Marketing Consumer Insights

Trend - Brands are creating passive pop-ups, such as billboards or signposts, that beget consumers to engage with only a brief action. These are more engaging than regular billboards while not requiring much time from consumers. Additionally, brands do not need to staff these pop-ups, thus reducing costs.

Insight - The average person living in a major city faces hundreds of advertisements a day. To this extent, most simply filter out regular ads, leading to brands not leaving a lasting impression. While some brands try to launch full-scale pop-up events that invite consumers to explore a detailed activation, not all consumers have spare time for such activities, leading to brands finding a middle ground for pop-ups that beget enough interaction to leave an impression, but do not intrude on daily schedules.

Trend - Postcard-making workshops are becoming a popular feature at pop-up events, offering guests a creative, hands-on way to connect with the brand. These interactive sessions allow participants to create a tangible, personalized product that delivers a message and introduces a new brand to the recipient.

Insight - Consumers seeking unique shopping experiences are increasingly drawn to events that facilitate personal connections with brands and encourage sharing the experience with loved ones. In response, brands are designing pop-ups that allow consumers to create personalized keepsakes for those in their lives and invite these individuals to experience the brand. By focusing on consumers' desire for shareable moments, brands can attract an audience that values community throughout the product journey.

Trend - Game developers are implementing live billboard advertisements into their games. These advertisements are non-intrusive, meaning they exist in the game world but do not inhibit the players' interaction with the games. This is a value-add for advertisers while adding legitimacy to the game world.

Insight - When working with partnered clients, it is important for gaming brands to strike a balance between meeting the needs of advertisers while not hindering the experience of its players. While many free-to-play games result to timed video advertisements that interrupt gameplay, this is a negative experience for most players, as it interrupts the flow of the game, causing a negative perception of the ad. To more seamlessly advertise to players, developers are turning to seamless in-game advertising.

Trend - Brands in the dairy industry are redesigning product packaging to be more explicitly informative. These new packagings highlight the ingredients' exact nutritional benefits, such as benefiting gut health. Many such products are also advertising organic or eco-friendly ingredients.

Insight - While health-conscious consumers are explicitly aware of the benefits and effects of individual ingredients, this is not true of the average consumer. For consumers only beginning to shop for more healthy products, the nature of packaging plays a large role in buying decisions. This group is more likely to purchase products that explicitly advertise health benefits, as these labels assure customers they are making the correct choice. Brands in the dairy industry are adapting to this need.

Trend - Brands in the beverage space are creating coffee creamers with simple ingredient lists. These creamers are often plant-based or organic, and focus on conveying to the customer that they use as few chemicals as possible, resulting in better-for-you alternatives to traditional artificial creamers.

Insight - The average consumer is becoming increasingly aware of the nutritional benefits of products, particularly as regulations around food packaging increase, requiring brands to disclose potentially harmful ingredients. These factors have contributed to an increase in attention given to clean-label products, particularly those without compromises, across the food industry. As a result, brands in the beverage space are now reducing ingredients lists, and are instead prioritizing clean, simple recipes.

Trend - Both athletics brands and those adjacent to the sports industry are launching campaigns to support the inclusion of neurodiverse athletes. These campaigns include community activations, fundraising for charities, and sporting programs, thus building trust and good will with the communities.

Insight - As consumers become more socially conscious, their purchasing decisions increasingly reflect their values, particularly regarding inclusion. This shift in consumer behavior is evident in the sports industry, where there is a growing demand for brands to favor inclusion and show clear support for social issues. This trend is pushing brands to initiate and sponsor events, products, and endorsements that highlight neurodiversity in sports, thereby fostering a culture of acceptance and recognition.

Trend - Product packaging is increasingly being adapted to serve a function in conjunction with or separately from the primary offering. These packaging methods are predominantly employed in food and body care advancements, offering consumers functionality comparable to the product.

Insight - Modern consumers often value novel and interactive experiences and desire products with packaging that is as useful as the product itself. In response, brands are designing packaging with functional elements, aiming to provide buyers with a tangible experience that sparks excitement or surprise upon interaction. Businesses focusing on experiential product designs can appeal to consumers who prioritize novelty and immersive experiences in their purchases.

Trend - Brands in the personal care space are creating organic sunscreens designed for infant use. These sunscreens are devoid of harmful ingredients and are easy to wash off. These sunscreens are designed to reduce sun damage for infants, preventing skin irritations and ensuring healthy development.

Insight - While sunscreen has always been a popular part of consumers' daily skincare routines in the summer, social media platforms have drawn attention to the damaging effects of the sun, with such videos going viral. Consumers are now more actively wearing sunscreens, while parents ensure their children do the same. With a focus on regions with more sun exposure throughout the year, brands are now releasing specially formulated infant sunscreens for year-round daily use, even outside of the summer.

Trend - Tech companies are revolutionizing affiliate marketing by launching new shopping apps that break down traditional barriers. Platforms like Locker are leading the charge by ditching the follower-count and aesthetic requirements that often exclude potential affiliates. This inclusive approach opens the affiliate ecosystem to a wider range of consumers, empowering everyone to become a brand advocate and earn from their genuine endorsements.

Insight - Today's consumers are savvier than ever. Traditional influencer endorsements, once a marketing mainstay, are losing their luster. Empowering everyday brand advocates fosters trust, engagement, and loyalty. As social commerce continues to evolve, the brands that embrace this democratization can potentially see more engaged consumers and higher long-term value from a more authentic, community-driven approach to marketing.

Trend - Wallet loyalty programs are gaining prominence as consumers show increasing reluctance to download multiple apps for brand engagements. Brands are offering loyalty cards through Apple Wallet and Google Wallet as a seamless way to integrate loyalty cards directly into consumer smartphones.

Insight - In today's consumer landscape, convenience is a paramount factor that significantly influences brand interactions and loyalty strategies. Modern consumers, particularly digital natives, prioritize efficiency and seamless integration in their transactions, expecting quick and effortless interactions that mesh with their daily routines. This shift has compelled brands to rethink traditional loyalty strategies, which often felt cumbersome or disconnected from a digital-first experience.