One thing that all businesses struggle with is uncertainty. What’s around the corner? Is it a break in inflation? Another pandemic? Or is it just a sweeping change in consumer spending trends that will hit your industry like a wrecking ball?

Consumer spending trends are not just about tracking and predicting who is spending the most money and where. It’s all about revealing the new or changing behaviours, habits, priorities, and expectations of consumers. With the right utilisation of consumer spending trends, businesses can not only meet consumers’ current needs but anticipate future desires too.

This guide explores how to find and use consumer spending trends and a few global trends to take note of in 2024.

How to Uncover and Utilise Consumer Spending Trends

To go from identifying trends to making business decisions, there are a few steps to follow. Like starting a new venture, you need to balance the innovation and risk-taking of following trends with evidence-based methodology to ensure a structured approach. Here’s what to do.

Identify a Geolocation

Except for a few mega-corporations, many businesses have a specific geolocation they operate in (or do their best in). This is important, because global consumer spending trends and local consumer spending trends can vary widely. So, the first thing you should do is identify the geolocation of your customer base and other unifying demographics, like their age group.

For example, consumer spending trends in Canada around the holidays show that 77% of Canadian consumers who plan to purchase for the holidays said they would opt for brands and retailers which make their lives easier during this hectic time of year. Furthermore, younger shoppers are more likely to shop using popular new media, like social media, compared to older generations according to Think with Google.

Use your audience metrics to find consumer spending trends that are relevant to you.

Past and Predicted Consumer Trends

Consumer trend data falls into two categories: past and predicted. Both are useful, but neither is certain. When assessing past consumer trends, look for patterns year-on-year to find upward and downward trends. You should also take into consideration large cultural and political changes, as they are impossible to predict.

For example, the COVID-19 pandemic saw a huge shift in consumer behaviour. In the short term, demand for hygiene-based products sky-rocketed, but some trends stuck with us beyond the pandemic, like an increased interest in “shopping local”. We could not have predicted such a change in "shopping local" by assessing past consumer trends for the years leading up to 2019. That's why we see the need to adopt predicted consumer trends.”

Predicated consumer trends are certainly useful, but they are not conclusive. Identify relevant predicted consumer spending trends and then do your research. We have listed some predicted consumer spending trends for 2024 below – choose the ones that are relevant to your business and look deeper.

Drive Your Business Forward

With relevant consumer spending trends identified, it’s time to drive your business into the future. The key is to take an evidence-based approach: confirm that the trend is present in your industry (what are other brands doing or planning?) and your audience (customer surveys are worth their weight in gold) before making huge changes to your business.

Use consumer spending trends to flavour your decisions and influence the future of your business.

Consumer Spending Trends in 2024

According to Mintel, a leading market intelligence agency, the biggest global consumer spending trends to expect throughout 2024 (and beyond) are influenced by new AI tech, ongoing political and economic uncertainty, and a desire to remove unwanted distractions. The past 5 years have been overwhelming for many, and this is ultimately what’s driving global consumer spending trends going forward.

Growth in Asia

Oxford Economics is predicting that Asia will continue its path of growth to become a goldmine for consumer spending in 2024:

• China is predicted to overtake the entire Eurozone as the second-largest consumer market in the world (second only to the US),
• Delhi, Shanghai, Beijing, and Jakarta will see the fastest growth in consumer spending, driving the economy in India, China, and Indonesia,
• Mature markets in Asia, such as Korea and Japan, will see slower growth and be overtaken by Australia.

As these four successful startups in Southeast Asia know, the area will boom in 2024. Overall, consumer spending is expected to grow in most markets with the notable exceptions of Brazil and Canada. However, it may be valuable to know that for most countries, 2024 is a return to volumes-based growth from the inflation-driven price increase growth seen over the past two years.

No More Price Increases

Deloitte’s 2024 Consumer Products Industry Outlook is predicting that the “price-focused era is likely over” with consumers burnt out from rampant global inflation. They are less willing and able to pay for consumer goods across the board, so businesses choosing to increase prices yet again to maintain profitability and growth in 2024 will struggle.

A useful insight to take from this is the need for innovation. With less money, consumers are predicted to look for new ways to meet their needs rather than just shopping with your cheaper competitors. What can you innovate and bring to the table that meets the needs of your customers in a new (and perhaps more affordable) way?

This global consumer spending trend doesn’t translate to every industry, however. Deloitte also notes that 68% of companies in the personal care and beauty industry are taking a premiumisation or valorisation strategy in 2024, with only 8% opting for a value/low-cost offering strategy. This highlights the importance of identifying and utilising only relevant consumer spending trends.

Going Green

One trend that has grown phenomenally over the past 5 years and will continue is a focus on sustainability and green purchases. Deloitte noted this in their report, highlighting that environmental sustainability was the biggest trend for personal care products. Their survey of food and beverage executives found that 52% would emphasise the sustainability of their product and utilise clean labelling. Three-quarters of these companies were also in favour of placing nutritional labelling on the front of the product, indicating a move toward transparency in the food industry.

Transparency itself is a factor for more than consumer spending. ServiceTitan is quick to note that businesses’ efforts to fulfil consumers’ need for green products are not the only driving force: regulations in the EU and further afield are changing how businesses operate. With regulations on one side and more sceptical consumers on the other, the lenience for “greenwashing” is fading and the need for transparency is increasing.

This is a great example of how consumer spending trends are just one part of the picture. By utilising current trends alongside changing regulations and innovations, you can drive your business forward and stay ahead of the curve.

The Takeaway: Use Consumer Spending Trends to Kickstart Change

Past and predicted consumer spending trends are an insightful tool that you can harness to direct the future of your business. There will always be unpredictable events, innovations, and competitors that you didn’t see coming, but with data-driven strategies based on real consumer desires, you can stay adaptable (and perhaps even ahead of the curve) as your industry moves forward.

After all, in business, you are either growing or fading!