Beyond Offers and Savings Emotion

Seriously competitive tactics, generally in the form of offers, virtually tumbled from the pages of the fall/holiday catalog assortment.

But did the featured ideas really reflect how consumers are thinking these days? Savings were liberally splashed about, but there’s no doubt that consumers are value hungry. Still, it’s just as safe a bet that we’re missing equally compelling motivators.

Authenticity. Honesty. Comfort. Connection. These are some of the words used by J. Walker Smith, president of Yankelovich Inc. and a fellow Direct columnist, to describe consumer needs today. Yankelovich, a marketing consultancy, uses research and other methods to understand the impact attitudinal and lifestyle drivers have on the marketplace. Based on that information, Yankelovich believes that home is now a hive of activity rather than a cocoon of protection. What’s more, consumers don’t want to be inundated by messages