As marketing challenges go, the cost-of-living crisis is a particularly problematic one.
With Britain facing its worst drop in living standards since the gloomy post-war years, a new set of complex issues and sensitivities has arisen, with brands of all categories adapting their marketing and advertising strategies as they battle to remain both relevant and socially responsible.
Striking the right tone with cash-strapped customers, many of whom are living week-to-week, has become key. After all, why should they buy from a business that appears to neither know or care what they’re going through?
Arguably, the cost-of-living crisis has had the single biggest impact of any event on the industry since the dark days of the Covid pandemic.
Most sectors have been impacted by the soaring cost-of-living in one way or another, but some – such as supermarkets and energy companies – have had to constantly align their messaging to avoid being entirely out of touch.
How have brands responded to the challenge of the cost-of-living crisis?
Businesses have had to show adaptability and ever-increasing flexibility in the face of a unique set of socio-economic complexities. The cost-of-living crisis has however created new opportunities, particularly in the energy sector; which is currently registering record profits in the face of intense criticism.
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Non-profit organisation Smart Energy GB has been set up to oversee the widespread roll-out of smart meters to help the British public become more energy-efficient in the face of the cost-of-living crisis.
Strategy director Joe Smith says its entire business model is based around helping people save money.
“Our goal is to increase consideration of smart meters by raising awareness of the fact that they could help reduce our reliance on imported gas. This message currently increased relevance to our audience due to the war in Ukraine and the increased uncertainty around energy supply and prices across the world.”
Charities such as the Dogs Trust have also needed to adapt, with the organisation now facing unprecedented demand for its services due to the ongoing cost-of-living crisis. Senior planner at creative agency VCCP, Rufus Neville, tells us that – in response to the 50% increase in re-homing enquiries it has received – the charity has launched a new TV spot in a bid to play a “more active role” in dog and dog owner’s lives.
“When the cost-of-living crisis hit, a forgotten victim was the UK’s dogs, who were being given up in large numbers due to owners’ inability to pay for their pets,” he says.
“We therefore set out on a campaign to demonstrate that if you are an owner struggling to look after your dog, Dogs Trust is available to support you however it can. Simply, we wanted to protect owners’ relationship with their dogs.”
These heightened economic tensions inevitably lead to an entirely new set of issues facing marketing departments as they devise their newest campaigns.
Brands naturally want to display an empathetic and supportive outlook to their customers, but must be wary of appearing patronising or – even worse – insincere.
The importance of hitting the right tone
“One of the key challenges with our marketing in the past 12 months has been getting the tone right,” Smart Energy GB’s Smith says.
“The energy crisis and broader cost of living crisis have put considerable strain on millions of people around Britain. All brands need to be mindful of this context, but it has been particularly important for us, when talking directly about energy usage.
“Our research has not pointed us towards serious advertising, however. People still want to be entertained and humour remains an important lever to pull. The key is finding the right balance.”
It is this need for balance between the importance of a message and the tactfulness of its delivery that VCCP also sought to address with its campaign for the Dogs Trust.
Focused on enabling the public to keep their pets – rather than just operating as a re-homing charity – the campaign shows a whole new side to the Dogs Trust’s operation.
“We were careful to not make any owner feel guilty if they did need to give up their dog, for any reason,” says Neville.
“It isn’t their fault and sometimes it can’t be avoided. But we wanted to make sure we were there for them. We also knew that during times like these, it is especially important for Dogs Trust’s famous positivity to shine through – we wanted to show the positive power dogs have in our lives, leaving the audience feeling joy about the relationship they have with their dog, rather than sadness or worry about the situation they face.”
The current cost-of-living difficulties have also led to a wholesale change in the way that organisations engage with consumers. Current events have evolved at such a pace that an advert featuring Albert Einstein vaunting the benefits of smart meters to protect Britain from Russian aggression in global energy markets has become normal.
Getting the balance right
When addressing the economic downturn head on, brands must tread a fine line between showing support for their customers and remaining politically neutral. Smith explains: “Our messaging is designed to be helpful rather than political.
“We have a responsibility to speak to the whole of Great Britain, regardless of age, gender, location, wealth or politics. Our focus is on helping everyone make smarter choices that could help save energy and money.”
It’s a similar story for the Dogs Trust as families battle with balancing rising energy and shopping bills against the rising costs of vets fees and pet food; a situation which is leading many families to make impossible choices concerning their pets.
Although the charity’s messaging has remained steadfastly neutral, it has grown increasingly personal. Marketing director, Nick Daniels, says: “Demand for our services has significantly increased, all good advertising needs to be relevant but for us it’s more a case of the cost of living impacting the charity and our marketing approach reacting accordingly.
“We are now getting over a thousand enquiries a week from owners in desperate circumstances asking to hand over their dogs. in order to be there for all dog owners we are driving awareness of the alternative and new services we’re offering. If the campaign works in raising awareness, it helps to keep as many dogs as possible with their current loving families.”
With the UK now predicted to be the only G7 economy predicted to shrink over the coming 12 months – it is expected to return to 2019 numbers by the end of 2026 – it would seem that economic hardship is set to become the norm.
Less than three years ago the industry was just starting to consider that pandemic-appropriate messaging might become the so-called ‘new normal’ – and yet another seismic shift has already taken place within British society, with the cost-of-living crisis set to dictate the tone and pace of UK marketing until at least the back end of the 2020s.
