In this day and age the value consumers put on products is drastically changing, with experiences being valued more than material possessions. In a recent study by Barclaycard, more than half of consumers would rather spend on a good experience instead of buying material goods, such as clothes of other accessories. These same people are then more likely to spread the word about the brand that provided them that experience instead of a brand just producing physical goods. This new value allocation by consumers has spurred the growth of the experience economy.
This study by Barclaycard was based on a survey consisting of 2,000 British adults and 250 businesses, during June and July 2018. The results derived from the survey stated that 52% of UK consumers preferred paying for an experience instead of a material good. While 83% of the people placed high importance on receiving value for money, 81% stated that the experience a brand provided was equally as important if not more. These results clearly show a shift in what is demanded by consumers and that brands need to adapt or take advantage of these changes to stay relevant.
The conclusions of this study were best stated by the Barclaycard head of sponsorship Daniel Mathieson, who said “To create long-lasting relationships brands need to offer more than the best product or service – they need to tap into consumers’ hearts and minds too. Our data shows that consumers now seek out entertainment above all else when deciding how to spend their money, so focusing on seizing this opportunity should be priority.”
He also elaborated on how these brands could take advantage; “By providing something extra, whether that’s engaging with music fans by being present at their favourite festival or creating pop-up stores in new locations, brands that are part of shaping meaningful and shareable memories will be the ones that thrive in an experience-led economy.”
In this experience-led economy brands need to reinvent the way they target consumers. This could be through setting up pop-up shops at different locations or adding value somehow in the stores that already exist. It’s all about how they integrate an experience within their existing product as the results show they will see a significantly increase in their organic marketing. This is even more so important in the food and beverage industry as consumers feel that the product its self does not give them enough value, it needs ‘something extra’.
On the businesses’ end, they have now realised the importance of providing an experience to help improve the brand viability. With many already diverting budgets towards integrating experiences and 40% of the business surveyed looking to do so in the near future.
This clearly shows that a little disconnect exists between consumers and brands currently. If brands are not quick and do not adapt to these new market changes then they are letting go of an exciting opportunity to grow. Barclaycard itself has decided to become part of this experience- led economy by partnering up with Live Nation, which sees sponsorship of eight music festivals across the UK and includes benefits such as 2019 festival pre-sales and 10% back at the checkout when you buy through Barclaycard Entertainment.
