VIPer Research Maps The Mindset Of The Affluent
The VIPer project (see VIPer Research To Offer Advertisers Insight Into Rich And Influential) has introduced a new study method called SemioMetrie to its research in order to tap into the mindset of its research targets – affluent, AB consumers.
The method applies theory developed by the psychoanalysts Freud and Jung. Unlike brand mapping, which analyses the perceptions people have of brands, this method analyses the perceptions people have of themselves. This is achieved by asking panelists to rate over 200 apparently random words in terms of their personal reactions to them.
The words are chosen to point to the inner workings of the mind and are then mapped on axes such as community versus individual, pleasure versus duty, rigour versus hedonism, sophistication versus simplicity and so on, revealing where affinities and dislikes lie. Once this mapping has taken place, as it has with the VIPer panel, it can be applied to any brand, whether to find out what sort of people are drawn to a certain TV programme or to analyse the mindset of consumers of a certain product.
The SemioMetrie research carried out on the 1000 VIPer panelists revealed that their subconscious minds tended to dwell more on the pleasure side of the spectrum than the UK population at large. They tend towards individualism, with the exception of families, which are important, and they don’t like economising.
Distinctions could also be drawn within VIPer sub groups, as ‘A’ classed panelists tended more towards pleasure than ‘B’ classed panelists who had more affinity with community and duty. Age also played a part, with the younger members being more pleasure oriented and the older members leaning towards duty, moderation and discipline.
The method is already very much in use in France and Belgium and is expected to prove a useful tool for the advertising media by enhancing the understanding of media users and markets, achieving a better fit between advertisements and vehicles, assisting in media planning, the briefing of creative teams and the arrangement of sponsorship deals.
VIPer: 020 7393 2400 www.viperresearch.com
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