Would you be bothered if one of your favourite brands vanished off shelves overnight? Or would you just move on to the next?
According to new research from Cognizant, chances are you wouldn’t care.
The study, which surveyed 400 Australians found almost half were indifferent about the thought of losing a beloved brand.
It reveals ‘the decline of the brand’ in modern retail.
Customers are swapping out brand loyalty for a desire to know they’re getting “the best” product or service.
This means commercial messages have less sway and social media and apps have more, according to Cognizant.
“The AI-augmented customer is changing the very meaning of ‘brand” and the resonance of a ‘brand name’.”
Cognizant attributes some of these modern consumer behaviours with the rise of digitisation.
Who do you trust?
Consumers are now always-connected and tech-savvy, meaning they have new levels of intelligence at their fingertips at all times, forging a sense of scepticism.
But with the rise of technology comes changes to the way we shop.
Around 40 per cent of respondents revealed they would buy a brand they had never heard of if it was recommended to them by Siri, Alexa or Hey Google.
As a result, Cognizant describes voice interfaces as “the new gatekeepers”.
“Based on our research, we believe traditional companies will need to overhaul their digital infrastructure for voice, restructure their go-to-consumer strategies, redefine the customer experience and recreate content to win customers in the future,” says Cognizant in the report.
“Great products and services alone won’t cut it – companies have to go the extra mile.”
However, human recommendations are still valued, eight out of ten Australian consumers (79 per cent) are influenced by recommendations from family and friends, and seven out of ten (68 per cent) by online ratings and reviews.
