Mal Fletcher

A sea change is taking place in consumer attitudes during the recession. Consumers no longer want to be simply consumers; they want to be given the opportunity to become activists.

They also want to feel a greater sense of personal connectedness with the companies they deal with in everyday life.

Recently, I was invited to offer radio, TV and press comment on a survey undertaken by one of Britain's leading healthcare providers. The UK-wide study highlighted the dissatisfaction many customers feel with the level of attention they're receiving - especially from banks, utilities and health and other service providers.

The study, conducted by the Benenden Healthcare Society, showed that almost 14 million people have either changed or considered changing their bank, healthcare or utility provider in the past year because they didn't feel they were getting 'anything back' from the relationship.

Among other things, it also found that one in 10 people in Britain are about to terminate supplier agreements due to a lack of trust or respect.

Overall, the study has important implications not just for service providers, but for all companies and organizations. Whether you lead a corporation, small business, government body, charity, club or faith community, there are lessons for us all.

The first lesson is straightforward: people want services that add real value to their lives over the long-term, rather than those that simply provide immediate convenience.

This is perhaps a predictable reaction to the short-term thinking that many feel led us into recession in the first place, especially on the part of finance and banking industries and government bodies charged with regulating them.

From here on, any enterprise that wants to enlist public support will need to ensure that it does more than meet a basic material or economic need.

Companies and organizations will need to offer ideas and projects that are value-adding - that is, ideas that help people achieve the things they aspire to most, such as respect, significance and meaning.

This may seem a little too 'fuzzy' for some hard-headed company directors, but there will be no escaping the consequences for groups that fail to deliver at this level.

Secondly, the study's findings revealed a major shift toward 'old fashioned' values. It seems consumers are now looking for the same values in both their professional and personal relationships - particularly trust, mutual respect and loyalty.

This I think has arisen not just because of recession; it is a response to globalisation, the pace of change and the high levels of mobility in society today.

As globalism grows - as barriers to trade, commerce and communication are torn down - so does tribalism. People appreciate the benefits of global markets and multicultural communities, but they also want to seek out other people who share their particular background, experiences, values and ideals.