by drm on February 22, 2010
The Great Recession — a term that is gaining more popular momentum — has had a meaningful shift on how consumers are spending money. A recent Harris Poll captures the consistency with which people are looking at their personal expenses and looking for ways to save some money.
Look at the trending pattern of what consumers have done in terms of money-saving actions from last June to this February. I suspect that as the economic slump has continued, more consumers have decided to act on things that they had been putting off.
Another interesting fact: 86% of consumers have a defined savings plan.
The net impact of decreased spending and sustained spending will be an increasing in de-leveraging velocity among consumers. In the long term, this is good for the economy.
by drm on November 17, 2009
What’s the value of celebrity endorsements?
According to the findings of a new Adweek Media/ Harris Poll, looking at celebrities and their persuasiveness, 21% of Americans say they find athletes to be most persuasive when they endorse a product, followed by 18% who say television or movie stars are most persuasive, 14% who say singers or musicians and 10% who say former political figures are most persuasive. On the other hand, speaking of celebrities ranking in the category of least persuasive, 23% of the survey respondents say television or movie stars are least persuasive, while 14% say business leaders are least persuasive. 13% of Americans say when athletes endorse a product they find them least persuasive and 11% say singers or musicians are least persuasive.
The research speaks to the persuasive value of people who are really good at something that looks hard to do: build a product, run a business or be a sports star. Good looks and a nice disposition — some of the requirements of being a movie star — have diminishing value the older we get.
You can see the MediaPost report here.
