By M. Isi Eromosele

Luxury brands have often been associated with the core competences of creativity, exclusivity, craftsmanship, precision,  high quality, innovation and premium pricing.

These product attributes give luxury consumers the satisfaction of not only owning expensive items but the extra-added psychological benefits like esteem, prestige and a sense of a high status that reminds them and others that they belong to an exclusive group of only a  select few, who can afford these pricey items. 

The luxury sector targets its products and services at consumers on the top-end of the wealth spectrum. These self-selected elite are more or less price insensitive and choose to spend their time and money on objects that are plainly opulent rather than necessities. For these reasons, luxury and prestige brands have for centuries commanded an unwavering and often illogical customer loyalty.

Classification Of Luxury Customers

Oseme Creative places consumers in 3 groups according to what luxury means to them:

Luxury is Functional

These consumers tend to buy luxury products for their superior functionality and quality. Consumers in this segment, the largest of the three, tend to be older and wealthier and are willing to spend more money to buy things that will last and have enduring value.

They buy a wide array of luxury goods, from artwork to vacations and conduct extensive pre-purchase research, making logical decisions rather than emotional or impulsive ones. Messages that highlight product quality and are information-intensive are powerful with this group.

Luxury is Reward

These consumers tend to be younger than the first group but older than the third. They use luxury goods as a status symbol to say “I’ve made it!” They are motivated by their desire to be successful and demonstrate this to others. Luxury brands that have widespread recognition are popular; however, they don’t wish to appear lavish or hedonistic in their appearance.

They want to purchase “smart” luxury that demonstrates importance while not leaving them open to criticism. Marketing messages that communicate acceptable exclusivity resonate with this group.

Luxury is Indulgence

This group is the smallest of the three and tends to include younger consumers and slightly more males than the other two groups. Their purpose for luxury goods is to lavish themselves in self-indulgence.

They are willing to pay a premium for goods that express their individuality and make others take notice and are not overly concerned with product longevity or possible criticism.

They enjoy luxury for the way it makes them feel, therefore have a more emotional approach to purchases. They respond well to messages that highlight the unique and emotional qualities of a product.

Marketing Interplay In Luxury Marketing

A mass of wealthy people have emerged the world over, giving rise to a large section of consumers who are now moving to luxury / premium brands, thereby creating greater business opportunities for luxury marketers.

In luxury marketing, there is a subtle interplay between three factors that most strongly influence the luxury consumer to buy: product brand; dealer or store’s brand or service providers’ reputation and price/value relationship.

To  be  successful  in  luxury marketing,  it  is  both  necessary for luxury brands  to  gauge  the  financial potential as well as the mindset of the luxury consumer. This will help in bringing forth the right product offerings to the luxury consumer as well as targeting them better. 

Strategies for Luxury Marketing

There are conventional foundations for ensuring success of a brand as listed below in brief:

The brand must be “expansive”. Which means it should be full of innovative opportunities for the marketer and wholesome in terms of satisfying the divergent needs of the luxury consumer.  

The brand must tell a story. It is this story, of either heritage or performance or other aspects that goes on to build the aura of a luxury brand over time. The story always accentuates the identity of the brand.

The brand must be relevant to the consumers’ needs. Depending upon the mindset of the luxury class, it is imperative for a brand to satisfy those needs, whether they be for recognition or functional use.

The brand must align with consumers’ values. A brand that does not concur with the basic values of a consumer’s society has a small chance of succeeding because luxury items are forms of expression or identification for a luxury consumer.  

The brand must perform. Irrespective of which category the brand belongs to, a performance assurance is a must for the brand if it wishes to be in the evoked set of luxury consumers, considering the price being paid for these items.

The starting point for identifying successful luxury brand strategies must be established by identifying certain salient aspects of luxury brands that remain constant as well as identifying the stage of mindset of the luxury consumer towards these brands.

A word of caution that goes for luxury marketers, irrespective of their brands and geographical presence. The luxury consumer is always looking for newer ways to satisfy his/her continuously changing needs. Hence, the need to keep a close tab through insightful customer research is of prime importance.

M. Isi Eromosele is the President | Chief Executive Officer | Executive Creative Director of Oseme Group - Oseme Creative | Oseme Consulting | Oseme Finance

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