In charts: do customers believe in greedflation?

Almost 80% of consumers said they believed greedflation – the act of using inflation as an excuse to bump prices above and beyond that required to cover an inflated cost of production – was real.

Some 46% of respondents told Attest they believed greedflation was happening a lot, while a further 33% believed it was happening ‘somewhat’. By contrast, less than 1% believed the phenomenon was non-existent in the UK.

 

A similar figure, 72%, said they didn’t think brands were being disciplined enough by the government or facing appropriate consequences or scrutiny in the media over profiteering practices.

 

When asked where they believed greedflation was most prevalent, grocery topped the list, with some 66% of respondents choosing the category as one of the worst offenders. It was followed by 63% who believed energy price rises were in part due to greedflation. 

Lower down the list, consumers largely trusted alcohol and tobacco products not to use inflation as an excuse to hike their prices, with just 15% choosing the category as a sector engaging in profiteering.

 

 

More than 90% of British consumers said they were ‘somewhat more likely’ or ’much more likely’ to try a new brand if their usual choice went up in price due to inflation, with just 8% unwilling to make a switch due to price.

 

Consumers are most loyal to what Attest termed vice products, such as tobacco, cigarettes and alcohol. When asked what product category they are most likely to switch brands in to save money, alcohol and cigarettes ranked lowest.

Topping the table, almost three-quarters of the 1,000 people questioned said they would be willing to try other grocery brands if their usual became more expensive or there was a cheaper alternative available.

 

The survey respondents were also asked what would make them reconsider their loyalty to a brand. Responses reflected the impact of the cost of living crisis, as price rises and a poor experience with the brand came out joint top of the list, followed by bad customer service. Meanwhile, social issues have taken a backseat with offensive advertising or failing to stand for a cause accounting for top priority issues for 6%.

However, should that offensive advertising become a public controversy, things could be different. The research identifies public controversy as a significant factor  diminishing brand loyalty.

 

The most common response in the face of a brand’s controversy would be to stop buying a brand’s products and services: the survey showed a third would support a boycott. By contrast, 30% said they would be more forgiving and willing to give a brand time to issue a statement before making up their mind. 

Some 19% of respondents said they would take action on social media if they felt a brand was involved in a controversy. The group agreed with a statement saying they would either unfollow a brand or publish posts expressing their disapproval or disavowal of the company.

 

The majority were willing to give brands a maximum of two chances before casting them aside, with a second offence significantly reducing brand loyalty.

 

Presented with examples of scandals that could impact their willingness to purchase a brand’s products, respondents cited racism as a key issue. That was followed by accusations of poor treatment of animals, bad treatment of employees and discrimination based on disabilities, religion or sexual orientation.

Accusations of sexism or greenwashing – the practice of misrepresenting environmental credentials – were seen as less egregious and less likely to result in a customer straying.

 

To make things right, a majority (54%) of those surveyed said they would want a brand to provide transparency on how it planned to address the issue. More than half said they would be happy to accept a public apology alone. Other popular options included removing the person responsible for the controversy, offering discounts and providing a service to lodge complaints.

The research also dived into how brands’ political views play out with consumers. While 20% of respondents said they would be concerned by brands involved in political controversies, 11% said they would express concern amid accusations of involvement of right-wing politics and 9% would feel the same way regarding left-wing politics.