Realism vs. Aspirationalism

Let's talk about consumers for a second. There's what they say they want to hear in messaging and in pictures/photos that will make them buy and then there's what will actually make them buy. Talking to consumers through my job has made me more aware than ever of the divide between realism vs. aspirationalism (I'm making that word up and coining it for my own thank ya very much!).

It's what Dove tapped into. They probably heard enough consumers say, I want to see real people so they advertised with real people. It made people feel good about the brand but I've heard beauty clients before say they are skeptical that it actually sold more Dove. People felt motivated to be more confident in their own skin but not motivated to dish out the dollars to Dove products necessarily.

It happens in other categories too across the board. People are desperate for transparency and realism but the question is, how attractive is that really? Often times, the hard, ugly reality of things is well... just that. And even though it's easier to relate to, we as, people are a society of progress and we enjoy envisioning ourselves with better skin, straighter smiles, whiter teeth, fitter bodies, better lives, etc. because truthfully, even if we can't relate to it, we want it. We all aspire.

So while you might hear your consumers saying, we want to see it real, we aren't perfect so give it to us like it is, be transparent and be true. Don't always listen to them. While it might be okay in some circumstances (b/c there are always outliers) and maybe more true in beauty, health, sports, wellness, apparel, and home categories, mirroring who and what they already are gives them nothing to aspire to and leaves your brand a bit in the dust. They may get warm-fuzzies from your brand but they may not feel like they are given the opportunity to better themselves and thus buy from you.

Mascara and fashion sells completely based on aspiration. Especially true for mascara, you know that you won't get eyelashes that look like that photo, but if you could even have eyelashes that look 1/10 as good, you'd be happy. That may be an extreme and is probably true b/c it is so appearance/image driven which doesn't hold as true or as much weight in other categories. So, I will also admit that there must be a nice middle ground somewhere out there that hybrids real and aspirational- a small bump up from reality without a total seismic shift.

Who Really Cares?

NOT CONSUMERS. They are drowning in sea of ad clutter. 300 to 5000 messages per day. Media channels are expanding and becoming more fragmented. Consumer segments are getting more niche and becoming more fragmented. Fragmented media plus fragmented consumer segments equals a big fragmented mess. It's amazing that we can cut through it at all enough to connect with even one person much less persuade any person to actually give a damn. 

But here's a thought... maybe it's easier than ever. Maybe with the right messaging and the right target, this digital wave is crashing to shore during the perfect storm. As consumers rid themselvesof as much traditional advertising as possible, they are still engaging in the things they love and are finding new ways to interact with information. They Internet, previously thought of as the eye of the storm, the thing causing the shifts and disruptions in the advertising world might actually be the floatation device we should be giving our consumers instead. They have shown us they want a voice, they want to co-create, they love ideas, inspiration, experiences, culture, and motivation. And they are A-ok if brands are the people who are bringing those opportunities to them.

As it stands now, traditional advertising isn't dead... yet. Perhaps it never will die completely. Our industry is changing though. Like it or lump it. Media is changing, the way consumers interact with each other is changing, the way they interact with brands is changing and the way they consume culture is changing. That means our role as planner is changing too. It's not enough to understand how consumers act today. It's not enough to understand what they want today. We need to be actively forecasting, anticipating and understanding how they will act and what they will want tomorrow.

It's an exciting time to be a planner. It's a challenging time as well. It's calling for bold, creative planning. I'm bracing myself. I'm getting ready. Are you?