Brand involvement in social issues crucial for more than 50% of Aussies
The importance of brands getting involved in cultural issues including social movements, events and trends has been laid out in a new study by Twitter and PG Mediabrands resource MAGNA.
The study, titled Impact of Culture: What it Means for Brands Today, found the extent to which brands are involved in culture plays a significant role in shaping decisions by Australian consumers.
Impact of Culture – Influence on purchase decisions
The Impact Of Culture study found that Australians expect brands to be involved in culture, and that perception of involvement in social issues, events and trends is almost as important as positive brand reputation.
The survey found that 42% of Aussies think brands should donate to charity, 59% thought they should give to the community and 52% said it was important that brands support social issues that benefit everyone.
A brand’s cultural involvement makes up 18% of a consumer’s purchase decision, with 24% of the decision linked to brand perception and 58% closely linked to price and quality.
Hannah Rook, intelligence and insights director at MAGNA, part of the Mediabrands Australia group, said it was interesting to see how consumer perspective on culture had expanded.
“For the purposes of this research we were keen to let the Australian consumer guide us,” she said.
“Culture is often hard to define and we definitely found consumers’ perspective on culture had expanded. In fact, 74% of Australians thought of culture other than that of tradition. It’s exciting for brands today to see just how diverse their cultural involvement can be and where priorities lie for Australians.”
Hannah Rook (MAGNA) and Emily Foat (Twitter Australia)
Twitter Australia head of agency, Emily Foat, said brands that get involved in issues that matter to consumers most will “reap the rewards”.
“For marketers, this presents an exciting opportunity because involvement in culture is something in their control. Price and quality will always be the top driver of purchase decisions, but those are relatively set, and brand perceptions can take years if not decades to meaningfully shift.
“A brand’s involvement in culture is something that can be changed with a single campaign, and it’s something Twitter in particular is well positioned to help with.
“Brands do need to remember it’s not a one-size-fits-all approach. Brands should be thoughtful in their approach to getting involved in culture to ensure authenticity to their brand and their audience. But brands that do, and get it right, will go a long way to win the hearts and minds of Aussies.”
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Zanda Wilson was a reporter and podcast producer at Mumbrella, specialising in radio reporting. He left Mumbrella in September 2021.
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