The five consumer tribes emerging from the pandemic

Five groups of consumers, or “tribes”, will shape the post-pandemic marketplace in the UK, according to new research from communications agency VCCP.

Why it matters

Tuning into these groups’ needs, fears and desires will be key to targeting and media buying, say researchers.

The details

• Revenge Spenders (who number 7.8m) will be back with a bang, hungry to make up for lost time; Rationers (13.8m) have money to spend but fear for the future; Resetters (8.4m) are looking to make life changes reflecting climate and sustainability concerns; Rewarders (5.9m) don’t have a lot of money but want to enjoy life again; Recovering (13.2m) consumers were struggling pre-pandemic and now face unemployment and bleak prospects.
• Post-COVID Britain will be redrawn into the tribes along complex psychological lines, profoundly affecting attitudes, say the authors of the report, Winning In The Rebound.
• Simple pre-pandemic segments, based on disposable income, age, sex and category behaviours, no longer apply as predictors of how consumers will spend, say the authors, as the pandemic has “ripped up the rule book”.

Soundbite

“Brands that don’t recognise these new complexities are as much at risk of missing out on significant opportunities as they are on wasting their marketing investment on the wrong audiences” – Michael Lee, Chief Strategy Officer, VCCP.

Sourced from VCCP