Reality Check – Finding Good

“We’re just in different place right now. The whole world is” - Female, 45-54.

The last few years have been extremely unsettling for many of us. With the COVID hangover looming over everyone’s lives, and increasing financial pressures taking its toll, we as a nation are finding it difficult to remain upbeat about where life is heading.

Many of us are now reflecting on what truly matters in life, and reappraising which values make us feel good about ourselves and our decisions.

In our latest Reality Check ‘Finding Good’ report, we take a step away from some of the downbeat themes from the last few years and focus instead on a more positive question: what does good look like to different people? And how can brands get involved in celebrating, supporting, and encouraging us to be good in the future?

Changing values

Covid upheaval and the cost-of-living crisis have been challenging and reshaping our values. In a climate of economic uncertainty and concerns about the future, what matters to the people of the UK today?

Our study shows that the UK is currently experiencing an era of conformity, with security, safety, and community dominating our priorities. We are more concerned than ever about the people we love, and no surprise after the challenges of the last few years, are more risk averse than we used to be.  These priorities are now serving as the standards or criteria for how we evaluate, judge, and make decisions about the things we value in life.

The importance of these values in our lives, and the order in which they are ranked, changes and adapts organically over time. However, the extreme events of the last few years have accelerated the pace at which these changes occur. As these social values change, brands need to know which areas people are prioritising, so that actions and decisions can be made to future-proof offerings and to stay relevant to consumers’ lives.

When we first ran this survey back in 2019, the country had never felt so divided, with the repercussions of Brexit shaking our perceptions of the UK as a nation. More traditional values were in ascendancy in this period, whilst we debated what it meant to be British, and what our role as a country was within the EU. This period of division was shortly followed by the pandemic starting in early 2020. The pulling together of society, the weekly clapping of NHS heroes, the regulations that became everyday habits, have resulted in the value of conformity – not upsetting and harming others, sticking to the rules, behaving properly - skyrocketing from a middle-ranking priority, right up to become the nation’s number one value.

In our most recent survey, the cost-of-living crisis and energy price rises have caused (in some cases, forced) a drop in hedonism. Right now, indulging in and enjoying life’s pleasures is not a priority (or even a possibility) for many of us.

How should a good brand behave?

Our ‘Finding Good’ report also explores what exactly people think of when we talk about brands being ‘good’?

When it comes to being ‘good’, it isn’t simply about treating customers well. It extends to cover a wider range of societal issues and concerns, from fair wage to equality and tolerance, to crime.

What is evident is that people want brands to use their power and reach to help tackle pressing current issues such as the cost-of-living crisis, and in particular offering support to those most impacted – such as young families and other vulnerable groups.

It is also important to recognise that different audiences have different values and expectations when it comes to brands.

We found younger demographics tend to be more demanding and idealistic. They believe brands should be paying closer attention to big issues like education, independence, and divisions in society. Older audiences, in contrast, are more pragmatic and want brands to concentrate on concerns like the environment, fair wages, and obesity.

As consumers become much more money sensitive as the cost-of-living crisis wages on, a businesses’ financial conduct has become a top priority for us as consumers.

Factors such as financial issues topped the rankings when people were asked what made a brand ‘bad’. Evading tax (44%), paying board members significantly more than other staff (42%), and not paying employees a fair wage (39%) all topped the list, these issues were narrowly ahead of damaging the environment (39%).

Clearly opportunity does exist for those companies who are already looking after their workforce well, who are trying to support vulnerable groups, and who are actively being good citizens in trying times. The way brands conduct themselves can have a huge impact on public perception both today and when life finally returns to being a little more upbeat.

To find out more, you can read our Reality Check: Finding Good report in full here.