This quality drives customer purchases

One specific aspect of how a company conducts itself can have a big impact on sales.

Close to six in 10 (57%) U.S. respondents said they have refused to buy a product or service in the last two years because they felt a company was unkind or did not display kind qualities, according to a new global consumer survey from global management consultancy Baringa. Eight in 10 (81)% also said that they are more likely to purchase from companies they considered kind.

The top qualities that U.S. respondents associate with “kind” companies include integrity and honesty (38%), fair pay and treatment of staff (34%), customer transparency (30%), community giving (30%), and commitment to workplace equality (29%).

Other key findings include:

• Despite preference for corporate kindness, when making a new purchase, U.S. respondents most often consider price (65%) and service (61%). Other top-cited factors include brand image (51%) and environmental impact (50%).
• Younger consumers are more influenced by kindness in their purchase decisions. Almost nine in 10 (88%) U.S. respondents ages 25 to 34 said they are more likely to purchase from ‘kind’ companies. Nearly seven out of 10(68%) U.S. respondents in this age group reasoned it's more crucial than ever to consider the consequences of actions, while close to half (48%) said they want to see kind companies succeed rather than support unkind companies.
• U.S. respondents said they would pay more for a product or service to avoid purchasing from a company known to treat its workers (52%) or suppliers (51%) poorly. Top attributes that would turn respondents away from purchasing a product or service include dishonesty toward customers (54%), animal cruelty (54%) and the unethical treatment of its communities (52%).

U.S. consumers value kindness more than other shoppers

Nearly half (48%) of all U.S. consumers said they always consider the behavior of a company or its leadership when making a purchase – the highest proportion of any of the seven countries surveyed, including Australia (35%), Germany (32%), and the UK (26%). 

American respondents were also most likely to report always considering the ethics of a company’s supply chain when deciding whether or not to buy from that company (43%), with the next-highest proportion coming from Singapore (30%).

“Our research shows that kindness is factoring into purchasing decisions in a significant way,” said Jeff Hartigan, partner and North America consumer products & retail lead at Baringa. “Consumers recognize when brands live out their values and when they don’t. Individuals will always make their own decisions in terms of whether those values are consistent with their own, but our findings illustrate that brand integrity remains vital.”

[Read more: Consumers want sustainable options, high-tech shopping experiences]

Between April 26 and May 2, 2023, Baringa conducted a global survey of 6,028 employed consumers who have either a pension or some kind of investment – including 1,010 U.S. respondents – to explore how associations with kind and unkind attributes are impacting their purchasing decisions.