The opportunity for brands is to identify and attract potential shoppers by diverting spend away from competitive brands. Targeting based on real-world purchase behaviours can deliver a measurable improvement in advertising performance.
We know that even the most famous brands have significantly more non-buyers than buyers... so it follows that the primary goal of any marketer is to grow a brand by finding the best way to attract more of those non-buyers.
However, there will always be category buyers that will remain disinterested in your brand. The barriers to buying (or even being considered) are varied but, typically, disrupting disinterested people requires a solution that goes beyond just advertising.
The good news is, there are still plenty of category buyers today that could be buying your brand, and with the right message at the right time, it’s possible to significantly increase the chances of conversion. We know who they are and can help brands to find them.
We call this group the Receptives. People who have probably bought your brand in the distant past. They are shoppers who generally like and can afford to pay for brands across a variety of categories. Effectively, your brand will already be in their consideration set.
Receptives will be the people who will replace lost buyers and, if attracted in greater numbers, will drive your brand growth.
Our real-world shopping data tells us exactly who is and who isn’t buying brands in a given category and those surrounding it. We know by looking over longer time periods who should be in the consideration set – and who could be taking your brand home, if they were given just a little bit of a nudge.
In China, we helped an international FMCG brand identify their Receptives, delivering a 15% conversion rate uplift and a 10% boost in average spend though increased engagement in bigger pack sizes.
In the UK, we worked with m/SIX and its client Tate & Lyle to promote the joys of golden syrup to people who eat porridge. Using our purchase panel, we identified key targets based on people buying both sachets and porridge oats. Reaching out to these Receptives in a targeted manner delivered a sales uplift that was 2.9 times the market average.
Digital targeting gives brands the opportunity to reach the right consumers and boost sales. Where demographic targeting is not working or is too expensive, focusing on Receptives can be more efficient, and it will help to find new and lapsed buyers.
Thinking about Receptives also enables brands to think more tactically than ever before about where to allocate budget, ensuring targeted messages play the powerful role your brand needs them to.
It’s time to be more receptive to the potential of the Receptives.