Tomorrows Consumer: Let's Get Personal
As a child I can remember trailing my Mum around the beauty department of the now practically obsolete House of Fraser, where she would ask advice from the soon to be obsolete Makeup Counter Assistant. This person would ask my Mum a couple of questions and then suggest products to her based on her skin type, which my Mum would then buy, confident that the assistant had recommended the perfect product for her from the vast array of available choices.
This was hardly a pioneering approach to personalisation, but it was effective. There are certain products which are particularly ripe for personalisation, and the beauty industry is leading the charge in the digital consumer age. In the place of the Makeup Counter Assistant, brands like Prose and Curology ask customers to build an online profile based on a series of questions or by uploading images. This information is then used to create fully personalised products (in some cases) or, more often than not, a curated product display which feels personal. Unlike House of Fraser, in this eCommerce version, the rest of the products sitting on the shelves are hidden from sight and the customer’s data are stored for future use.
Tomorrow’s Consumer will come to expect this level of service and curation across all product categories. Those who can personalise quickly and effectively in beauty, food and fashion in particular will be the big winners, because Tomorrow’s Consumers are most likely to spend on things which promise to make them look better and feel healthier.
Full personalisation is anathema to traditional FMCG models. This is a major challenge for brand owners. We have built a global industry and infrastructure around mass production. In food & beverage in particular the barriers to entry for large scale personalised products are high, meaning those who do succeed could win big. It may well be an opportunity for the incumbents, who have the capital to experiment in this area and the scale to make it work. In Japan, Nestle has piloted an at home DNA testing kit to produce smoothie capsules tailored to customers' specific needs. Products of this kind could become a highly lucrative, if not mass market.
Could the Star Trek Replicator one day be a reality?
If we believe in the future of food as medicine, the new potential market for personalised food and drink grows exponentially larger. Imagine a machine in your home that tracks your blood sugar, heart rate, hormone levels and other vitals, then produces a beverage designed to optimise your athletic performance, mood, or whatever else you desire.
A near future with this level of bespoke products is unlikely. However, a certain level of personalisation and curation is already possible. Brand owners must use data to iteratively and more rapidly produce new and better products for more targeted audiences, especially in a world where, for consumers, new is always better. By taking a lean approach to product development and marketing in a highly targeted manner online and offline, it is possible to do this without introducing significant margin pressure, especially since people are willing to pay more for a more personalised product. A more personalised digital experience may also combat the waning brand loyalty seen amongst Millennials.
It will also free up the precious time of unknown numbers of 7 year old boys no longer being dragged along on their Mum’s shopping trips - a win win!