Who knew the Manolo heels and Keen "Mary Janes" across the country could be so influential? When you look at the trends apparent in today's marketplace, from "green" to "authenticity," it is hard to deny that female consumers are leaving their footprints, whatever their style. But, there is a bigger picture shift, too -- in that a lot of the emerging trends reflect the reality that more consumers are buying "like women." Shoppers near and far, male and female, are taking a much more holistic view of how, why and what they purchase.
A recent AdWeek article by Carol Davies and Laurence Knight seems to spotlight this. Of the eight or so trends mentioned therein, there are several that indicate an underlying cultural leaning toward more all-encompassing and deliberate purchase decision-making processes. Though a woman's buying path, in particular, has long been described as the more complex, it may be the consuming way of the future altogether -- if Davies and Knight are on the mark (and I, for one, think they are).
Trends like "beyond green to transparent," "the rise of the male influencer" and "authenticity," as mentioned in the Davies/Knight piece, point to the mass market (not just women) becoming more aware of, and more dependent on, a brand's less linear elements.
Let's take the "green to transparent" trend, for one. While women may first have accepted the light green approach taken by brands, they just kept looking deeper into and through whatever spiel the corporation presented - and they kept asking a lot of questions. In so doing, women forced that trend into transparency. Green isn't enough. Women now demand all the information available, so they can gauge a brand's true environmental commitment and decide where their loyalties lay.
That's one reason the powers that be at Wal-Mart, for example, know they must go way beyond offering organic produce in order to reach this new consumer. They HAVE to listen to their buyers who, more and more, are all expecting a transparently green brand. Consumers are the ones forcing the retailer's hand on sustainability that goes from the shelves to the building/site design to the corporate culture. By influencing that one, huge brand to grow in a more sustainable direction, Wal-Mart's core female customers are establishing the norm for every shopper's expectations of any store or product. Woe to the brands that lag behind.
Now, before we go, let's look more closely at the "the rise of the male influencer" trend. Its description in the Adweek piece reminds me of comments made about the female influence a few years back. Consider...
From the Davies/Knight Adweek article, on the "male influencer" trend:
"No longer relegated only to stores like Home Depot, Best Buy and the car dealership, they will look for products-from shampoos to marinades -- and retail experiences that understand their unique and increasingly complex male points of view."
Switch the store and product references a bit, and you get a perspective on the women's market from, say 2000:
"No longer relegated to fashion and grocery retailers, women will look for products -- from cars to homes and consumer electronics -- that understand their unique and increasingly complex female point of view."
Do you see what I'm getting at?
These transparent/male influencer/authentic trends didn't come from nowhere. They began long ago with a walk in her shoes.