A view on 2022 and what’s in store next?

As the industry winds down from a busy and often challenging year we invited ADMA’s board to give us their view on 2022, and assess what is coming over the horizon in 2023.

Stuart Tucker, Chief Customer Officer, hipages

How would you sum up 2022?

It’s been a year of adjustment and transition. We've had COVID restrictions easing, and the language has shifted to the ‘living with COVID’ mantra by government and regulators. At the same time the economic climate has been shifting. The first time Australians started to feel something was changing was when interest rates started to shift in the middle of the year, and it’s just kept coming and coming and coming. People are sensing change, and we're seeing that in things like consumer confidence. At the same time we've started to see movement of people back to cities, back to work, back to travel, and that also creates a new dynamic.

How has that affected you as a marketer?

So it's everything from changes in media consumption, to brands that they will use and engage with and content that they want. I think in line with that transition we've seen further shifting and flux around media consumption. Obviously, this time last year, we had a captive audience at home watching TV and now we're seeing continued year on year shifts away from linear TV and into BVOD (Broadcast Video on Demand) and SVOD (Subscription Video on Demand). I think the new streaming services coming to the market like Binge last year, and Paramount this year are making that even more pronounced.

The other factor in this shifting dynamic market is an increased appetite for news consumption. If you think about these landmark events, like the Russian war and Shane Warne’s death, they are becoming almost everyday events. So I think people are becoming more and more tuned into wanting to know what's happening in the news both locally and globally.

So what can we expect in 2023?

We’re going to have the carry forward of the next phase of what's already started in 2022. So, higher interest rates, 100,000’s of homeowners rolling off fixed rate terms, which means substantially higher monthly mortgage payments. Many households will be suffering a a double whammy with increased Christmas shopping credit card debt hitting at the same time as interest rates really start to bite.

Having said that, it does feel like Australians are starting to adjust their spending habits already. The ABS reported that October retail sales declined for the first time this year, by about 0.2%,

and the forecasts were a gain of 0.5%. So maybe we're starting to see the Australian population start to rein things in.

And what does that mean for marketers?

It's going to be critical for marketers to read the market with a really strong feel for lead indicators, and I think nothing beats Google search terms as a key indicator to see what's happening in your category.

I think marketers will need to continue to invest in brand building activity, but find ways to minimise the media and message wastage wherever possible. That continued investment in brand might mean that they don't have to aggressively discount the product or service as much as they did if they just let it be impacted by market forces.

All of that is really about making their product or service to be considered as essential, rather than discretionary - you need it to be considered as an important part of people's lives.

Tonally it's going to be critical for brands to be there for their customers, to be empathetic to their situation and find solutions, treat them with respect, cut them some slack. More importantly, don't be tone deaf.

And for hipages?

We need to continue to help Australian homeowners connect with trusted tradies so they can find the right solution for the work that needs to get done. We reckon homeowners are going to be looking for content with tips on pricing and how to deal with tradies and how to affordably maintain and improve their homes.

But then on the other hand for tradies as businesses, their traditional lead sources are likely to be under pressure. We need to support our tradies to find new customers and give them tools and advice and coaching to help them manage and grow their business.

I don't think any sector is going to be immune from the difficulties in the next year, but we've just got to be smart and more importantly, we need to be empathetic and tune in to the needs of our customers.