This week at OMD UK we are launching a major research programme exploring the future shape of British consumer society, in the wake of the long-term economic downturn and on-going changes to the country’s population and demographics.
Developed by OMD Insight and involving partners including MMR Research Worldwide (MMR), The Future of Britain Project, will explore the changing shape of our society and the impact of austerity economics on our lifestyles, shopping, technology and media consumption, as well as consumers’ expectations and attitudes to life in Britain and the country’s role in the world.
The launch of The Future of Britain Project has been inspired by the dramatic changes to the make-up of modern British society revealed in the last Census and the impact of the longest economic down-turn since the 1940s as well as the shifting balance of global power.
By analysing the impact of the many changes affecting Britain, OMD UK aims to provide brands, businesses and organisations with a fresh guide that will help them understand and communicate with modern British consumers.
The initiative will run over the course of 2013 and constitute many interlinked parts. In the first phase of the project, we are working with research agency MMR, to conduct an in-depth qualitative study and quantitative research gauging consumer values and attitudes in Britain today and the changes in modern household makeup, their impact on decision making and on media consumption.
The second phase of The Future of Britain Project will see OMD UK run a mobile ethnography study exploring how a wide range of different household types behave and think. Later on in the year we will conduct a further large-scale quantitative study to explore key trends further.
Findings from The Future of Britain Project will be revealed at different stages during the year and the full analysis will be presented at the live OMD UK ‘Playground of Insight’ exhibition in quarter four.
Chris Worrell, Insight Director at OMD UK said: “We live in an age when continuous change on a massive scale has become normal. These changes are re-wiring our expectations, attitudes and behaviour and shaping a new Britain in a way that is comparable to the epochs experienced in this country after the two world wars and the 1960s. The Future of Britain Project will provide a guide to this new consumer landscape.”
Up-dates on the progress of The Future of Britain Project, relevant articles and insights as well as details of the research findings as they emerge will be shared at www.omdukblog.com and on Twitter @OMD_UK.