Brands “doing good” are more appealing to women than men, and the consumer demand for “good” contributions to the world is high across the board.
That’s according to a new study from creative agency, Leo Burnett Australia, which also finds that 90 per cent of women want brands that they consume to do some good in the world, compared to 86 per cent of men.
The small study of just over 1000 Australians, completed by YouGov Australia, showed women had a higher percentage than men in four key categories, with the majority saying they want brands to do good for the environment (79 per cent of women vs 73 per cent of men), to do good for people (84 per cent vs 79 per cent), to act with financial integrity (81 per cent vs 75 per cent) and to do good for society (77 per cent vs 73 per).
While the numbers show more women than men are concerned with brands doing good, the high percentage of men — higher than 70 per cent in each of the categories -– also points to the fact that, regardless of gender, consumers overall want to see more brands stepping up to the plate.
“Brand good can mean different things to different cohorts,” Catherine King, Leo Burnett Australia’s Chief Strategy Officer, said in a release on the study. “However the good that resonates most across all demographics, geographies and political leanings are financially related and reflect a collective concern around equity and inequality, cost of living and the economy.”
In the face of global economic downturn, nearly half of all Australians (47 per cent) believe the economic situation in the country will be worse off next year, and 30 per cent believe the same for their household financial situation.
Brands making positive financial good for the world is especially important to Australian consumers at the moment.
While the majority of corporate ESG initiatives focus on environmental and social causes, King says this 2022 Leo Burnett study, “has expanded our notions of ‘good’, demonstrating that consumers want to see greater transparency and accountability when it comes to business practices and brand practices.”
For women and men, the top two most important brand practices are: paying employees fairly and suppliers fairly; and having a zero-tolerance approach to corruption.
After that, 77 per cent of women report wanting a brand to ensure no one was exploited in the making of a product and 76 per cent of men want brands to pay the appropriate taxes in Australia.
These findings uncover a strong case for brands to ensure they’re taking these good practices seriously.
King says, “The objective of the study is to help brands better understand how they can meaningfully do good, and how to find and build specific audiences to fuel even more positive actions.”
For corporate Australia, the ways in which a brand can connect with people around financial integrity presents an opportunity and the top three acts of financial good that Australian consumers reported resonating with are: paying employees and suppliers fairly; having a zero tolerance for corruption; and paying the appropriate taxes.
Giving someone a “fair go” is also important to Australian consumers with the majority of respondents saying they value brands creating fairness and equity for all.
When it comes to social causes, providing education and learning facilities for all is of utmost importance to consumers.
And in the environmental realm, smaller actionable and achievable initiatives by brands resonate most. Consumers are looking to know that the brand they’re buying from is re-using, repairing and recycling as well as reducing the use of plastics and cleaning oceans and waterways.
While women are at the forefront of the demand for brands to do some good in the world, appeal is also coming from cohorts across the board with the vast majority of people (84 per cent) considering themselves “good consumers”.
“Doing good is an act of positive populism that can bridge geographic, demographic and even political divides,” says King. “Brand acts of good can influence the customer journey when it comes to creating demand, preference and NPS.”