Are your customers really interested in brands?

Knowing what your customers want and meeting their needs is a vital aspect of any successful business.

A study undertaken by Nielsen on the shopping habits of global consumers has found that Australasian shoppers are less likely to be swayed by brand names.

More than 29,000 people from 58 countries participated in the survey, responding to questions about how willing they were to pay more for designer goods than products that had the same function but without the brand name.

In China , 75 per cent of consumers said that they would be willing to pay more for designer goods.

Compare that to Australia, where just one quarter of respondents said they would pay more for a brand name. This is similar to data from neighbouring New Zealand, where just 17 per cent of consumers said they would pay more.

Head of Nielsen Pacific's Brand Practice Suzie Dale said that Aussies and Kiwis were more interested in the value that a product offers.

"We tend to have a cynical side when it comes to advertising and branding, and like to see ourselves as 'intelligent shoppers' who aren't won over solely by marketing claims but instead buy a product based on merit and the value it offers," she said.

These kinds of insights into the habits of Australian consumers are virtually priceless for businesses and companies selling their products to such a market.

As Ms Dale pointed out, marketers cannot ignore the statistics and must understand the motivations behind purchases if they are to optimise their selling potential.

This is why survey software can be such a useful tool for companies looking for insights into consumer behaviour, as the right customer survey questions can garner information that will inform future marketing goals.

Want to trial an Australian-built online survey tool?

Click here for a free custom-branded demonstration of PeoplePulse.