Last year, Manchester agency Brazen challenged the communications industry’s tendency to view Britain through a London lens with the launch of its Mind The Gap report.
You may recall that that report revealed that 40% of young London PR pros had “rarely or never” visited the North. Eighteen months later, the agency says that gap hasn’t closed – it’s widened
Mind The Gap 2.0 (full report here), based on a survey of 2,000 UK adults, reveals a Britain increasingly divided by geography, generation and technology, with audiences discovering, deciding and spending in very different ways.
Among the findings, regional differences are stark. Almost half (46%) of Londoners expect to have more disposable income in 2026 – nearly double the national average. Meanwhile, more than half of Welsh consumers expect food costs to continue rising and 55% of people in the West Midlands remain concerned about energy bills.
Equally, there are clear generational differences relating to brand discovery with 68% of 25-34-year-olds now using AI to support everyday decisions, compared with just 12% of over-65s, exposing a growing divide in how people search, find and evaluate information.
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The report suggests Britain isn’t becoming one nation of consumers responding to the same messages – it’s becoming dozens of audiences with different priorities, pressures and perspectives.
Sasha Makel, MD at Brazen, said: “Britain isn’t one audience in different postcodes. This isn’t about throwing out everything marketers know about segmentation. It’s about recognising that the gaps between audiences are widening. The closer you get to the realities of people’s lives, the more relevant your communications become.”
The report also highlights a new influence battleground emerging for brands.
While AI-powered search and recommendation tools continue to gain traction, more than half of consumers (52%) still trust word of mouth and recommendations from real people more than any algorithm when making decisions.
Meanwhile, the research challenges assumptions around value messaging, with 76% of consumers defining value as getting the best quality for the price, rather than simply choosing the cheapest option.
Brazen client and contributor to Mind The Gap 2.0, Charlotte Somerville, external communications & PR lead at Tesco IMS, said: “At Tesco Insurance and Money Services, it’s all about understanding real people and knowing what genuinely helps.”
Makel added: “For years, marketers have talked about the ‘messy middle’ of consumer decision-making. Mind The Gap 2.0 suggests the market itself is becoming messy. Consumers aren’t just choosing differently; they’re navigating entirely different journeys to discovery, trust and purchase.
“The challenge isn’t cutting through the noise. It’s recognising that not everyone is hearing the same signal.”
The findings form part of Brazen’s wider Not Made in Chelsea proposition, which champions audience understanding beyond the London bubble and helps brands connect with the realities of modern Britain from all four corners of the UK.
