Review:
Why are people shopping, and buying, the way they do? The Soul of the New Consumer intriguingly explores today's marketplace reality, along with ways that businesses can adapt to keep pace. Authors David Lewis and Darren Bridger--chairman and head of retail research, respectively, at an international consulting firm--suggest that consumers in years past were "conformist in their purchasing patterns and motivated largely by a desire for convenience." But these days, they write, an increasing number are independent, informed, and distrustful of anything that does not ring true. Manufacturers, suppliers, and service providers hoping to stay on top of the market should therefore find their subsequent analysis and accompanying suggestions both thought-provoking and practical. They include: utilizing unique design to make products original (such as the low-priced wristwatches that grab buyers through novel appearance); spotlighting charismatic leaders to boost a company's credibility (such as Richard Branson at Virgin and Anita Roddick at The Body Shop); building trust in specific market areas and among individual consumers (through specialization and personalized messages); and striving for sincere buzz rather than phony hype (as exemplified by successful low-budget promotions for The Blair Witch Project versus failed big-dollar campaigns for Godzilla). --Howard Rothman
About the Author:
Dr. David Lewis is chairman of The David Lewis Consultancy, an international research firm with clients including Disney, Coca-Cola, Amazon, IKEA, L'Oreal, Toyota, British Airways, British Telecom, ICL and IBM. He lectures in Europe, the USA and Asia on management topics, with a special emphasis on relationships between suppliers and their customers. Darren Bridger is a researcher at The David Lewis Consultancy.
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