A March 2021 survey by the American Psychological Association that showed Americans were more stressed than ever before. Almost half (48%) reported elevated stress levels due to the pandemic, and two-thirds (67%) have had sleeping issues since pandemic started. Little did we know that it could get worse. A follow-up study released this month showed that we are even more stressed than before, for entirely new reasons. Inflation (87%), supply chain issues (81%) and the invasion of Ukraine (80%) topped the list. It’s the result of multiple years’ worth of seemingly unending negative news. Extreme periods of stress change how we think—we begin to process information as if we are in a state of fear. Of course, you probably know this since you are living through it as well.
But what may not be obvious is this immense stress changes how people consume and make decisions. This mental shift has profound implications for marketing to a stressed consumer. It means that not only will consumers shift even more decision-making to their automated System 1, they’ve started relying on primal systems that aren’t normally used—since they evolved to cope with survival, not shopping.
Consumers will not react the same way they did just two years ago. Ads that were very effective prior to all of this may fall flat or even cause brand damage. To appeal to today’s hyper-stressed consumer, different tactics will need to be used. Here are a few easy-to-apply lessons.
Avoid shock value
The initial challenge of advertising is to get people to pay attention to the message. To do this, advertisers sometimes use shock as a way of capturing customer focus. From years past, you might remember some shocking ads, such as Volkswagen’s “Safety Happens” campaign that showed an unexpected car crash to highlight their safety features. While shocking ads will still capture attention (we’re hardwired for them), in a hyper-stressed consumer they will also generate large amounts of negative emotion, which could damage the brand.
Manage choice overload
Despite what we think, consumers don’t really react well to having lots of options. There are numerous studies that show consumers will buy more frequently when presented with fewer options. Hyper-stressed consumers simply don’t have the cognitive resources to dedicate to decision-making and instead will opt out of the shopping process entirely. In short, they don’t want to think. Take a cue from Apple—the most valuable company in the world—on how to manage this: The new iPhone 13 comes in just two versions—a base model or the Pro with a better camera. Apple’s website is also incredibly easy to navigate and provides a natural path to purchase.
Provide emotional validation
Psychologists will tell you that when a friend is in a bad spot mentally, acknowledging what they are feeling is a great way to start helping them. Marketing can leverage this by acknowledging what we are all collectively going through. The emotional release of this helps to not only capture the attention of the consumer but also to create a strong emotion to connect with the brand. A great example of this comes from the Alabama Tourism Department, which has gained tremendous traction over the past two years by focusing on being a destination for relaxation from a stressful world.
Leverage familiarity and nostalgia
When we are stressed, we seek things that make us feel better. Things that are familiar, comfortable and nostalgic all help to achieve this feeling for consumers. We saw this in several Super Bowl ads this year, such as Rocket Mortgage using famous toys from our childhood, Barbie and Skeletor, to promote its app. The positive emotion of nostalgia gets consumers to pay attention and ultimately drives preference.
Build your brand
In a stressed world, consumers don’t want to spend the mental energy of comparing products or services when they don’t have to. Instead, they leverage default decision-making—using products and services they are familiar with. Thus, clearly differentiated brands will thrive.
Consumers are stressed and will likely be that way for some time. Admittedly, a strong brand isn’t built overnight. But as the proverb says, “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.”
Source: adweek.com
