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By Angie, November 9, 2011 1:12 pm

This week, we continue our deep-dive into China’s lower tiers with two more insights about our lower tier consumers: Unveiling the dynamics of lower tier communities.

If you have just started reading, please click the following links to get caught up with our study and to read about previous week’s insights.

Week 0: Kick-off and study details.  Click here.
Week 1: It’s a Matter of Perspective – Click here.
Week 2: The Secrets of the Heart – Click here.
Week 3: Celebrating the Power of Family – Click here.

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As we know, it’s the people who make up a community.  But within one, there are different players with different agendas.  No two are alike and China lower tier communities are different from China top tier communities, which are also different from ones in other parts of the world.

I’ve said “community” enough times now.  So where am I trying to go with this?

This post is dedicated to understanding the dynamic of lower tier communities, fueled by the people within it.

Unlike top tier youth who don’t want to grow up and wish to remain young (or at least young-at-heart) for as long as possible, lower tier youth are…

RACING TO GROW UP

Lower tier youth appear to be in more of a rush to grow up and look to their older peers for inspiration.

While Tier 1 youth take their trend cues from other same-aged youth and even dress younger than they are, lower tier youth are happy to “grow up” and view themselves as adults.

One lower tier 22 year old male told me that he learns a lot from his boss and would go out with him – even socially, like to KTV, just so he could learn more about how to act like a successful adult.

Another young girl, 17 years old from Anhui, told us how she wants to be independent and to be treated as an adult.  This influences the way she acts and dresses.

Why do they so badly wish to be seen as adults?

It’s because they want to be helpful to their families. They see the way their parents live and, for many families, the hardships they go through.  Chinese youth – and perhaps even more so in lower tiers – have a strong filial duty toward their family and parents.  They feel that the faster they “grow up”, the quicker they will be able to contribute back to their family and help to relieve their parent’s burdens.

Many lower tier youth may not have had the opportunity to go elsewhere for further education. So without being immersed in an environment of youthfulness (like a university, which may seem to delay the onset of adulthood and responsibility), their next step is becoming an adult.

Says Jeffrey Tan, National Research & Insights Director:

“Conversation becomes the key to being useful from a brand side.  Provide youth with a place to talk and share about the things they care about.  This also means being mindful of the tone you use with lower tier youth.  They want to grow up and are more capable in many ways than their upper tier cousins.  While keeping the content simple and straightforward is key, respecting their different kinds of experiences means something too.”

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Starcom tip:

Think about ways that we, as brands, can help aid the transition for these lower tier youth – from youth to adults. They are starting earlier than upper tier youth and in some cases, may not be as well-educated… but they still are full of ambition and desires for success (though their definition of success may be different than top tier youth).  In order to start a conversation, consider what type of platforms we can create to aid them in their lives – be it job searches, or work tips, starting a family, or general life and growing-up issues.

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The second lower tier insight we will discuss today is the “fly on the wall” aspect of lower tier communities, where everyone is aware of everyone else’s business.  Talk and gossip spread quickly.

FLY ON THE WALL

What is a fly on the wall?  It’s like being able to be in a room and listen to and observe the going-ons without being noticed.  That’s what lower tier communities feel like – your business, is my business, is everyone’s business.

There are pros and cons of being in a small community and having grown up with the same people around you for years and decades.  The pros are that it becomes like a giant family, and being surrounded by friends, family and familiar faces is quite a nice feeling.  However, smaller communities mean that everyone knows everything that’s going on.

By its nature, building a personal identity (one that moves away from your family’s) means doing something or having something that is uniquely your own.  Unfortunately here, that may not ultimately be desirable… or possible.

One young man said something very telling when he was describing why he and his friends don’t buy a more costly international brand:

“I like that brand, but don’t buy it because of the price.  If my friend bought it, I would think he’s wasting money and look down on him for that.  Or I wouldn’t even think it’s real, because I know how much money he makes and that he probably can’t afford it.  Everyone knows how much everyone can afford.”

As brands, we need to understand these community dynamics and conversations.  IM and QQ are important youth touch-points.  Listening more will help us better understand where our opportunity is to fit their needs and desires and to learn how these needs and desires change across cities and tiers.

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Comments (1)

By Angie, October 31, 2011 12:31 pm

This week, we continue our deep-dive into China’s lower tiers with two more insights about our lower tier consumers: Celebrating the Power of Family.

If you have just started reading, please click the following links to get caught up with our study and to read about previous week’s insights.

Week 0: Kick-off and study details.  Click here.
Week 1: It’s a Matter of Perspective – Click here.
Week 2: The Secrets of the Heart – Click here.

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Now, for week 3, we’re looking into the role the family plays in lower tier cities.

DO NOT LEAVE US BEHIND

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As seen in so many towns and counties across China, lower tier workers often move to more developed cities for better job opportunities, leaving behind their loved ones.

Often times, these may be young children, left behind by their migrant worker parents.  We have heard stories about this in our lower tier interviews, and have also seen it in play.  I remember it being especially apparent in Heyun, a tier 5 city I visited in Guangdong province.  There, we saw many grandparents with young grandchildren but there seemed to be a lack of people who fit into the ages in between.  We were told that they were all working elsewhere, in bigger cities.

Ultimately, these moves create a hole in the family structure, with different generations or extended family living together as one to make up for the absence.

But despite the distance, what doesn’t change is the value placed on family – for both those who are working from afar, and those who have stayed behind (grandparents, young children).  Lower tier migrant workers do this out of necessity, and the heart of the reason why they do this is due to the value and duty they hold toward family.

Says Jeffrey Tan, National Research & Insights Director:

“What does not change is the value of family.  Content – whether sponsorships, branded entertainment or advertising itself – has a huge opportunity to hero the role that all generations play in creating family, not just at the festivals and holidays.”

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Families make huge sacrifices to support their loved ones, working thousands of miles away and celebrating togetherness only during major holidays like Chinese New Year.  Not only are the migrant workers “heroes”, but also the grandparents and relatives who stay behind to care for the young ones, and the children who remain strong, despite not being able to see their parents often.  Everyone in the family plays a role and everyone’s efforts should be recognized and honoured.

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The next insight for this week is:

CARRYING THE FAMILY’S HOPES ON THEIR SHOULDERS

Family and one’s role within the family is central to the lives of youth here.  They are aware of their parent’s high expectations of them, even though their parents have not had been able to pursue education or other opportunities themselves.

In Heyun, we spoke to a mom who fully expects her daughter to go to university. Even though she herself has very little education and she appreciates her slow and steady lifestyle, she still wishes for her daughter to have all opportunities possible and expects her to achieve this.

Ultimately, the child’s performance IS the family’s performance.  Therefore, every certificate, no matter how big or small, has a special place in the family’s home.  This can be seen in the picture above, where the entire wall in the family’s living room is adorned with certificates that the daughter received from school.

Says Lisa Richert, Strategy Director, North Asia

“So what Currency can our brands provide?  Scholarships?  Sponsoring gifting for good performance prizes?  We were shown a hot water heater that was engraved as a prize for good performance.  This simple device was in the living room – not the kitchen, for that very reason.  Currency can also be about how we help honor their children, like creating/ sponsoring local TV programming to highlight different exceptional students every week.”

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Youth in lower tiers appear extra motivated. Perhaps it’s because they have seen the hardships that their parents go through and do not wish to follow in their footsteps.  Or perhaps they feel that it is their duty to do well in school in order to get a better job and to earn more money to support their parents, as their parents have given them everything and are now dependent on them.  Either way, we see that lower tier youth in tier 3 & 4 markets are more motivated to work hard to succeed, compared to their upper tier peers.

This mentality also has a geographic skew, coming out stronger in the North-Eastern and North-Western regions.

Comments (1)

By Angie, October 24, 2011 6:24 pm

We are on week 2 of our MediaVest Yangtze Study lower tier truths sharing.  If you missed last week’s please click here to get caught up with the first two truths “It’s a matter of perspective”.

This week, we will be talking about the matters of the heart – namely what lower tier youth look for in a potential partner, and also digging behind the truth to the phrase “home is where the heart is” and what this really means for our lower tier consumers.

LOVE IS CONTENTMENT, NOT PERFECTION

When we conduct interviews with top tier youth in Beijing and Shanghai and observe their desires, we can tell that they seek perfection when considering a potential partner.  Many young women said they would not marry someone who does not own a flat and a car… and of course, he must also have a stable job and be good-looking.

The rise in this mentality and in cases of people marrying for the money (and later divorcing) is countered by a recent law set by the Chinese government, which states that upon divorce, the party who purchases the flat shall keep it.  Due to the pressure young men in China face to own a flat in order to be a candidate for marriage, their well-meaning family may chip in and contribute financially in order to help their child make the big purchase.  In this scenario, if the marriage turns sour, the groom’s family may lose their life savings.

While this scenario in top tier cities may be disheartening, it is quite different in lower tier cities and in their expectations of future spouses.  We saw quite the opposite and found in lower tier youth, much more humble desires.

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To lower tier youth, the ideal mate does not need to be the ‘best’ in terms of wealth, looks.  They told us that they actually, they do not trust things that are ‘too good’.  Young women said that they would rather have a man who is “not that good looking and not that rich, but who will treat me and my family well.” One woman said the most beautiful words from her husband were not “I love you” but “whatever happened and whenever it comes, I am with you here”

Says Lisa Richert, Strategy Director, North Asia

“This plays out into how we develop our Content.  If we want to relate to them, we cannot always talk/show the ideal.  It is not believable.  We need to make sure we support our claims with clear reasons why, simple substance.  Flash is pretty to look at, but not to buy.  Beauty and personal care information should be simple to understand and simple for them to see incorporating into their life.”

Going back to the findings we discussed in last week’s post, there is once again an element of practicality, over fantasy.

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The second truth today is about the home.

We assume that lower tier consumers don’t want to be in a lower tier city, but that they are aspirational and want to be in a top tier city.  We figure that those who are living in lower tier cities are there, not because they want to be, but because they don’t have any other choice.

However, this is far from the truth.  In fact, many lower tier consumers have made an active choice to stay in their cities and towns. They may have moved there from other places, or have moved to a bigger city, and for various reasons, decided to go back.

THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME

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In this reverse migration situation, lower tier youth and other migrant workers have pursued their top tier dreams (after hearing stories about the “bright lights and big city”), but have found life too hectic.  Thus, they choose to move back to their lower tier home towns to start their own businesses, inspired by what they see in the top tiers.  Business not native to lower tiers, such as spas, health clubs, fancy hair salons, etc., have started in lower tiers in this way.

Also, “big city” does not always mean what we think it does (the top tier one cities of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou).  One city bigger than where they are in is still considered big to them.  And more often than not, once they have finished school, they move home in order to help take care of their families.

One young man, Mr. Wu, said that he would love to move to Qingyuan, the tier 3 city nearby, however he is needed by his parents in his tier 5 town, so out of filial duty toward them, he will stay in his dusty tier 5 town.

The numbers say it as well.  Ironically, everyone seems happy where they are, with tier 1 citizen favoring the idea of moving to large cities and lower tier people being more content with where they are at.

These perspectives also translate to how they see travel.  While many mention ‘travel’ as a dream of theirs, desired places to visit are predominantly within China – anything else appears outside of their scope, or comfort zone – i.e. to go outside China seems unfathomable and simply beyond reach and comprehension, as many have never even been outside of their home town and surrounding cities.

Beijing is their “life journey”; the place where they need to go in order to understand their culture, as it is the centre of the Chinese culture and people. Many said they feel they can never really know China until they experience the history and might of Beijing.

Says Jeffrey Tan, National Research & Insights Director:

“Community is at the heart of this in so many ways.  How can we facilitate their connections with loved ones who are far away?  How can we honor the pride they feel in where they are from – whether that is localized packaging, recipes, offers, flavors or bringing the wonders of other places in China to them, to their gathering places.  Giving them experiences they treasure courtesy of our brands and in our brands, through affordability (pack size) and availability (distribution of new products).”

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In many ways, we see that for lower tier people, home really is where the heart is – whether it’s where they feel the most comfortable, or whether they are there because their loved ones are there.  How can we, as brands, help them to celebrate where they live and play up the familiarity and pride they feel in the city/town they call “home”? How also, can we introduce them to other parts of China, like Beijing, and the world – perhaps doing this all in the comforts of their hometowns?  Can we bring the world to them?

Tune in next week for week three of our series, where we will discuss the next two lower tier truths.

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Comments (7)

By Angie, October 18, 2011 1:32 pm

Thanks for tuning in.

This is week one in our 7 week journey to unveil our lower tier truths to you.

If you missed my introduction to the Starcom MediaVest Yangtze Study last week, click here to get caught up on what this study is about.

Each week, two truths with examples and implications will be revealed.  At the end of the 7 weeks, you will have enough real, tangible truths (and ideas on what to do with them) to apply to your own brand’s thinking.

Today, we will kick things off with a macro perspective on the lower tier consumer’s frame of mind.  Of course, we know that not all consumers are built equal.   But from the ones we spoke to and from those surveyed, we saw similarities in their outlook on life.

Our first lower tier truth is that:

HAPPINESS IS A STATE OF MIND, NOT A DESTINATION

Lisa Richert, Strategy Director, North Asia explains that happiness truly is a state of mind.  Living simply and taking advantage of the small happiness found in everyday life.

“It’s about perspective – from the people we talked to, happiness was not defined by what they had.

This young mother picture here, Ms Liang, is 25 years old. Despite living in run-down conditions, she is perhaps one of the happiest people we’ve ever met.  She is married but only sees her husband once a month.  She finds happiness in her baby and in looking forward to being reunited with her husband, vs. dwelling on him not being there.

Many of the people in the lower tiers express much satisfaction in their life, exuding a quiet contentment.  They find pleasure in simple things.  Having money is important but hardly a barometer of happiness.”

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I really like the simplicity in this way of thinking.  Far too often, I’ve fallen prey to my frenetic top tier mentality – busy trying to get more, achieve more, work harder, running, running as fast as we can…

Lower tier consumers just don’t focus on what they are lacking.  Just being where they are now and enjoying the moment makes them happy.  I guess one may say that they are like this because they just don’t know what they’re missing.  I’m sure this is a big part of the reason – but, frankly, what’s wrong with that?  I think it would be a blessing for some of us to be granted that simple happiness.

Lisa also explains how brands can take advantage of this simple truth:

“Our way-in as brands can be through Currency.  Providing ways to capture these everyday celebrations.  This can be events in the center squares, visuals or messages that hero the simple pleasures of spending time together.  One mother spoke of a brand that she purchased, because it was giving away a photo album, something she could use for pictures of her daughter.”

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Basically, let’s enable their enjoyment of simple pleasures.  They’re not out to gain more, but we surely can give them more by way of community events – especially ones which create joy for those near and dear to their hearts – their children, and by small give-aways like photo frames to help them enhance their homes and provide happiness when they see it.

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Our second lower tier truth is:

DREAMING IN THE REAL WORLD

Says Jeffrey Tan, National Research & Insights Director:

“This view of happiness feeds into their ability to dream.  That does not change when you live in a lower tier town – they dream just like anyone else.

However the dreams people here spoke of were often more practical:  in-line with what they could actually accomplish, or what would lead them to their idea of success in life.  Success is a family that is well provided for, the ability to not have to worry.

For example, many talked about wanting their own business.  In Tier 1 cities, people who talk of being entrepreneurs are typically very driven, passionate.  Here, the desire for your own business comes from a sense of survival, functionality.  “Working for others is less pay…I want to have a house for my parents.  I need to make more money for that.”

As Brands we can provide Content that ultimately can become our Currency.  Practical tips and learning programs – face to face or virtual – to allow people to learn from the knowledge of the Brand, in business or in life.  Leverage the media platforms they rely on and trust most for information and dialogue, i.e. TV program where business giants mentor/help lower tier residents start small businesses.”

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The bottom line is that lower tier consumers are not so different from top tier consumers in that they don’t dream – the difference is in the way they dream.  A young man we spoke to in tier 5 talks about being an entrepreneur.  However, this was not in the Mark Zukerberg sense of entrepreneurism; of creation, creativity and innovation.  This young man merely wanted to get away from working for others.  By owning his own shop, he figures he can make a bit more money.

Companies that can help lower tier consumers with achieving these practical dreams will do a lot for them.  Community center courses teaching money management, new computer skills, or practical ideas to start businesses may bring consumers to your brand… but even more than that, it’s just a nice thing for us to do to help lower tier youth reach their (practical) dreams.

Questions?  Send them to me, and tune in next week as we discuss two more lower tier truths and how they affect your brands.

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Comments (8)

By Angie, October 12, 2011 12:22 pm

Join Starcom MediaVest Group as we launch our Starcom MediaVest Yangtze Study.  This is an extensive research project focusing on lower tier consumers; digging into tiers 3, 4 and 5.

In this immense undertaking, we collected the thoughts of 13,507 respondents across 510 locations and 27 provinces over the past several months.

Named after the sprawling Yangtze River, the mission of the Starcom China Yangtze Study was likewise to dive deep into the heart of China and better understand the lives and mindsets of Chinese citizens living in the lower tier cities.

We met with them in person, and they told us their stories.  We saw where they lived, how they shopped, where they slept, how they cooked, what they loved, and who they cherished.

We also asked them questions that took them a moment or two to reflect upon before answering, such as what they are looking for in a potential spouse, what makes them happy, and what the one most pressing thought they have right now is.

We were able to see them and their lives from the outside as well as to unravel the inner workings of their heart and minds.

With brands today turning their attention beyond the saturated tier 1 cities of Beijing and Shanghai, asking what the next steps are in targeting lower tier consumers (and even if this is the right move for them), we present to you, the Starcom MediaVest Group Yangtze Study; our holistic one-stop shop resource to understanding and connecting with lower tier consumers.

In the next 7 weeks, we will be sharing our 23 key insights with you.

Please bookmark this page, or subscribe (top right hand box) to receive Yangtze Study updates as I publish them.

Stay tuned!

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