- WhyFive has launched BrandMASS, a consumer insights dataset profiling 13.4 million digitally connected South Africans living in households earning less than R15,000 a month.
- BrandMASS enables direct comparison with BrandMapp, WhyFive’s established dataset of middle- and upper-income consumers, using the same survey questions to track brand preferences, media habits, attitudes and aspirations.
- BrandMASS consumers are younger: 60% are under 35, compared with 41% of BrandMapp adults. Almost half earn less than R6,000 a month.
- Education and economic mobility drive aspirations: 80% intend to study further or are already doing so, 47% want a new job and 33% want to start a business.
- Mobile connectivity is shaping South Africa’s emerging consumer market: 96% of both BrandMASS and BrandMapp audiences browse the internet on mobile phones, highlighting the role of digital access in influencing consumer expectations and aspirations. *
WhyFive, the South African consumer insights firm that has produced the BrandMapp dataset for the past 13 consecutive years, has announced the launch of BrandMASS.
For the first time, there’s now a side-by-side view of the country’s current consumer class and a group of 13 million South Africans that are potentially on the path to join them.
BrandMapp tracks attitudes, behaviours and lifestyles of middle-and-top-income South African consumers living in households earning R15 000+ monthly incomes. The top-earning 30% represent 12 million individuals who pay 100% of the personal tax in SA.
BrandMapp’s director of storytelling, Brandon de Kock says, “Using the same survey questions, we have now built a base of around 12 500 BrandMASS respondents, weighted to represent around 13.4 million adults who, while living in households earning less than R15 000 a month, are digitally active and tech-enabled.
“The only thing barring them from behaving exactly like the consumer class is their level of income. What this means is that for the first time, the consumer class of today and the consumer class of tomorrow can be compared like for like, question by question when it comes to brands they like, what they’re watching, how they’re feeling, what matters to them and what kind of life they’re busy building.
“BrandMASS is not another study of an income band, but the opening of a very specific window on a subset of the lower income market – we call them connected mass-market consumers.”
Young, aware and connected to more than the internet
BrandMASS puts a lens on a group of South Africans at a stage of life where being connected and the power of the mobile phone in their hands allows them access to the same market and consumer information – which informs their hopes and dreams, their aspirations and desires.
De Kock says, “When it comes to demographic differences, BrandMapp and BrandMASS are remarkably similar in gender and religious make-up. Ethnicity is in line with total population statistics; however, the biggest variance is in the age demographic with 41% of BrandMapp adults versus 60% of BrandMASS adults under 35 years.
“Given that South Africa is such a young country, this is not surprising. Also, age and income do correlate, so it’s to be expected that the older you are, the more income you earn. 47% of the BrandMASS audience are earning less than R6 000 a month, but almost a quarter of them are in the R10k to R14k bracket, they are primarily the employed cohort knocking on the door to the consumer class.”
It’s not just digital connection building their awareness of the things in life to aim for. Education is clearly perceived as a springboard to getting ahead. 39% of BrandMASS adults have a post-matric qualification, which is significantly ahead of the Stats SA, GHS 2025 data that reports that nationally, only 16.7% of adults aged 20+ have a post-school qualification.
Home life is much more communal rather than nuclear with only 11% of BrandMASS adults living with a spouse in comparison to 41% of the BrandMapp audience.
De Kock says, “They’re far more likely to live with parents, partners, grandparents and extended family, which means that they presumably have a lot of close support to give them the proverbial ‘wind beneath their wings’.”
Same hopes and dreams, powered by resilience
Despite the financial constraints in their lives, around 35% of BrandMASS respondents say they are happy or very happy – and 50% report that they are “doing okay”.
De Kock says, “This level of happiness is a lovely story of being South African. We are a resilient people. You could take the view that it is the saving grace of our country that we are optimistic, buoyant people even when you are not earning a lot of money.”
While access to the good life may be different for BrandMapp and BrandMASS audiences, ambition is equally high for both. 64% of BrandMASS adults say they’re likely to study further, and another 16% already are. That means that 80% have ambitions to build their skills and boost their ability to earn more.
In addition, 47% of BrandMASS want a new job next year and 33% want to start a business, both well ahead of BrandMapp.
De Kock says, “This shows that if consumers are connected to the world, they have equal views every day of what a better life looks like. Their desires to own houses and cars are very similar to those of the BrandMapp audience, and getting a new job or starting a business are pathways to help them get closer to the life they want to live.”
He continues, “Hope is alive and well amongst the BrandMASS audience with 17% very optimistic about South Africa’s future, and overall optimism on par with their BrandMapp counterparts – that’s 35% versus 36%. Less than a quarter are pessimistic, and considering the ongoing cost of living crisis, this certainly could be worse.”
Despite the sharp disparity in disposable income, BrandMASS respondents highlight the same passions as the consumer class. Music, movies and cooking top both lists, and travel and dining out are already on the BrandMASS wish list.
De Kock adds, “This is the proof of the pudding that being connected enables you to dream and think about the life you aspire to enjoy.” And there is no doubt that the tool that has enabled this evolution is the one in the palm of our hands.
Rising into the consumer class powered by digital connection
Mobile phones are universal and 96% of both BrandMapp and BrandMASS groups browse the internet on one. For 47% of BrandMASS respondents, their phone is the go-to job centre. 21% take online courses which is the same as BrandMapp, and consuming music and video content online are also universal online activities.
De Kock concludes, “Being connected is what empowers these 13 million, mostly young South Africans to develop the identities they want and to define what their best life looks like. What this inaugural BrandMASS dataset shows us is that there’s a significant group of young South Africans on a journey of wealth.
“They know that education leads to jobs and higher incomes, and that means greater access to the lifestyles enjoyed by the current consumer class. But because of connectivity, their aspirations and expectations of life are higher than those of past generations, and our challenge as a country is to create the jobs that will empower them to progress meaningfully on their journey into the tax-paying consumer class.”
Want to find out more about BrandMASS and how it plays with BrandMapp? Chat to Julie-Anne Bell at julie-anne@whyfive.co.za or visit whyfive.co.za.
* Summary created by AI
