September 17, 2008 • 2:24 pm 1
It’s Social Networking for Babies – Twitter From the Cradle – NYTimes.com
Call it convenient. Call it baby overshare. But a host of new sites, including Totspot, Odadeo, Lil’Grams and Kidmondo, now offer parents a chance to forgo the e-mail blasts of, say, their newborn’s first trip home and instead invite friends and family to join and contribute to a network geared to connecting them to the baby in their lives.
Filed under: Twitter, families, kids, social networking
• 2:22 pm 0
Divided We Brand: The U.S.’ GMC/Scion Schism
According to data-mining company Axciom, Little Rock, Ark., consumers who describe themselves as “very liberal” are disproportionately likely to buy branded automobile oil filters and cigarettes. The “very conservative” consumers paid more attention to home and garden products, like insecticide and septic tank cleaners.
Filed under: Democrats, Politics, Republicans, shopping
• 2:20 pm 0
Considering that more than a third (36%) of gamers actually bought, talked about or sought information about a product after seeing an ad in a videogame, per Nielsen Games, a case can be made that they are very effective.
Filed under: Branded Entertainment, Gaming, advertising
• 2:17 pm 0
MRI: Consumers Stick to One Medium at Home
According to Mediamark Research & Intelligence data, more than half of people’s time spent consuming media at home is often done exclusively with one medium.
Among all adults, 55 percent of their at-home newspaper reading occurs without involvement with other media. With magazine reading, 53.6 percent is exclusive. For the Internet, the figure is 53.8 percent, and for TV and radio, the percentages are 49.4 and 28.3, respectively.
Filed under: Internet, Media, Newspapers, TV, magazines, radio
• 2:11 pm 0
Employers Using SocNets to Research Job Candidates – MarketingVOX
One in five hiring managers (22 percent) say they use social-networking sites to research job candidates, up from 11 percent in 2006 – and an additional 9 percent say they plan to start doing so – according to a CareerBuilder.com nationwide survey of some 3,100 employers, reports MarketingCharts.
Filed under: research, social networking, workplace
• 2:09 pm 0
Millennials Prefer Social Networking to Internet Porn – MarketingVOX
Social networking sites are increasingly eclipsing pornography consumption over the ‘net — and underscoring a shift in how people communicate, according to Reuters, drawing from the research of author and GM Bill Tancer of global research at Hitwise.
Filed under: Gen Y, social networking
• 2:08 pm 0
Gen X, Gen Y Moms Use Internet Differently – MarketingVOX
Though both Generation X and Generation Y moms view the internet as a must-have tool for finding child-rearing information, there is a significant generational difference in their online behaviors and preferences, according to a study from The Parenting Group and NewMediaMetrics.
Gen Y moms are much more attached to media that connects them to other moms online – such as internet communities, blogs and video-sharing sites – suggesting they prefer to rely on peers rather than experts to help them parent, according to the study.
In contrast, Gen X moms are less attached to digital media as a whole. They are more likely to engage in task-oriented activities such as shopping online and uploading photos
Filed under: Gen Y, Internet, Media, Moms, Women, digital, websites
• 2:06 pm 0
Affluent African Americans Wield $29.8B in Spending Power – MarketingVOX
Key findings:
* Affluent African Americans most often read the The New York Times and Wall Street Journal newspapers, as well as magazines BusinessWeek and Newsweek, Jet and The Economist.
* 50 percent go out for fine dining and more than 25 percent go to clubs/bars at least once a week.
* More than 20 percent go clothes shopping at least once a week. Men focus their fashion spending on career wear, casual wear and shoes, while women spend on purses and shoes.
* 75 percent shop in higher-end, specialty department stores, and 66 percent shop in traditional department stores. Outlets and “last chance” stores also are popular destinations, suggesting that even affluent shoppers look for bargains.
* Luxury bottled water and wine (both domestic and imported) are the beverages of choice, though other high-end beverages are frequently consumed.
* More than 10 percent travel on business at least once a week and about one quarter shop during business travel.
* More than 70 percent have a passport and have used it on international travel in the past year. About one-third travel internationally at least three times a year and one-tenth travel internationally at least every other month.
* Nearly 10 percent plan to buy or lease a new vehicle in the next three months, and more than one-quarter more expect to do so in the next year.
* Luxury sedans are the most common current and future vehicle types preferred. Those who own mid-range and economy vehicles are looking to trade up in their next purchase or lease to a more prestigious option.
* While more than 60 percent have gym or fitness center memberships and one-third have home gyms, nearly 40 percent wish they were doing more to stay fit.
* 65 percent participate in cardio exercise and 57 percent participate in resistance/weight training to stay fit. About one-third jog, speed-walk or practice Yoga or Pilates. Another fifth say they run, swim or play tennis on a regular basis.
* Affluent African Americans are looking for insider information to satisfy their need for new social experiences. They see themselves as resources for friends and colleagues on what’s new and like to treat themselves to the very best and indulge in conveniences.
* Nearly 30 percent make the majority of their living through entrepreneurial activities, and another 10 percent aspire to do so in the next five years.
Filed under: African American, affluent
• 2:00 pm 0
The Hartman Group, Inc. : HartBeat
Environmental issues may be forcing grocery stores and other retailers to rethink and replace one type of plastic (the plastic bag), while plastic of another kind, the prepaid gift card, is quickly supplanting “paper” as the gift of choice for a majority of American consumers.
The gift card market is a multi-billion dollar industry. Prepaid gift cards have seemingly become the perfect answer to the age-old question of “what to give” for any occasion. Extending beyond other old-fashioned forms (e.g., cash, checks, paper gift certificates) and morphing to include diverse categories (retail, phone, books, movies, music, debit/credit) gift card buying and giving continues to gain in popularity.
According to Gift Cards Purchase & Redemption, Pre-Holiday Outlook 2008, a report by The Hartman Group, Inc. and A National Research Network (NRN), nearly three-quarters of Americans have either purchased or received a gift card over the past year. Gift cards change how consumers shop for any number of gift-giving occasions, the most important of which is the holiday shopping season.
Filed under: gift giving, holidays
