prosperity” initiative was introduced.
Large flashy ad campaigns promoting expensive purchases are unlikely to go down too well in Q4 in China as a result or at the very least, will be less effective.
attempting to drive as much POS conversion as possible. That means more cheap digital ads, with more BUY NOW buttons, more frequency and more clickbait in the hope that, by showing a picture of your product with a price tag next to it a hundred more times to someone on their mobile screen, it will lead to consumers inevitably succumbing to this online bombardment and converting into a sale (YIPPEE!). As Rory Sutherland has pointed out many a time before, that standard approach will ensure that at the very least you won’t get fired from the marketing team if you don’t sell any more stuff. It’s the most unsubtle approach. And least creative. And most cynical.
Hence the Age of Cynicism.
– that we are spending a lot more time in front of a screen. It ignores the emotional reality. That’s where creative storytelling has an important role to play. Don’t tell us how your company is going to change the world – the world is screwed. Instead show people how your product or service can give some support during difficult times. How you can provide comfort, safety, security or even just a little bit of fun and entertainment to daily lives. That’s what consumers want – 77% of respondents in the Meaningful Brands study expected brands to show support in times of crisis, yet only 36% felt satisfied with their efforts.
showing a socially-led benefit as well as donating part of the marketing budget to vaccine education charities. Not in a preachy or brash way to get some acclaim on social media but actually helping and letting that help do the talking.
Elsewhere, in China, the shift from utilising mega KOLs with millions of followers to incorporating KOCs (key opinion consumers) who have smaller followings and are genuine users of your products is a move to create more authentic, subtle connections with consumers.
Also it could be argued its sharing marketing spend with smaller content creators as well, not just the elite superstars. A redistributive benefit. Globally, as different places recover at different speeds, this shift to subtler marketing approaches can at least attempt to hit the right tone. The “we’re saving the world” messaging should wait until the world has actually been saved.
As we move from 2021 in to 2022 still recovering from 2020, a subtler approach will be what it takes to be relevant & meaningful in this highly cynical age. And to tell stories that aren’t just full of empty promises.
