Getting ahead and the importance of progress to brands
Consumers are drawn to brands that are successful, but in return for their attention, they expect brands to help them make personal progress. This was the message from a Mumbrella360 session last week in which in research agency TRA delved into this concept of progress, and how brands can play their role in it.
Progess is something we seek within ourselves, but also something we seek in others, according to Terri Hall, TRA’s managing partner.
“We look up to people and we admire people that are progressive in their lives, and also we seek that out from brands,” she said. “We often talk about this idea of brands that show momentum are brands we like to back, because there’s this power of being part of a brand community that’s got that sense of progress. It appeals to our instincts as humans for security.”
Terri Hall presenting at Mumbrella360 last week
And this was evident in TRA’s latest Mood of the Nation study, which asked over 2,000 Australians and New Zealanders about progress.
According to the survey, 77% of people feel they have made progress in their lives, compared to two years ago. 44% believe they will make more progress in a year’s time.
This can range from major life events — buying a first home, making career changes, seeing your child start or finish school — to the small (but still significant) like a good night’s sleep, a productive day’s work, or getting the bills paid.
As individuals, it’s clear people believe they are making progress. But that perception was very different when it came to the nation.
Only one in five (21%) believe their country has progressed in that same two year period, with nearly 40% of Australians and New Zealanders thinking their countries have actually gone backwards. And this, according to TRA, has big implications for brands.
“This is a pretty difficult environment to be operating within,” Hall said. “There is uncertainty, cost-of-living pressures are high, and there are so many external forces out of our control, which are impacting how people feel about the nation’s progress.”
TRA said this is where brands can come in to play. The study found that almost eight in 10 people think it’s important that companies help them progress, and people see a role for brands to help advancement as both individuals and as a collective.
“If you can support people through their personal journeys, you can make a connection … You will start to build trust, and that’s so important,” Colleen Ryan, partner at TRA, said.
But how brands show up is the most important part, as 96% of people agree brands should be honest when they communicate. People ranked honesty higher in importance that contributing to the economy, supporting local communities, and even improving the services they provide.
“This is important as a baseline before you even do anything specifically to help with progress,” Ryan said.
Colleen Ryan (left) presenting at Mumbrella360 last week
While there were some categories that naturally lend themselves to helping people make progress — like banking or health and wellness — Ryan said they shouldn’t feel comfortable in “just doing what [they’re] doing”.
“If you’re in a category where you already have that advantage, just doing what you’re doing is not good enough, you’re expected to do that. You might play a pretty solid role in people’s lives, in their progress, but there’s probably a lot more you can do.”
She also stressed it was important not to dismiss the ‘underdogs’.
“Some categories are being reframed in a way that they become part of people’s progress, they are putting that effort in to insert themselves authentically. Whether that be actually helping with the progress or simply acknowledging a person’s ability or achievements, is a great way to frame a category.”
Take Mars Wrigley as an example.
In 2023, Mars launched a brand platform celebrating the little, everyday achievements, championing people by positioning the chocolate bar as being a reward. Then earlier this year, ‘For You Who Did That Thing You Did’ was turned into a campaign with Amazon Australia to literally reward people with a free Mars bar.
Regardless of whether a category has a deficit or an advantage, TRA shared some principles marketers should be using to help people progress.
The first is to provide clear, actionable tools and resources.
“We talk about finance and banking naturally being a category of advantage, we expect banks to help us progress, but how you can, as the bank’s marketer, reframe how exactly you can help with that,” Hall said.
Brands should also provide community for progress for the collective, or incorporate personal development into their services.
“Building a community around your brand could turn into your core purpose, creating a community for progress is a way to connect with people and make them feel supported.”
Other principles included encouraging progress through storytelling — especially through marketing campaigns — and positioning a brand as a true ally to progress by celebrating milestones or offering incentives for the small steps.
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Lauren McNamara is the associate editor at Mumbrella, covering the agency beat. She joined in November 2022 as editorial assistant, after completing a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) at UTS.
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