Marketers everywhere are attempting to assess which new consumer behaviours will continue post-pandemic – one approach is to map “emergent culture fuels”, advises a leading strategist.
These are “are inflection points in collective behaviour of people, in response to the current context,” says Dheeraj Sinha, Managing Director India & Chief Strategy Officer, Leo Burnett, South Asia.
“Culture fuels are valuable input into the planning process for brands going forward – they help one think about our business in the context of the behaviour changes that we are witnessing today.”
Writing for WARC, Sinha outlines a number of such fuels that are already gaining momentum. One is comfort in times of anxiety – people are turning to the familiar, be it bonding with family and friends through games or turning to nostalgic content on various platforms.
“Games like ‘Ludo’, ‘Carrom’, ’Card Games’, ‘Antakshari’ have seen a 5x surge in search volume since the beginning of lockdown, as per Google Trends,” he notes. “Ramayan has become the highest rated Hindi GEC programme since 2015 as per BARC.”
As families spend more quality time together (“the return of ‘hum aapke hai’ days”) and turn to the known and the familiar, it is important for brands to reflect this emotion, Sinha says.
Amul, a brand with a rich legacy, has tapped into this notion by bringing back some of its old ads. It could also mean helping consumers find a silver lining with humour and positivity, Sinha adds.
Outside of the home, the pandemic is wreaking havoc in the jobs market – and people seem to be preparing for this uncertainty by upgrading their skills and knowledge, Sinha reports.
“This behavior can be seen with the sudden rise in e-learning and online courses. Unacademy in the last three weeks has reported a 3x increase in the learners on its platform.”
Brands have the opportunity to re-engage with their audience by helping them prepare for this uncertain future, he suggests. “Offering online courses or helping people upskill can be ways for brands to gain a greater meaning in people’s life in these unprecedented times.”
For more details on India’s emergent culture fuels, read Dheeraj Sinha’s article in full: Ten pandemic-born ‘culture fuels’ shaping India and how brands should connect with them.
Sourced from WARC
