Our guide to 15 of the most important trends shaping the marketing and sales agenda in Ireland in 2015.

1. 15 FOR TWENTY FIFTEEN
an Amárach preview of the year ahead

2. The future only happens once,
so be prepared.
Drawing on our research at
Amárach, we have selected
the top fifteen trends that will
shape your marketing reality in
2015.
ARE YOU READY?
15 FOR TWENTY FIFTEEN

3. 1. Confidence Wins
2. Tight Money
3. Deflation Nation
4. Actions Count
5. Frame Fast
6. Supporter Brands
7. We Belong
8. Retail Liturgy
9. Compared 2U
10. In-Experienced
11. Risky, Sexy
12. MDP not MVP
13. UnSocial Media
14. Dublinia
15. Ar Aghaidh Linn
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4. 15 FOR TWENTY FIFTEEN
1. CONFIDENCE WINS
Irish consumers are now among the
most confident in the eurozone*. Our
psychological resilience has been
crucial these past few years.
Confidence is an emotion mainly about
the future, so marketers must win
consumer confidence to win sales.
BE CONVINCING
* http://www.amarach.com/blog/2014/11/confidence-gap.html

5. 2. TIGHT MONEY
While Ireland’s economy is showing
signs of improvement, Irish
households haven’t seen it… yet.
Money is still tight, though it will
loosen slowly in 2015*.
Marketing should ‘talk’ recovery,
Sales should ‘act’ recession.
DON’T PUSH, DO PULL
* http://www.amarach.com/blog/2014/12/an-extra-e2-6-billion-in-2015.html
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6. 3. DEFLATION NATION
Falling prices make consumers more
value conscious, not less conscious.
We are still a nation of bargain
hunters going into 2015*.
If Irish consumers won’t pay more,
then your job is to make them buy
more. Volume is key in 2015.
PRICE FOR DEFLATION
* http://www.amarach.com/blog/2014/12/bargaining-on-growth.html
15 FOR TWENTY FIFTEEN

7. 4. ACTIONS COUNT
Opinions matter, but actions count.
Whether it’s brand values, consumer
satisfaction or customer experience,
what people do makes the difference,
not what they say. Especially when it
comes to switching*.
You don’t want your customers to
think; you don’t even want them to
feel… you want them to act.
MAKE IT EASY
* http://www.slideshare.net/amarach/permanent-tsb-switching-index-september-2014
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8. 5. FRAME FAST
Marketing is ‘selling at a distance’ – and
that’s okay. The task of branding is to
frame the product-purchase connection
differently in the hearts & minds of
consumers. That’s one reason why
sponsorship works*.
Brand strategies that convert
consumers’ ‘System 2/Slow’ thinking
habits into ‘System 1/Fast’ habits reap
the biggest rewards.
FRAME FOR FAST
* http://www.amarach.com/blog/2014/11/the-business-of-sport.html
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9. 6. SUPPORTER BRANDS
Never mind Net Promoter Score, it’s
Net Supporter Score that will count
most in 2015*. Those product &
service brands that make life easier,
less hassle and more fun will win the
hearts & euro of Irish consumers.
Make your brand a supporter brand to
get inside the ‘circle of trust’ this year.
TOGETHER IS BETTER
* http://www.amarach.com/blog/2014/12/best-supporters-of-2014.html
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10. 7. WE BELONG
Feelings trump reasons when it comes
to making decisions. This is especially
true when it comes to loyalty. That’s
why the most successful loyalty
schemes create a sense of belonging
that goes far beyond mere benefits &
rewards*.
In a slow economy, keeping customers
trumps winning customers, and
feelings are the ‘ties that bind’.
GET EMOTIONAL
* http://www.amarach.com/services/loyalty-performance-research.htm
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11. 8. RETAIL LITURGY
Retail therapy must become ‘retail
liturgy’. When everything is available
online for delivery to your home, going
to the shops has to offer something
special, especially when people start to
loosen their purse & wallet strings*.
In 2015, retailers must make shopping
a shared experience for families &
friends to beat the online threat.
BYOB BRING YOUR OWN BUDDY
* http://www.slideshare.net/amarach/an-post-smart-trends-2015-amrach-presentation
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12. 9. COMPARED 2U
Irish consumers will spend over €6bn
online in 2015. Much of that spending
will be influenced not by advertising or
branding but by what other consumers
say. A majority have bought clothes, cars
and holidays because of online reviews*.
The Sharing Economy is in fact a
Comparing, Sharing, Referring Economy.
SHARING IS SELLING
* http://www.slideshare.net/amarach/an-post-smart-trends-2015-amrach-presentation
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13. 10. IN-EXPERIENCED
It isn’t just your customers who are your
best advocates, so are your employees*.
After all, there is a high correlation
between customer satisfaction and
employee satisfaction.
Customer experience will drive
marketing and sales investment in 2015,
so make sure your staff know about it.
LOOK INSIDE
* http://www.slideshare.net/amarach/cant-get-no-employee-satisfaction-nor-autonomy-nor-alignment
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14. 11. RISKY, SEXY
New is risky, but first is sexy. Throughout
the recession, Irish consumers have been
enthusiastic adopters of new technology.
That isn’t about to change*. But most
innovations fail, despite the initial
enthusiasm of early adopters. So it’s
sometimes risky to be first.
Get it right and you can unlock new
growth through product & service
innovation in 2015.
GO BEYOND ENTHUSIASM
* http://www.amarach.com/blog/2014/06/back-to-the-digital-future.html
15 FOR TWENTY FIFTEEN

15. 12. MDP NOT MVP
Ireland is becoming a start-up nation,
and 2015 is a big year for Irish start-
ups*. A secret of start-up success is to
focus on the ‘Minimum Desirable
Product’ not the ‘Minimum Viable
Product’. We are emotional about
technology, not rational.
So sell the benefits, not the features.
GET DESIRABLE
* http://www.slideshare.net/amarach/startup-ireland-survey-october-2014
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16. 13. UNSOCIAL MEDIA
Social media isn’t social. With
loneliness now a growing issue for
young Irish adults*, expect an outbreak
of ‘selfie disgust’ in the months and
years ahead.
Marketers must make ‘life offline’ work
as hard as ‘life online’ in forging
customer bonds & experiences.
LOG OUT, SWITCH OFF, JOIN IN
* http://www.slideshare.net/amarach/amrach-economic-recovery-index-december-2014
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17. 14. DUBLINIA
Dublin isn’t Ireland, and it isn’t even
the happiest county in Ireland*.
Ireland now has a 3-tier (maybe even
4-tier) economy, with Dublin far ahead
of other parts of the country, for now.
Your national marketing campaign
better have a regional one as well.
CHAMPION COUNTIES
* http://www.amarach.com/blog/2014/07/county-champions.html
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18. 15. AR AGHAIDH LINN
2015 is Ireland’s year. Not only will
we benefit from a turnaround in our
economic fortunes*, we can expect
a ‘psychological boost’ as well. In
the run up to the 2016 centenary,
expect the emergence of a
confident, proud and mature sense
of what it is to be Irish.
AR AGHAIDH LINN/LET’S GO
* http://www.amarach.com/blog/2014/07/the-fdi-future.html
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19. Keep up to date with Amárach’s insights
and foresight as 2015 unfolds:
b. www.amarach.com/blog
t. twitter.com/AmarachResearch
s. slideshare.net/amarach/presentations
ln. linkedin.com/company/amarach-research
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20. amarach.com/contact-us