Shift Report- The New Variables

THE SHIFT REPORT
™

THE NEW VARIABLES™
The New Variables that are defining success and driving
people’s lifestyle choices, purchase decisions and brand
relationships

#THENEWVARIABLES

© Conscientious Innovation Ltd. 2013. All rights reserved. www.ci-shift.com | +1 604 877-1277 | info@ci-shift.com

#THENEWVARIABLES

THE NEW VARIABLES CONTINUE TO EXPAND PERMEATING
CONSUMERS LIFESTYLE CHOICES, PURCHASE DECISIONS AND
BRAND RELATIONSHIPS REPRESENTING AN OPPORTUNITY FOR
BRANDS.
On a consumer and cultural level, people continue to move towards an evolved set of variables that define
success and are guiding people’s lifestyle choices, brand relationships and purchase decisions. The
New Variables™ of integrity, authenticity, connection, consciousness, community and social responsibility
are increasingly reflected in what people care about today, how they are evaluating brand relationships,
making lifestyle choices and purchase decisions, according to The SHIFT Report.

These New Variables are the hallmarks of the cultural
shift to conscious consumerism, sustainability and
social responsibility. Increasingly consumers are
gravitating to brand, marketing and community
experience that deliver them with both substance
and style.

What’s meaningful to people today continues to
reflect The New Variables and peoples’ desire for a
sustainable, conscious, connected thriving life.

Those sustainability issues that are consistently
most important fall into the social and personal
sustainability pillars, versus being exclusive to the
environmental sustainability pillars only.

Copyright © 2013 Conscientious Innovation Ltd. 2

#THENEWVARIABLES

Those sustainable life issues that fall in the Environmental Sustainability pillar only and are exclusive of
Social, Personal and/or Spiritual Sustainability continue to rank lowest in importance for consumers. While
this by no means indicates that environmental sustainability issues such as global warming, or buying
environmentally friendly products are not important, when looked at in context of the lives people lead
and what is meaningful to them, those issues that fall exclusively into the Environmental Sustainability
pillar are continuously at the bottom of the hierarchy. The issues of importance to people today continue
to reflect a desire for a conscious, connected, thriving sustainable life, not necessarily a green life.

Sustainability: More than Green


#THENEWVARIABLES


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The New Variables™

95% 85% 69% 92%
Treating people around me Feeling connected to Want to know about In messages about their
ethically and with respect is my friends family and the socially responsible social responsibility efforts,
a way I action my attitudes community is important behavior of brands whose brands need to make sure
on sustainability and social products and services they they have the credibility to
responsibility every day buy. make such claims

66% 57% 57% 69%
Buying local and supporting Contributing to my Spiritual contentment and “What goes around comes
locally based business is community in the real world, support versus material around, call it karma if you
important not the internet is important contentment and support is like” is a driver behind
important making sustainable and
socially responsible lifestyle
choices and purchase
decisions

Source: The SHIFT Report 2012-2013


#THENEWVARIABLES

YEAR-TO-YEAR CONSISTENCY IN HIERARCHY OF
WHAT’S MEANINGFUL TO PEOPLE.
IN SUSTAINABLE LIFE ISSUES OVERALL WOMEN LEAD THE WAY AND MILLENNIALS NOT THE MOST
ENGAGED
The SHIFT Report reveals that across both the general population and demographic groups, there is
year-to-year consistency in the hierarchy of what’s meaningful to people today. Over the past five years
there has been little variance in this hierarchy of what’s important to people, with those issues that fall
into the Personal, Social and/or Spiritual Sustainability Pillars being the most important and those that
are exclusive to the Environmental Sustainability falling at the bottom of the hierarchy in terms of what
is important to people.

61% to 66%

58% to 50%

58% 50% 61% 66%

2008-2009 2012-13 2008-2009 2012-13

BIGGEST DECREASE IN THE PAST 5 YEARS BIGGEST INCREASE IN THE PAST 5 YEARS
GLOBAL WARMING GOES DOWN BUYING LOCAL AND SUPPORTING LOCALLY BASED
FROM 58% to 50% BUSINESS FROM 61% TO 66%
Source: The SHIFT Report 2012-2013 Source: The SHIFT Report 2012-2013


#THENEWVARIABLES

The sustainability issue with the biggest decrease in importance over the last five years is Global Warming.
The SHIFT Report shows that 58% of people indicated Global Warming as an important sustainability
issue in the 2008-2009 SHIFT Report quantitative study, compared with 50% in the 2012-2013 SHIFT
Report quantitative study. The sustainability issue with the biggest increase in importance over the last
five years is Buying Local and Supporting Locally Based Business. The SHIFT Report shows that 61%
of people indicated Buying Local and Supporting Locally Based Business as an important sustainability
issue in the 2008-2009 SHIFT Report quantitative study, compared with 66% in the 2012-2013 SHIFT
Report quantitative study. Both studies were fielded online with a 5,000 sample across the US (4,000) and
Canada (1,000) representative of the adult (18+) General Population.


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WOMEN DRIVE THE NEW VARIABLES
The SHIFT Report has tracked increasing marketplace chatter on the focus
on women and sustainability, CSR and positive impact. An increasing number
of women targeted brands position themselves around The New Variables™,
in particular authenticity, such as Dove (which was one of the first to do so).
The SHIFT Report validates this marketplace chatter revealing a significant
difference in how women rate sustainability issues as important, then men.
Across all sustainable life and CSR issues, women are more attitudinally
engaged then men. Furthermore, women are more behaviourally engaged. They
are significantly more likely to link attitude with action in making sustainable
and socially responsible lifestyle choices and purchase decisions across all
consumption categories.


#THENEWVARIABLES

WOMEN DRIVE THE NEW VARIABLES
Women are significantly more like to connect attitudes with action when it
comes to making sustainable and socially responsible lifestyle choices and
purchase decisions. According to The SHIFT Report, across all consumption
categories women are on average, 12% more likely than men to have already
made sustainable and socially responsible lifestyle choices and purchase
decisions. The category with the most significant difference between men’s and
women’s engagement is skin/beauty care. 57% of women say they have made
sustainable and socially responsible choices relative to their skin/beauty care
versus to 34% of men.

The top categories when looking at either the general population, women only or
men only are consistent across all groups. My food, my home cleaning and my
home energy are the top performing categories. This is because they represent
the lowest barriers to entry for consumers, considering Consumer Four Barriers
to Conscious Consumption™: Time, Knowledge, Price and Pressure.


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Thought leadership opportunity: skin and beauty care brands
While it’s not surprising that women lead in this category, it is a category where consumers indicate
they don’t see any social responsibility leadership. The SHIFT Report reveals that across a selection
of mass market skin and beauty brands including Avon, L’Oreal, Olay, Johnson & Johnson and others,
the majority of consumers do not feel these brands are socially responsible. Regardless of some of the
social responsibility initiates of these brands, the initiatives are not connecting to brand and resulting in
social responsibility as perceived brand attribute for market leaders in the skin/beauty care sector.

There is a big opportunity in the skin/beauty care sector for thought leadership in the cultural shift
to conscious consumerism and social responsibility. The cultural and relevance leaders of tomorrow
will be brands that define and tell their Integrity Brand® story by aligning what’s meaningful to their
stakeholders with their brand. This is the strategic springboard to deliver a brand experience - internally
and externally - that connects with what’s meaningful to consumers today.

Regardless of changing marketplace buzzwords, the majority of people consistently want to
know about the social responsibility of brands they buy
According to The SHIFT Report 2012-2013, 69 percent of the North Americans want to know about
the socially responsible behaviour of brands whose products and services they buy, This number has
remained consistent over the last five years with an incremental 2 percent increase for the 2012-2013
study.

Looking at consumers’ desire to know about what’s going on behind closed corporate doors across
demographic groups validates again the increasing cultural conversation about women leading the way
for positive change. According to The SHIFT Report, women are significantly more likely than men to
want to know what’s going on behind closed doors at companies whose products and services they buy.

Integrity Brand® is a registered trademark of Conscientious Innovation Ltd, All rights reserved.


#THENEWVARIABLES

Do you want to know about the socially responsible behaviour of brands whose
products and services you buy?

2015 onwards

2008/2009 2010/2011
2012/2013

69% 80%
67% 67%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016


Women vs Men

74% 35%
65% 26%

Yes Source: The SHIFT Report 2012-2013
No


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HIERARCHY OF WHAT’S IMPORTANT CONSISTENT
ACROSS AGE GROUPS.
MILLENNIALS CONNECT MOST WITH ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY ISSUES BUT GREEN STILL
FALLS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE IMPORTANCE LADDER FOR THEM
Across age groups there is consistency in the hierarchy of what’s important to people today, with those
sustainable life issues falling in the Social and Personal Sustainability Pillars exceeding in importance
those that are exclusive to the Environmental Sustainability Pillar only. While the hierarchy of what’s
important is consistent with other age groups, Millennials are more likely than any other group to rate
those issues exclusive to environmental sustainability (and which are often perceived as outside one’s
immediate life) as important. These include as Climate Change and Organic Products. 53% of 25-34 year
olds feel that Climate Change is an important issue, more than any other age group except those 60-65.
43% of 25-34 year olds feel Organic Products are important, more than all other age groups.
Whether Millennials see the bigger picture or are simply the generation that came of age when Al Gore’s
An Inconvenient Truth injected the importance of green into the zeitgeist, thus connecting to Climate
Change to Millennials’ cultural identity, is debatable.


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THE OPPORTUNITY IN BOOMERS
Those aged 60-65 are more likely than any other age group to want to know about the socially responsible
behaviour of brands according to The SHIFT Report. This combined with their balanced and holistic
relationship with Sustainability Issues, and their spending power makes them an ideal target for brands
today. Those aged 60+ are more likely than any other age group to feel a range of sustainability issues
across all Four Pillars of Sustainability are important including the following:

• Fair Trade (77%)
• A sense of well-being (92%)
• Buying local and supporting locally based business (74%)
• The products and services I buy are made in an environmentally conscious fashion (56%)
• A higher purpose in life is meaningful to me (75%)
• Feeling connected to my friends, family and community (90%)

The SHIFT Report shows that, with the exception of a few environmental sustainability issues, as people
get older they connect more with sustainability issues and evolve to a more holistic definition of what’s
meaningful to them, rating a sustainable life overall as what is important to them.


#THENEWVARIABLES

The Rules of Integrity Brand® Marketing
Significant Increases In Consumer Demands for Credibility, Specific Details
and Community Impact
Consumers continue to want to see authenticity and honesty
in brand claims, and have remained relatively consistent in INTEGRITY BRAND®
the qualities they seek in marketing communications if they
are going to buy into and believe a brand’s claims about the MARKETING RULES
good things it does in the world, though they don’t expect
brands to be Mother Teresa. The SHIFT Report reveals that
the top rule for brands packaging and serving up positive 1 Be Credible
impact in their marketing communications is “Be Credible”.
Regarding brand messaging about social responsibility
claims, The SHIFT Report reveals that 92% of people say that 2 Be Speciifc
brands have to make sure they have the credibility to make
such claims to be believable. This is nearly twenty percent
higher than The SHIFT Report 2008-2009 survey, when 3 Show Up in
73% of people said the same. People are significantly more My Backyard
engaged with and demanding the Integrity Brand® marketing
rules than they were five years ago. 20 percent more agree
that brands need to provide concrete evidence in their social
responsibility marketing messages and 13 percent more
agree that they need to see direct results in their community Source: The SHIFT Report 2012-2013

from a brand’s social responsibility efforts.
Brands not only need to define and tell their Integrity Brand® story, they need to follow specific rules of
engagement if they want their customers to buy into their messages.

Integrity Brand® is a registered trademark of Conscientious Innovation Ltd, All rights reserved.


#THENEWVARIABLES

The New Variables™ in Culture


#THENEWVARIABLES

THE NEW VARIABLES SEGMENTATION: A PREDICTIVE AND
CONSISTENT MODEL
The 109 Million Market Opportunity
Those that engage most with The New Variables™ and care most about
sustainability and CSR issues are more loyal, more optimistic, more
committed, more engaged in their communities and with brands, and shop
more. If you know how to address them, and they care about you they will
buy more, commit more and share more about you with their friends, family
and community than any other segment of the population. The SHIFT Report
reveals that there are 109 million of them in the US alone. For national and
Vocal Globalist
109 Million global brands, this segment likely makes up a third of their workforce. They
are called the Vocal Globalist.

Attitude and Behaviour Consistency Over Past 5 Years
This audience revealed by The SHIFT Report’s proprietary segmentation model (The Sustainability
Passion Index or “SPI”) – along with other segments in the SPI - has been consistent in size, attitudes,
shopping behavior, media behavior and lifestyle behavior over the past five years. The consistency
revealed over five years of tracking The Sustainability Passion Index presents an audience that is
both stable and predictive in their how they respond to brands, brand experiences and marketing
communications.

The Sustainability Passion Index

The Vocal Globalist

The Casual Spectator

The Pragmatic Believer

The Hyper Local

The Self Serving
Non Believer



#THENEWVARIABLES

CONSISTENT MODEL
The Vocal Globalist or 109 Million audience makes up 35% of the North
American population and is an ideal target for their size, influence, openness
to marketing and brands, their propensity to shop and to connect attitude
with action in their lifestyle choices and purchase decisions. Unlike common
perceptions of the conscious or “mindful” consumer as niche or higher income
earners, The SHIFT Report shows that this is not an exclusively young or
high-income audience. They are consistently represented as over a third of
Vocal Globalist demographic groups, including age groups and income groups.
109 Million

The Sustainability Passion Index
Age Groups


#THENEWVARIABLES

CONSISTENT MODEL
Other New Variables segments include:
The Casual Spectator who makes up 27% of the general population and makes up the second largest
audience. Relative to other segments they are ambivalent and not highly engaged in sustainable life
issues, in their community and in the world in general.

The Hyper Local makes up 11% of the population but while small in numbers are active in their
communities and have distinct Yin Yang with shopping and lifestyle choices. McDonalds’ and the
Farmer’s Market.

The Pragmatic Believer makes up 19% of the population and they are particularly passionate about
spiritual sustainability issues, which does not necessarily mean religious.

The Self Serving Non Believer makes up 9% of the population and their name represents their
behaviour. They are highly practical. They don’t connect with external issues that don’t impact them
directly but the basics of people, community and respect do matter.

Those with children under age 18 at home are significantly more likely to be a Vocal Globalist,
than those who do not.


#THENEWVARIABLES

CONSISTENT MODEL
The Vocal Globalist
They are passionate about social and environmental issues. They are more
concerned about global warming than any other group, but also about CSR issues
in general. They are very much connected with their community, talking amongst
friends and writing blogs. They take the time to be aware of the issues, and know
what they don’t know. They are simultaneously anxious and confident about the
future. They are active shoppers both online and offline.

What Makes the Vocal Globalist Unique?

CARE MORE SHOP MORE ENGAGE MORE

• 34% of the population • Brand yin yang: Wal Mart and • Know what they don’t know
• Consuming and creating Whole Foods, Farmers Market • More concerned about others
content online, they are and the Mall and see themselves as part
a vehicle for sharing • Optimistic, not cynical - yet of something bigger
information and Tweet more still concerned • Both selfish and altruistic
regularly than any other • Looking outward and seeking • Conscious of brand
group to improve themselves - experience characteristics
• Digitally engaged - digital more likely to take a class that communicate integrity
is an extension of life: Most online or offline and responsibility
likely to download music • They try the latest thing -
online and watch videos more likely to use Google
online Plus than any other group


#THENEWVARIABLES

CONSISTENT MODEL
ME
The Casual Spectator
FIRST
They are all about ME. They are not particularly passionate about any issues.
Connecting with friends, family and community is important to them but they do
not think its as important to make a contribution to community. They read blogs
regularly but they don’t post comments on them, or write their own. Leading
a balanced life, being paid a living wage and treating others with respect is
important to them but no more than any one else. While they are defined by a ‘me
first’ attitude they still show significant connection with The New Variables™,
sustainability and CSR issues.

What Makes the Casual Spectator Unique?

It’s All About ME

• 27% of the population • Defined by lack of • Specialty over department
• Action versus attitude - while engagement with the world store: Least likely to regularly
community is important, around them, relative to other shop ‘multi-purpose’ or
they’re the least likely SPI segments department store brands
to be engaged with their • While they are defined by • Unsatisfied: The least
community on a daily basis lack of engagement and a satisfied with life of any other
as a reflection of values ‘me first’ attitude, they still segment
• Overall not particularly show significant connection • See a difference between
motivated to make lifestyle with The New Variables, satisfaction and happiness:
choices and purchase sustainability and CSR issues Show the biggest disconnect
decisions that reflect the • Second highest level of between satisfaction and
issues they care about regular gaming activity - happiness than any other
• Self-focused, which can likely individual versus multi- group
be positive for personal player • High opinion of themselves
development: Second most in the world and how others
likely group to take a class experience them
once a month or more


#THENEWVARIABLES

CONSISTENT MODEL
The Hyper Local
FAST
FOOD
They are passionate about local but their life is a combination of opposites. They
FARMERS
MARKET shop both the Farmer’s Market and Wal-mart. Supporting local business and
buying local is important to them but they also engage with fast food brands
and the mall. They are active in their neighborhoods and engaged with what is
going on. Family, friends and community are central to their lives but they are
also realistic about the choices they make. They are generous in giving credit to
brands that are trying to make a difference.

What Makes the Hyper Local Unique?

The Opposites Gang:
McDonalds and the Farmers Market
Illustration: Robin Koontz

• 11% of the population • Overall the second highest • Not only shopping local:
• They represent oxymoron - connecting segment on 64% are regular Wal-mart
their life is a combination of the majority of social, shoppers
opposites environmental and personal • Practical - more likely to pay
sustainable life issues with cash and less likely to
• Balance in the extremes -
more frequent customers of • Pro-consumption - or not pay with credit cards than
McDonald’s than any other anti-consumption - they have any other group
and high farmers market no problem with consumption • Overall, they are the most
engagement as part of a happy life active TV viewers
• The second most digitally • Don’t shop as much as their
engaged group, but not Vocal Globalist counterparts
significantly different than the with the exception of mass
other segments (excluding personal care brands: J&J,
Vocal Globalist) P&G


#THENEWVARIABLES

CONSISTENT MODEL
The Pragmatic Believer
They are distinctly passionate about spiritual issues. Having a higher purpose in
life is important to them, yet at the same time they are grounded and practical.
They look outside themselves and care about others and the world around them
but don’t feel the need to announce it. Doing ‘good’ is not a social badge for them.
They connect their attitudes to action in tangible ways – with money - being more
likely to regularly donate to a charitable organization than any other group. While
less engaged with environmental sustainability, they care about sustainable life
and CSR issues overall. They rate family, friends and community highly, support
locally based business and volunteer frequently but climate change and buying
organic is not important to them.
What Makes the Pragmatic Believer Unique?

I care but I don’t shout it out.
Doing good is not a social badge for me.

• 19% of the population • Shopping as a transaction, • Significantly low on
• Concerned about others and not an experience - the environmental sustainability
the world around them, they second highest likelihood cares but still highly engaged
think beyond themselves, to shop online and via in brand CSR: 71% want
particularly when health and established digital brands like to know about the socially
welfare is concerned Amazon and eBay responsible behavior of
• Action connects to attitude: brands they buy
• Not a cutting edge audience
- like the Self Serving Non They give back to others • Satisfied with life. Overall the
Believer, they are less likely in tangible ways - with majority are satisfied with
to use the latest technology money. They are more likely their life, significantly more
and digital tools than other to regularly donate to a satisfied than the general
groups charitable organization than population
any other group
• Least likely to eat at fast food
restaurants


#THENEWVARIABLES

CONSISTENT MODEL
The Self Serving Non Believer
They are distinctly dispassionate about issues that do not affect them directly.
Sustainability issues such as pollution, global warming and buying environmentally
conscious products are not important for them. Buying local or Fair Trade is
not important to them. Instead they are quiet believers in social and personal
sustainability issues such as connecting with friends and family, well-being and
nurtured personal relationships. Broader issues that could also affect them such
as employee treatment of being paid a living wage are also important to them.
They are not active shoppers and feel they and the world are fine just the way
they are. They are the least likely to seek self-learning and personal growth. They
are highly unlikely to set foot in the Farmer’s Market.
What Makes the Self Serving Non Believer Unique?

I’m fine, the world’s fine.
What’s the fuss?
• 9% of the population • Don’t feel the need to share • Personal well being and
• A ‘practicalness’: less likely their opinion with the world personal relationships matter
to use Amex and less likely - but quiet believer in the the most, and the world
to connect with modern, importance of well being, outside of that matters less
irreverent brands (Jet Blue, personal relationships and • They feel they are fine the
Virgin), together with the purpose way they are: the least likely
Hyper Local, they are more • The basics matter, that have to seek self learning and
likely to shop at Wal-mart always mattered: people enrichment
regularly than other group matter, community matters • Not active shoppers - least
• Not necessarily a non and treating others the way likely to shop overall
believer overall - a non they want to be treated
• Majority most likely to never
believer in issues that don’t matters (the is the way this
shop at Whole Foods or the
impact them directly, i.e group expresses their values)
Farmer’s Market
extrinsic sustainable life and
CSR issues and cares


#THENEWVARIABLES

About Ci:
Ci is a strategy and research consultancy. Ci is the leading source of insight and intelligence on the cultural
shift to conscious consumerism, sustainability and CSR. For over ten years our research and insight has helped
companies unlock opportunities in this shift.
What we do
We align what is meaningful to your stakeholders with your brand, its attributes and its initiatives to drive brand
experience, purchase intent and reputation.

The depth of our data and insight allows us to provide a snapshot of what’s happening today and foresight
for your company’s future business and brand planning. CI’s proprietary strategic research and analytics
products and services deliver comprehensive and actionable insight to your company on the culture in which
your business is operating with direct implications for brand positioning, marketing communications, product
development, brand experience, strategic partnerships/ad sales, employee engagement.

About The SHIFT Report:
Ci’s proprietary SHIFT Report is a unique research tool that delivers actionable insight to your company on the
cultural shift to sustainability and corporate social responsibility or “CSR”.

Our methodology
A multi-tiered methodology combining qualitative, cultural and quantitative research SHIFT is a continually
updated research tool that is always in the field to ensure best in class, cutting edge insights locally and globally
for your brand. The SHIFT Report has been tracking and monitoring the cultural shift to sustainability for 10+
years. Unmatched silo-free and holistic methodology

A typical research approach is to observe an individual factor – attitudes, values, drivers, shopping behavior,
media behavior, brand reputation, lifestyle activities, demographics and psychographics – and then layer one
study over another to get the right insights. The SHIFT Report’s methodology and holistic approach allows our
clients to get into the shoes of consumers, understand their life and what they care about today to gains insights
into their existing habits, behaviors, beliefs, and unmet needs.

All data and analytics in this report are from The 2012-13 SHIFT Report’s North American online study of 5,000
general population adults 18+ field across the US and Canada.
For more information and to find out how our analytics and insight can help your brand unlock
opportunities in the cultural shift to sustainability and CSR, get in touch with Kierstin De West:

@ Visit us at www.ci-shift.com
Call us at +1-604-877-1277
kierstin@ci-shift.com


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