 |
|
|
|||||
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair. Those words written by Charles Dickens are surprisingly on point, despite the author being dead for well over a century. We continue to live in febrile and perplexing times with many of us expecting to see all four horses of the apocalypse over the horizon at any time. Confidence, so central to peoples willingness to spend, is at best fragile. Our two biggest global economiesthe United States and Chinaare on the back foot and were all feeling the impact. As consumers, were increasingly resentful, angry, and ready to withhold our hard-earned cash. Not only has peoples trust in many institutions diminished in recent years, according to a recent study conducted in 28 countries, a staggering 61% of those surveyed hold grievances against government, business, and the wealthy due to perceived inequalities and unfairness. The list of causes for peoples concerns is growing fastfrom geopolitics to the cost-of-living crisis, misinformation and disinformation, bad actors, and the dizzying speed of technological change, including the rapid rise of AI, to name just a few. Also growing is the need for a marketplace response, specifically from the brands and organizations that are the primary drivers of action, and in which consumers still invest a degree of trust. What brands need to do Brands should listen, empathize, and demonstrate, not just with words, but with tangible actions that they understand their customers and can support them in achieving what they want. However, in todays challenging climate this might not be enough. When consumers are feeling so aggrieved, I see three actions that can help brands move consumer sentiment in a more positive direction. Make the first move, however small In challenging times, an entrenched position can seem appealing. Yet an Im right, youre wrong, you dont understand defensive mindset often brings inertia. When the company makes the first move and bends a little, it can be easier to move things forward. For example, in 2018, KFCs UK operation almost collapsed when it ran out of chicken. The companys FCK campaign made international news; to make amends, KFC ran an apology ad rearranging the letters of its name to spell out FCK on a chicken bucket. This response, which harnessed humility, humor, and honesty, was well-received and showed how timely communication and gestures can make all the difference. Contextual adaptability is more valuable than ever, especially as younger audiences gravitate toward brands rooted in community and co-creation. Transparency matters, but what truly sets brands apart today is how they respond and adapt once the reactions start kicking in. That is where real connection and loyalty are built. Duolingo recently faced backlash over its new AI-first policy, which clashed with the human touch users expect from the category, and especially from such a personality-driven brand. While transparency was a good start, their responsedeleting posts and posting a tone-deaf attempt at humorcame off as insincere and dismissive. What was missing was genuine openness and willingness to adapt. By listening to feedback and engaging with users concerns, Duolingo could have turned criticism into a chance to build trust and further strengthen their cult-like following. Demonstrate you understand what matters A key pillar of conflict resolution is demonstrating that you understand what matters. Its also a central component of brand buildingand one thats even more important at a time when customers are rife with anger and resentment. Showing empathy in difficult times does more than offer immediate reassurance, it creates a powerful ripple effect. Seen optimistically, it is a rare opportunity for brands to earn lasting customer loyalty and brand resonance. Today, technology enables an unprecedented array of ways to leverage greater customer personalization to demonstrate a brands appetite to serve and move things forward in audience-relevant ways. IKEA, for example, leverages data and consumer research to support their customers through the cost-of-living crisis. They actively work to make products more affordable to match local and individual tastes. They also track visits and clicks on their online store to ensure they manage the price reductions while keeping an eye on their own long-term financial sustainability. In addition, their knack for quickly bringing trends like dopamine décor, kidulting, and bed-rotting to life in their stores helps them connect with their audiences, providing them with some much-needed joy and comfort, while times feel bleak. Create a sense of togetherness It takes time to ease frayed nerves, misconceptions, and mistrust. Great storytelling and tone are tangible markers of a companys commitment to its customers. Volvos recent EX90 For Life ad, which imagines how an unborn childs future could be erased without the brands groundbreaking safety technology, is a human story universally relatable, yet directly brand-relevant. It powerfully demonstrates how finding and cultivating points of connection with your customer are the secret to building, maintaining, and energizing any productive relationship with consumers. Engaging, uniting, and connecting is central to us as humans and necessary to build and re-build trust. The same applies to brands and the businesses behind them. Geopolitics and economic volatility are beyond any single businesss control. Yet, in the current climate, brands that bear down on each interaction and experience at every touchpoint will move consumer sentiment onto more positive ground. Sairah Ashman is global CEO of Wolff Olins.
Category:
E-Commerce
It turns out eliminating the paper or plastic question through plastic bag regulation is effectively reducing the number of bags found in shoreline litter across the United States. A new analysis of shoreline cleanup data finds that areas with plastic bag bans or consumer fees have fewer bags turning up in their litter. The research offers some of the strongest evidence yet that regulating plastic bag use makes a difference in reducing the amount of plastic waste in marine ecosystems. A heightened threat to marine wildlife We find, largely, that all the regulations do show a decrease in plastic bag litter as a share of total litter on these shores, says Kimberly Oremus, co-author of the research paper and an assistant professor of marine science and policy at the University of Delaware. The total reduction ranged between 25% and 47%, the study found. About 20 metric tons of plastic end up in the environment each year, estimates the International Union for Conservation of Naturethat amounts to over 2.4 kilograms of plastic for each person on Earth. Plastic bags are particularly prevalent in marine ecosystems. They are very difficult to recycle and, because they are lightweight and have a large surface area for wind to catch, they blow out of the trash and into the environment at higher rates than other plastic items, says Erin Murphy, the ocean plastics science and research manager at the environmental advocacy nonprofit Ocean Conservancy, who was not involved in the research. She added that in 2024 alone, the conservancys International Coastal Cleanup volunteers gathered up more than a million plastic bags. In addition to getting into the environment at high rates, plastic bags also pose a heightened threat to marine wildlife. Wildlife can become entangled in or smothered by these bags or can mistake them for food, like jellyfish, a favorite among many species. These interactions with plastic can lead to the deaths of endangered and common animals alike and can even contribute to broader population declines. Counting the plastic bags One big challenge in studying the effects and regulations of plastics is actually measuring this pollutant in the environment, says Anna Papp, co-author of the research paper. To overcome this challenge, the study used crowd-funded data from beach cleanups. The data was collected by the Ocean Conservancy as part of their Trash Information and Data for Education and Solutions (TIDES) project. Nearly 19 million people have participated in the data collection worldwide. The study also examined plastic bag policies at various geographical scales between 2017 and 2023. The earliest plastic bag policies in the U.S. were implemented around 2007, researchers say, but an uptick in the mid-2010s more directly led to the policies analyzed in the study. While the data provides insight into how the share of plastic bags found among shoreline litter has changed due to policy measures, an important caveat remains: Plastic litter has been increasing overall. Plastic production doubled from 234 million to 460 million tons between 2000 and 2019and without mitigation, it is only expected to rise, according to a recent report from the French-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Some regulations are better than others Still, the researchers noted that not all regulations worked equally well. Total bans and consumer fees resulted in greater decreases than partial bans, which still allow businesses to use thicker, potentially reusable plastic bags. The researchers also found that regulation was most effective in places that had a high baseline of plastic bag litter before the bans or fees went into place. The study data seems to indicate that consumer fees were the most effective option for mitigating plastic bag litter, though the paper’s authors say more research is needed to confirm this finding. These policies are effective, but theyre not a panacea for all plastic litter, Oremus said. Anyone whos looking at regulations for plastic broadly needs to think beyond just the consumption side of plastic.
Category:
E-Commerce
If your anxiety before a big test or a high-stakes presentation has ever kept you up at night, you can rest easier knowing that scientists are trying to get to the bottom of matters. A new study published this month in The Journal of Neuroscience explores how stress interferes with sleep, causing cascading negative effects on memory and other cognitive processes. By pinpointing the specific neural mechanisms involved in stress-related memory problems and sleep disruptions, scientists hope to figure out stress-zapping treatments in the future. A group of researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicines Chronobiology and Sleep Institute simulated human stress in lab mice, restraining the animals so they couldnt move. They then observed the animals neural activity while they slept and gave the mice a spatial memory test. Much like a human who gets stressed out before a big test, the mice slept poorly and showed memory deficits. The researchers went on to simulate the effects of the stress scenario without actually restraining the mice. By activating neurons that release the stress hormone corticotropin in a specific part of the hypothalamus known as the paraventricular nucleus, the research team stressed out the mice and later observed the same sleep and memory issues as if the animals had actually been restrained. When they blocked the same stress hormone-releasing neurons during the stress-inducing event, the mice slept a little better and had significantly less trouble during their spatial memory testa hopeful clue in helping to understand how to mitigate the problems that stress creates in the human brain. The researchers called the findings on the pathways of corticotropin-releasing hormone neurons in that region of the hypothalamus an important step toward improving sleep and ameliorating cognitive deficits associated with stress-related disordersa conclusion that anyone tired of having that one same stress dream can definitely get behind.
Category:
E-Commerce
All news |
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||