ASB survey reveals Kiwis overindulging on ‘humble pie’

Monday, 18 February 2013, 11:17 am
Press Release: ASB Bank

Media release
EMBARGOED UNTIL 5am Monday 18 February 2013

ASB survey reveals Kiwis overindulging on ‘humble pie’
As new brand campaign launches encouraging Kiwis to celebrate success

A survey by ASB delving into how New Zealanders celebrate the big and small successes in life has revealed many prefer a low key approach rather than shouting success from the roof tops. And in fact, out of the 450 surveyed, a mere three in ten have truly celebrated success over the last two years.

Anna Curzon, ASB’s General Manager for Brand Experience says, while Kiwis being a humble lot isn’t surprising, what is is our steadfast resolve to be as humble as humanly possible.
“On average there is only a 30% chance that a New Zealander will celebrate a particular achievement or success. Instead, what we saw in many cases was, success is quietly and quickly internalised, with relief being an all too common response.”

The survey revealed that the successes which generate the strongest emotional response are genuinely life changing – having a baby, getting engaged or buying a house. “Although these events generate a strong response, they are genuinely rare events, with limited numbers of New Zealanders having the opportunity to experience them,” says Ms Curzon. “When we looked at the events with greater reach across the New Zealand population, we see far weaker emotional response. In many cases, a sense of relief or a desire to ‘get on with it’ outweigh the excitement New Zealanders feel when successful.”

Those surveyed were asked: What successes they had experienced? How did they feel when they experienced success? And what did they do when they experienced success?

The findings of the survey include:

New Zealanders were twice as likely to get excited about the All Blacks RWC success as their own children’s sporting success.

A sporting achievement, a child’s academic success, graduating or getting engaged are the most celebrated events among Kiwis.

New Zealand women get more excited about success than men.

Having a child is the success that most excites New Zealanders with 77% being ‘genuinely excited’ about producing offspring. However, only one in ten births are genuinely celebrated.

41% of people who paid of their mortgage felt ‘ecstatic or ‘excellent’ while 17% were simply ‘relieved’. However, two thirds of those who paid off their mortgage did not celebrate the milestone.

The snapshot of New Zealand’s celebration culture coincides with the launch of ASB’s new brand campaign which is centred on the premise that Kiwis struggle to acknowledge their success and that they should take a moment to acknowledge the big and small successes in life. The campaign has kicked off with TV commercials featuring one of the UK’s most beloved actors, Brian Blessed, who has appeared in a variety of stage and screen productions including Blackadder, Flash Gordon and Robin Hood.

Ms Curzon says, “In a world of hard work and high expectations, it’s so easy to overlook the daily triumphs. We hope the campaign’s humorous approach will help encourage everyone to focus on celebrating the smaller successes in life because they really do matter. As the saying goes, it’s often about the journey not the destination.”

When respondents were asked how they felt when they experienced success, ‘pride’ and ‘relief’ outweighed excitement and celebration.

The survey also revealed communal, big events or traditionally celebrated successes are most likely to be seen as legitimate to enjoy or celebrate. While outwardly enjoying or celebrating an individual success is rare.

For example:
When asked what they did when they experienced a sporting success: 29% celebrated with dinner/drinks, 25% celebrated with family and friends, 15% announced it online.

Comments from respondents included: “Celebrated with team mates. Told lots of people.” “Talked about it with family and friends, then posted on Facebook.”

In contrast, when asked what they did when they got a new job or promotion, 14% celebrated while 53% did ‘nothing’.

As for how they felt, comments included: “Just got started. No fuss no bother.” “Relieved – Old job was diabolical”

As part of its new campaign, ASB is hoping to encourage New Zealanders to make 2013 the year of standing proud and being loud about success because the act of celebration reminds us how far we've come and inspires us to go further.

Ms Curzon says, “The campaign reminds us in a light-hearted way not to be shy and to step out of our comfort zone and celebrate not only the big milestones, but the wins that are right in front of us: the tiny sum of money saved today, the DIY paint job on your new home, the first overseas order on your online business. Everyone likes to get a pat on the back for a job done well.”

ENDS

© Scoop Media

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