Can Insights Flourish More in Some Cultures than Others?
Much of the recognised canon in Marketing and Marketing Research has its roots in an Anglo-American mindset: that the customer is king. To clarify - the consumer.
It's a fundamental tenet propagated by American business schools and gurus.
It's repeated by successful 21st century business leaders such as Amazon's Jeff Bezos: shape a business by listening carefully and responding uncompromisingly to consumer needs.
Step outside of the Anglo-American area, and the mindset is often very different. The role of the end-customer is often far less powerful - individually, institutionally, culturally. It's an extremely important factor in how far Consumer Insights as a discipline has room to flourish. Here's my thoughts from a European perspective:
1. Service Doesn't Come naturally to all.
There are plenty of European cultures where the concept of listening to and responding to customer needs is regarded with suspicion, resented even. A service mentality is often equated with a sense of servility, of lowering oneself, something plenty of French and Germans are - for example - reluctant to engage in.
Curious to hear from those in Latin American, Asia Pacific (apologies for the geographical short-cut descriptors) and elsewhere - how is it in your geographies?
2. Respond to Change? Why?
One of the phrases you hear, or sense implicitly, in continental Europe is that "the customer simply has to understand".....Businesses, especially smaller ones or family owned ones, adhere rigidly to behavioural patterns that have become ingrained.
Responding to a new competitor, or competitive threat, is often neglected - new consumer needs? More often than not, businesses would seemingly prefer to become irrelevant than change.
The psychology is driven by extreme habitualisation - clinging to a familiar model, suspicious of the new - and by unfamiliarity with how strategic marketing can help.
3. Complain? As a Consumer??
Consumer feedback is central to insights. If, however, you are intimidated institutionally, and have internalised the need to shut-up when something is not right, then the process of dialogue between business and its core stakeholders is shaky.
Stand in a queue and suggest aloud that another cash desk might be open? Try this in Europe, and see how many people turn and stare at you - you may even get some comments suggesting not to try to come across as self-important and time-stressed. Don't you see that the cashiers also need their lunch breaks?
Many businesses are driven by "push" not "pull" - depending on sales folk getting in front of as many hot prospects as possible, with or without a CRM system. Driving topline sales is of course key to any healthy business. The drawback is that sales people only listen to customer wishes to the extent that it will close a sale, and that is very often price-related, discounts, rebates.
Underlying customer needs? Hmmm....that would require a re-think of a business model...or CAPEX commitment in supply chain to purchase new kit.
The above leads to an environment where the voice of the end-customer is regarded as a threat, a nuisance, a disruptor. Insights often are aligned to this - articulating needs that would imply strategic change. This in itself means investment and risk.
The implications for insights departments is that the space to influence strategically is fenced-in, with many MR projects likely to be tactical. The value-add is limited, which has negative knock-on implications when it comes to defining a Dollar value for the MR function.
What can insights people do to counter this?
Dominant cultures are strong forces, but by chipping away a with consumer-focused voice, it is possible to create islands of consumer-driven sub-culture. Here are some things to try if you are in an environment where the power of insights is only emerging:
Continually ask "why is that?", or "why not"? This gentle but direct method of challenging kicks-off a process of self-reflection that can be beneficial to near-fossilised mindsets.
Ask if it's the competition driving an activity rather than the real needs of end-users.
Audit your stakeholder audiences - find allies amongst those you discover to be nearest a consumer-driven mindset, align with their agenda, find a role where insights can add value.
Share success stories where listening to the consumer has made an impact - and where ignoring insights has led to mistakes being made.
It may seem an uphill struggle, one that takes energy and endurance, and one that is certainly way beyond the role and responsibilities of a traditional Market Research professional.
However, it's not only rewarding for those working in Insights to foster an end-user culture, it's inevitably going to benefit the business as a whole.The glass, in my view, is half-full - we need to top it up ;)
Curious, as ever, as to others' views.