Consumer resistance to marketing is at an all-time high.
The saturated marketplace, intrusiveness of advertising and promotions and lack of appropriate targeting have caused the back-lash and have also caused the power and productivity of marketing efforts to plummet, according to a study by Yankelovich Partners, a marketing services consultancy based in Chapel Hill, NC.
Some 60% of consumers have a much more negative opinion on marketing and advertising now than a few years ago, the study found. Sixty-four percent questioned the practices and motives of marketers and advertisers and 61% reported that marketers and advertisers don’t treat consumers with respect. Even more unsettling, 65% want more limits and regulations on marketing and advertising and 69% are interested in products and services to help them skip or block marketing promotions. Thirty-three percent said they would be willing to slightly lower their standard of living to live in a world free of marketing and advertising.
He said guerilla marketing, intrusive ads covering every blank space and less targeted, less informational communications have created negative views that marketers have brought upon themselves.
To reverse the trend, marketers need to move away from the pattern of market saturation, clutter and intrusiveness to a model where the marketing practice itself is viewed as a source of competitive advantage, J. Walker Smith, president of Yankelovich, said during the American Association of Advertising Agencies Conference held last week.
“In practical terms, this means truly delivering precise and relevant messages geared toward specific individuals, while empowering consumers and providing reciprocity of some kind for their time and attention,” he was quoted as saying in a news report.
The study also found that:
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61% feel that the amount of marketing and advertising is out of control
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65% said they feel constantly bombarded with too much marketing and advertising
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59% feel that most marketing and advertising has very little relevance to them
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64% are concerned about practices and motives of marketers and advertisers
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61% feel that marketers and advertisers don’t treat consumers with respect
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65% think there should be more limits and regulations on marketing and advertising
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69% are interested in products and services that would help them skip or block marketing
The 2004 Yankelovich Monitor survey of 601 respondents age 16+ was fielded from February 20-29, 2004.
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