FMCG consumer content preferences 2014A consumer’s view of content marketing in the UK

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IntroductionA leading content and communications agency,

at Me.jpmh we commission original consumer research to help us improve the insight we bring to

the work we do for our clients. Because we believe that consumers are more in control of the marketing relationship

than ever before, asking them what they think just seems like best practice to us.

In a relatively short time content marketing has made it to the top of many brands’ priority lists. A tried-and-tested sales pillar for B2B

communications, 2014 has been the year that B2C fully embraced content marketing. In fact, according to the Content Marketing Institute’s

most recent figures, 97% of UK B2C marketers are now developing at least some content as part of their marketing mix.*

Because it had become such a hot topic, we’ve read a lot of articles and reports that focussed on the marketing industry’s view of this

communications format. But what seemed to be missing from all the talk and analysis was the consumers’ perspective on it all.

So we decided to ask them. And what we discovered was often surprising.

Methodology

We asked 600 adults (18+), all responsible for their household’s weekly grocery shop, about their attitudes to advertising and digital content. The research was conducted online and responses were weighted to be nationally representative.

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Objectives

• To discover UK FMCG consumer attitudes to, and trust for, traditional advertising

• To discover UK FMCG consumer attitudes to, and trust for, content marketing

• To understand the impact of content marketing on FMCG purchase decision-making

• To explore UK FMCG consumer use of content marketing by category

• To explore UK FMCG consumer content preferences by channel

*Content Marketing in the UK: 2013 Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends

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Contents

Consumers’ trust in traditional advertising is fragile

FMCG consumers trust content marketing more than advertising

Content marketing influences buying decisions at every stage along the path to purchase

Content preferences depend on the category

FMCG consumers expect certain types of content from specific channels

Consumers are a Brand’s best ambassadors

What next?

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trust onlineadvertising

trust radioadvertising

29%40%

trust outdoor and billboards

trust printadvertising

42%trust TV

advertising

49%

41%

Consumers’ trust in traditional advertising is

fragile

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We asked grocery consumers about their attitudes toward traditional advertising and found that trust is perilously low. 54% of our audience said they distrusted all adverts and 58% claimed they would avoid all advertising if they could.

At a channel level, trust for traditional advertising falls even lower. Our research audience considered online advertising the least trustworthy format, with only 29% of consumers reporting any faith in it at all. And while print and radio ads fared moderately better, they still only achieved consumer trust scores of just 42% and 40% respectively.

To really explore FMCG consumers’ attitudes to content marketing, first we needed to understand how they felt about more traditional communications methods.

FMCG Consumers’ trust in advertising formats

Source: What’s in it for Me. Consumer report 2014: Base UK Adults, FMCG consumers 305

Base 3054

70%object to being

interrupted by ads

hate being told what to buy

75%70%just tune ads out

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of men would avoid all ads if

they could

61%of women would avoid all ads if

they could

55%

Disruption creates distrust

Good ads are disruptive and deliver strong calls to action, right? Consumers disagree. With so much information and content available to consumers, they have become increasingly selective about how and where they spend their time. And they don’t like to be interrupted.

In fact 70% of grocery consumers told us they hate being interrupted by advertising, while 75% particularly object to being told what to buy. And this is increasingly becoming a challenge for traditional advertisers – just how do you get consumers’ attention when most simply tune ads out?

But it’s not all bad news. Despite their reservations, it seems that consumers maintain a love/hate relationship with the medium - and 53% of respondents admit to thinking life would be duller without it!

FMCG consumer attitudes to advertising

Source: What’s in it for Me. Consumer report 2014: Base UK Adults, FMCG consumers 602

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things every marketer should know

about content marketing’s hottest prospects

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74% of 18-24 year olds trust content marketing

46% of younger Twitter users follow FMCG brands

They are generally more likely to share branded content on all platforms

FMCG consumers trust content marketing

more than they trust advertising*

29%

Among Facebook users, 50% follow FMCG brands

Of those, 35% visit FMCG brand Facebook pages to check out peer reviews before they buy

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43% of those visiting YouTube had checked out a brand video in the previous month

They believe content marketing impacts their purchasing decisions more than any other demographic

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According to our survey, grocery consumers of all ages trust content marketing more than advertising, although faith in all formats declines as they get older. But for those aged 18-24 (and particularly young men), content marketing has become an accepted and familiar way to discover and research brands.

We also found that men are 15% more likely to trust content marketing than they are advertising messages. And generally, families report a preference for content marketing when compared to those without children.

With trust for traditional advertising so low, our next step was to discover how that compared to consumers’ attitudes to content marketing.

*Net trust of advertising vs net trust of content marketing

Source: What’s in it for Me. Consumer report 2014: Base UK Adults, FMCG consumers 602

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40% 80% Strongly DistrustDistrustTrustStrongly Trust

FMCG consumer trust in advertising vs content marketing

Source: What’s in it for Me. Consumer report 2014: Base UK Adults, FMCG consumers 602

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Trust declines with age

Content marketing influences buying decisions at every stage along the

path to purchase

So, if consumers are more trusting of content marketing, does it actually influence their FMCG purchasing decisions?

Our survey found that half of grocery consumers believe content marketing has a direct, positive influence over what they buy, and they look for different content at a variety of inspiration points when deciding which product to purchase.

While the majority of consumers expect great content from brands they use regularly, ever greater numbers also rely on content much earlier in their decision making process - particularly when it comes to brand discovery, awareness, evaluation and comparison.

77%Discovery

76%Evaluation

74%Awareness

77%Usage

66%Loyalty

61%Comparison

How FMCG consumers rate impact of content marketing on purchasing decisions

Source: What’s in it for Me. Consumer report 2014: Base UK Adults, FMCG consumers 602

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Entertainment Customer Reviews Specific Product Information

Independent Expert Reviews General Category Information

Content preferences

depend on the category

If consumers are being influenced by all this content, all the time, we wanted to know what it was in particular that impacted their decisions when thinking about various FMCG categories.

We found that consumers have clear content preferences for different grocery categories and they are influenced by different types of content depending on the nature of the purchase.

It seems, for consumers, grocery purchases lie on a continuum, between impulse buys (like snacks and crisps) and more considered purchases (such as health foods and baby care products). As consideration increases, so does the depth of content consumers explore.

So while overwhelmingly preferring to let entertaining, fun content sway impulse purchases, our audience increasingly look for informative content like product information, peer reviews or independent expert content as purchase decisions become more considered.

Consumer content preferences by FMCG category

Source: What’s in it for Me. Consumer report 2014

Base UK Adults, FMCG consumers: Household cleaning products - 299, Personal care – 303, Healthy foods – 296, Pet food - 300,

Baby care – 302, Baby food – 301, Healthcare – 298, Snacks & crisps – 298, Confectionary – 309, Soft drinks - 304

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FMCG consumers expect specific types of content

from certain channels

30%

34%

25%

42%

53%

46%

60%

31%

24%

33%

24%

23%

22%

44%

58%

26%

23%

39%

45%

24%33%

31%

27%

41%

51%

Native content is such a hot topic that we had to ask if consumers’ content preferences changed depending on the platform they were using.

We found that consumers have very set ideas about the kinds of content they expect brands to deliver in specific social and digital channels. And because they visit particular platforms to engage with certain types of content, branded content needs to be appropriate to consumers’ channel use.

While our survey found entertainment content is generally preferred on social media channels like Facebook and Twitter, consumers report that product reviews, category information and product details become increasingly important when they visit brand websites, blogs and online news sources.

But, while consumers report content preferences for different channels, ultimately category content preferences trump those of channel.

Entertainment

Customer Reviews

Specific Product Information

Independent Expert Reviews

General Category Information

FMCG consumers’ expect specific types of

content from cer-tain channels

FMCG consumers’ content preferences by channel

Source: What’s in it for Me. Consumer report 2014

Base UK Adults, FMCG consumers: Facebook - 481, Twitter – 217, YouTube – 384, Online newspapers - 251, Online magazines – 115

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29%

55%

54%

42%

68%

General Category Information

Independent Expert Reviews

Specific Product Information

Customer Reviews

Entertainment

Brand websites are an essential content hub

92% of FMCG consumers reported visiting at least one brand website in the previous month. And, according to our survey, they came with some very clear expectations about the content they wanted to find there. Overwhelmingly, consumers reported visiting brand sites to find specific product information first, closely followed by general category information and then customer reviews. Interestingly, entertaining content like online games or funny videos ranked low in consumers’ content expectations here, with just 29% of our survey group saying they looked for it on brand sites.

FMCG Consumers’ content expectations of brand websites

Source: What’s in it for Me. Consumer report 2014: Base UK Adults, FMCG consumers: 268

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Consumers are a Brand’s

best ambassadors

Recognisable Person Who Owns or Runs Company

Someone Involved in Making the Product

Independent Experts

Real customers

Actors

Unknown Person Who Owns or Runs Company

9%

9%

21%

35%

56%

70%

And finally, we wanted to know if grocery consumers had a preference when it came to the ‘face’ of branded content.

Consumers say they look for authenticity when it comes to branded content. According to our survey, 70% of grocery consumers prefer to see real customers as the ‘face’ of branded content, with independent experts a near second at 56%.

However, if a company representative is essential for your content message, consumers clearly prefer to see real people involved in the production of your product to a company owner or CEO.

FMCG consumers’ preferences for the ‘Face’ of branded content

Source: What’s in it for Me. Consumer report 2014: Base UK Adults, FMCG consumers: 297

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What next?

With trust in traditional advertising waning, our survey found that content marketing offers brands a trusted, impactful and effective alternative for connecting with FMCG consumers. But one size doesn’t fit all when it comes to creating content that converts.

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Grocery consumers have an appetite for branded content – but they engage with it on their own terms. And while we found trust in content marketing to be higher than traditional advertising, consumers’ engagement with branded content depends on a number of factors which vary by category, platform and demographic.

However, while the consumer’s digital journey and content preferences may vary depending on product or purchase type, critically we found that FMCG consumers do believe content has real power to influence purchase decisions at every stage along their path to purchase, from awareness through to loyalty. This directly contradicts the popular view that content marketing is primarily an evaluation tool.

Nevertheless, hitting the right audiences with the right content in the right place and at the right time isn’t straightforward. Our survey identified that the right content marketing mix for any grocery product can be as individual as consumers themselves, with age, gender and even geographic location all playing a part in consumers’ content choices.The new challenge for brands is creating tailored content that meets the needs of personalised

audiences at key inspiration points along their purchase journey. This content should be delivered on consumers’ preferred platforms, but with a particular focus on those most appropriate to the product category. That’s a lot of variables, requiring a bespoke strategy that changes for every brand. And for many, this can be daunting.

And while our survey outlines some distinct areas where content marketing presents significant new opportunities for forward-thinking brands, it also offers some clear warnings. Perhaps most essential to content producers, our survey suggests that 74% of FMCG consumers still can’t always tell the difference between advertising and content marketing! And while this may be partly due to the novelty of the medium, it seems to have more to do with the quality of much of the content currently produced.

If brands are to get the most from content marketing, they must first recognise that effective content is not just a subset of traditional advertising, but an entirely different format with its own rules, conventions and standards. Until they do, consumers will continue to just tune them out.

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About

Me.jpmh is the content and communications agency with an individual point of view. Because we insist on looking at brands through the eyes of the people who buy them, we invest in original consumer research to help us improve the quality of our insight and create more effective work.

We have more than 10 years experience working with international, blue-chip companies to deliver bespoke customer engagement strategies for highly targeted audiences around the world. And in that time we’ve come up with some great ways to create content that reaches the right people, in the right places and at the right time. Every time.

Our unique planning and creative process allows us to get even closer to consumers, and we are proud of our reputation for creating content strategies that engage across every channel, category and demographic.

We don’t just walk a mile in your customers’ shoes. We make sure we jog, run and dance in them too. And then confirm our insights with hard data to identify the right audiences and the right opportunities for our clients as they arise. As a result we create award-winning work that gets noticed. Not just tuned out. To discover more from our report’s findings, get in touchEmail nik.myers@me-jpmh.agency

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