What Consumers Want

Cause marketing is currently fashionable. But what really matters in purchase decisions?

While consumers say they are interested in social issues, this research shows that in actual purchase decisions they care most about a company's reputation for truthfulness, honesty and fairness.

Not surprisingly, older consumers value a product's utilitarian traits, such as value, function and durability. Younger consumers prize social/image-conscious traits more than older consumers, but still prefer utilitarian product traits to social traits.