The consumer study from marketing to mattering assignment

In producing this report, we have been indebted not only to the survey participants, but to our research partners who have enabled us to assemble a rich and diverse set of insights, exploring, testing and refining emerging themes and ideas. We would like to acknowledge the contributions of the Global Compact sponsors and project leads George Keel, Gavin Power, Carrie Hall, Sean Cruse and Kristin Coco, as well as the leadership of the Haves Media RE: PURPOSE and Accentuate teams, in particular project leads Rob Hayward, Deed McLean and Angela Kanji. This year’s study is a unique opportunity to take stock as we stand at a crossroads in the global economy, as business, governments and civil society come together to set new and ambitious goals for the next wave of sustainable development.

Business leaders are committed to leading the way, but will require greater ambition and wider support as they work to align sustainability impact with value creation, and markets with sustainable development outcomes, such that these leaders can truly become the architects of a better world. 4 Optimism and quality of life: a three-speed world For marketers in every sector, optimism can be a powerful force. Efforts to engage, inform and persuade consumers on the merits of companies embracing sustainability can tap into visions of the future, and will depend on companies’ ability to fulfill the expectations of twenty-first century people. The millennial consumer, coming of age economically and empowered by new technologies and social media, is driving new expectations of all institutions in society, especially business.

Western European respondents are particularly vociferous in their disappointment, with 88% of those in Germany and 84% in France reporting that business is failing in its responsibilities to the planet and society. Respondents in Mexico (60%), Argentina (65%) and Japan (65%) are less critical, with the most positive view coming from Russia, where Just 54% believe business is falling short of expectations. Today’s citizen consumer has higher expectations of business. Dissatisfaction may be regarded as the product of traditional approaches to communicating sustainability, centered on philanthropy and corporate social responsibility, with no clear integration into the products and services people consume, or the connection through their products that brands share with consumers.

As sustainability has established itself on the leadership agenda for the vast majority of multinationals, companies have gone to ever greater lengths to paint a solitaire of a responsible corporate citizen, committed to the prosperity of the communities in which they operate. Our survey suggests that these traditional approaches have failed to engage and persuade the consumer, most notably in those markets where sustainability branding and communications have taken root most deeply. In Western Europe and the United States, those economies most affected by the financial crisis, the crisis in trust is readily apparent, with fewer than 20% of respondents expressing their confidence in companies’ efforts to take care of the planet and society.

In those countries where people express most positivist about the future, and expect the greatest improvement in their quality of life, expectations on business are highest: in western Europe and Japan, where pessimism is widespread, respondents have corresponding lower expectations of business; in Brazil, India and Nigeria, for example, where the People think business is as accountable as governments for improving their lives Companies Government Global 85% 89% Asia North America 9% 94% Europe Data from Haves Media/Accentuate survey of 30, 000 consumers worldwide Latin America vast majority expect their lives to improve dramatically, people are looking directly to business to deliver this improvement.

For business, fulfilling these expectations will depend in part on building public trust. Throughout the lifespan of the CEO Study, business leaders have cited ‘ brand, trust and reputation’ as the single most important factor in motivating them to embed sustainability into core business. Our findings from consumers, though, suggest that companies’ efforts on sustainability ay have failed to connect their actions with the genuine priorities of consumers, and this may be hampering progress on building trust. Highlighting the stubborn problem of building public trust, ‘ ending corruption’ ranks as a leading challenge for respondents across all twenty countries surveyed.