IDENTICAINSIGHT

Issue 5SOLO CITIZEN

SOLO CITIZEN

Issue 5

806,000British workers retired in 2012, twice as many as ever before

£6.6has been cheated out of consumers pockets in unfair trading practices but only £140m will be spent to enforce against these practices

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Consumers are increasingly realising that the state will not be there for them as it has been in the past. We’re on our own.

Solo Citizen relates to the increasingly large consumer group that lives in an age of cuts, restrictions, lowering living standards and diminishing state support, which is affecting their purchasing behaviour and trust in governments and corporations alike.

People are coming together in communities or supporting themselves with their own resources to counterbalance the lack of support from the state. Our dramatically ageing population means that the pension burden is at a critical level, and will continue to soak up scarce resources going forward.

Throughout this issue, we’ll highlight how consumers are responding to this tough environment.

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93of Baby Boomers believe that the state will not look after them

%

38of Britons trust their government, while 50% of them trust Amazon

%

Source: The Future Laboratory, Future Foundation

Enormous levels of people retiring and a spike in self-employment is no coincidence. A secondary career is now necessary to maintain a certain standard of living after the date of retirement.

Baby Boomers have done well out of occupational pensions, low property prices, welfare support and all the while trashing our planet. We’ve had the boom, here comes the bust.

These are three areas we’d like to focus upon to show how consumers are behaving and acting differently in response.

CROWDSOURCINGIf consumers align together there can be significant mutual gain.

BRAND TRANSPARENCYDue to lack of trust, consumers are seeking honesty from brands.

NEW PREMIUMSOwn brand sales have risen but buying them doesn’t have to be be a punishment.

ENLIGHTENMENT 2.0

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Crowdsourcing is one trend in which society is responding to the Solo Citizen. Communities are fusing together for a larger mutual gain.

Collaborative funding via the web, is one of the standouts for growth in this evolving collaborative economy.

There are currently two crowdsourcing models; either the community can donate capital to reach a specific target or that community can invest their capital for a slice of equity within a proposed business.

Kickstarter.com is an online portal that hosts projects that can be crowdfunded. It currently has 43,000 successful projects.

Groupon and the like maximise spending power by aggregating purchases.

1. Kickstarter: OUYA is a new media console that received $8,5m from 63,000 people meaning that the console launched successfully and retails at $99.

2. Kickstarter: The Pebble Smartwatch received $10,266,844 from 68,928 people meaning that it went into production in Jan 13 and is shipping 15,000 a week.

3. College Crowdfunding allows the public to invest in students college funds to eventually see a return when they start to earn a certain salary.

4. Walmart have proposed the idea to allow their customers to deliver their neighbours online purchases in exchange for rewards.

CROWDSOURCING

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With economic stability and consumer trust being critically low we’re investing in brands that are honest and reassuringly transparent. Britons are being forced into self-employment and we’re starting to support them.

The trust that we lack in central government we’re now placing in people and their ideas.

Made.com (1) is an online furniture portal that produces products made to order and subsequently saves the consumer a 70% cost compared to leading retailers.

1. Made.com

2. Pop-up Britain are accommodating the surge in self employment and helping small businesses have a short term presence upon our wheezing high streets.

3. Everlane is an online fashion retailer that produces data for its customers regarding the real costs of production and why their products have certain prices.

4. The People’s Supermarket is a store managed and owned by a network of volunteers that offers the local community an alternative to other supermarkets.

BRAND TRANSPARENCY

14of the British workforce are self employed in 2013

%

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Following a decade of bingeing and decadence ending in recession, we have a situation of ever decreasing disposable income meaning that consumers are forced to trade down with consumables.

Research shows that consumers are often ashamed to be seen with value products. Purchasing value product ranges should not be a punishment.

Brands are now transforming lower price-point products to have a greater appeal to those customers forced to trade down on price but unwilling to tradedown on image.

1. Ikea’s new value food range takes on a clean and crisp identity, presenting a tone every bit as confident as a brand.

2. Ocado, the online grocer, have produced clean and refreshing tone for their new own-brand products, making them seem a treat rather than just essentials.

NEW PREMIUMS

36increase in UK own-brand sales

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WHAT THIS MEANS?

You may argue that there have always been trust issues with our central government and brands. It’s important to understand how consumers are reacting in 2013 to the realisation of a broken social strategy. They’re grouping in communities and solving problems without the state’s help, looking to each other for solutions.

Brands are being far more transparent to regain consumers’ trust and loyalty. There are obvious risks to transparency for any brand, but it would seem that this is fast becoming a cost of doing business for many.

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THANK YOU

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TO FIND OUT MORE: Call +44 (0)20 3451 9700, or email Leah Williams leah.williams@identica.com