Ken Hughes
For Ken Hughes, leading consumer & shopper behaviorist who uses the CX (Consumer Experience) Strategy, the industry must set its sights on the Phygital concept.“The Phygital reality that we live in these days (half physical, half digital) is a simple reality that came into existence with the pandemic. One might argue, in fact, that living in a digital world now means we’re basically seeing it on our mobile phones, whatever the place or situation. Digital convenience has become a cornerstone of consumers’ expectations, since a brand now invests less and less in the in-person approach,” he says. Hughes, who will be present at the IAB Beyond Digital workshop with his talk The Big Take Back: The Psychology of the Recovery, adds that brands should anticipate the changes in consumer behavior. “There are many new values that have been explored in depth or that have come about during the pandemic, showing that consumers want autonomy and control. Consumers want to take back their freedom, they want to feel it, which means that brands ought to be positioned around some path that leads to freedom. Isolation reminds us of something we all long for: reconnecting ourselves so we’re ready to unite with others, with the community, but also with brands and businesses that will help with our recovery. Do that well and you can generate brand loyalty faster than ever. Advice: be compassionate with your customers because the community is also a living, breathing entity after a pandemic.” As for the changes of communications that the industry must undergo given the psychology of recovery, Hughes notes in detail that advertising and brand communications must highlight key consumer values in order to win the race to relevance.“Peer-to-Peer naturally continues to be a highly influential factor in making purchasing decisions, and taking advantage of the content generated by users is key. The future lies in collaborating with consumers and not with marketing communications (which has been a one-way street and often a dead end). It’s all about being collaborative (conversations have taken over brands) and communications, and as a result, influencing the purchaser to become an influencer (which sounds like a PUSH strategy) and even more so compared to an investment of lifetime value for the client (which is more of a PULL strategy). In the end, consumers seek to buy brands from companies that help them on their way to recovery, that help them reconnect with friends and family, brands that offer them hope and meaning, that satisfy their desires and strengthen them on their journey to the Big Take Back.
