Value with values

We’re at a point of dramatic global income divides and raging inflation in many parts of the world. Increasing prices and unemployment are top worries for people, and consumer pessimism is currently at levels worse than those seen at the beginning of the pandemic. This makes democratizing life’s necessities hugely important and very purposeful – people should be able to buy what they need.

The study shows that the general public believes it is very important that companies ‘Make things affordable for many people’. But it also shows that offering quality products and services is very important, and that a long range of sustainability aspects are as well. Price matters, but so do many other things, and to different groups.

And this trend is already a reality. Consumers are thinking hard about what they buy and migrating to discounters and value brands. Times like these cause people to question old loyalties. Companies and brands need to emphasize their worth, or risk being replaced.

This presents great opportunities for companies with purposes built around democratization that can offer both value and values. The challenge lies in understanding which values matter most to which customers and identifying value-balance trade-offs between needs and desires. For example, one hugely relevant trade-off which must be resolved is the friction between low-price and environmental sustainability.

The following companies scored high on associations related to caring for resources in Lynxeye Purpose Index™ Global 2023.

The challenge of ‘Making things affordable’ is shown to be a top priority for companies to tackle according to the general public in all seven markets surveyed in the study. It’s the only non-environmental challenge among the top tier ones where companies are delivering below expectations.