WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers)

March 26 2026, 8:57 am | BY Adam Shaw | No Comments
WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers)

Wednesday’s breakfast opened to a full house with findings from The Voice of Western Australia, and it set out an honest picture.

 

In a keynote, 303’s Matt Oakley (pictured above) and CoreData WA’s Dr Serena McClellan revealed a state feeling the squeeze. Financially stretched, stressed and increasingly indifferent to brands. Yes, 74% wouldn’t care if the brands they use daily disappeared (no pressure).

And yet, it wasn’t all doom and gloom. Locals remain deeply proud of where they live, with 76% proud to call themselves Western Australian.

But the point? If we, as marketing practitioners, don’t understand our audience, how do we expect them to care about what we’re saying? The Voice of Western Australia is closing that gap, surveying 1,002 Western Australians on how they think, feel and live.

A panel led by Jeff Healy (Verian), featuring Kristina Green (HIF), Luke Clarke (Bedshed) and Kayla Surace (Metrix Consulting), brought it back to the day job.

WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers)

Good discussion was had on the role of research in justifying decisions, how teams are using AI (and the importance of human insight…phew), and turning data into creative content.

WAMA Chair, Rene LeMerle, said: “When the pressure is on to move faster and deliver more for less, it can be easy to see research as the thing to trim.

“Today’s discussion highlighted exactly why that’s the wrong approach. Good research leads to better thinking, better decisions and substantially better outcomes.

“Great to partner with The Research Society and its WA members to put research and insight firmly in the spotlight.”

WAMA’s mid-year brekky will be here before we know it. Follow, subscribe, stay in the know.

For more on the VOWA, visit thevoiceofwa.com.au.

WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers) WAMA kicks off 2026 with a reality check on WA consumers (and marketers)