Identifying consumer trends that impact newspaper circulation and readership
Produced by Dawn McMullan on 14 February 2005
A Note From Dawn: From senior citizens to young adults, from sex to reading, from the mix of product and media ... INMA
monitors 50+ web sites regularly on the latest consumer trends and research. E-mail me at dmcmullan@sbcglobal.net with suggestions.
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Men Want More Time For Sex, Women Want It For Reading
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Direct Marketing Contact OK If Discount, Product Is Right
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Senior Citizens Eat At Home More Than Most
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Senior Citizens Increase Use Of Cellular Telephones
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Consumers Use Loyalty Cards Despite Privacy Issues
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Western Europeans Going More High-Tech With Mobile Telephones
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Super Bowl Viewers Like Domestic Beer, Nice Cars, Movies
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Senior Citizens Are Fastest-Growing Group Of Internet Users
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People Prefer Local TV, Newspapers For News
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Online Travel Shopping Increase, Especially Among Middle Class
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Consumers Broaden Shops They Frequent
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Music Influential For Young Adults, Gives Hints About Brand Preference
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Parents Worried About Children's Time Online
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Many People Wondering What Blog Actually Means
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Children Around The World Stressed Yet Consider Themselves Healthy
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Most Scandinavians Do Not Think Dinner, Mobiles Mix
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Men Want More Time For Sex, Women Want It For Reading
Source: еrriveNet | 11 February 2005
While 44 percent of men in in the United States and the United Kingdom would rather have more "passionate sex" if they
had more time, 46 percent of their female counterparts said they would use the time reading, according to a release from
JWT. Not all is lost, though, as 33 percent of women said they would, indeed, partake of more lovemaking.
Editors Note: If women would rather read than have sex, should they not be reading more newspapers?
Direct Marketing Contact OK If Discount, Product Is Right
Source: ClickZNews | 10 January 2005
Consumers say they do not mind being contacted by merchants if there is something in it for them, according to a study by
Ponemon Institute and interactive ad firm Dotomi. The survey showed that 82 percent of people want to be notified if they
are being offered a discount or something free, and 92 percent said they want to be notified if the product or promotion
being discussed is of known interest to them based on past buying habits.
Senior Citizens Eat At Home More Than Most
Source: Promo Magazine | 12 January 2005
Senior citizens eat more often at home than the general population, according to research by Packaged Facts. People
between the ages of 65 and 74 spend 8.9 percent of their income on food they eat at home, while those over 75 spend 9.2
percent. This compares to the 7.6 percent the general population spends eating at home. People 60 years old and older
who work are likely to eat out more often than those who do not.
Senior Citizens Increase Use Of Cellular Telephones
Source: The New York Times | 02 February 2005
Cell phones are not just for the young. Half of Americans between the ages of 65 and 74 and 30 percent of those between
the ages of 75 to 84 own cellular telephones, reports the Yankee Group. This is quite an increase, considering only about
15 percent of people over the age of 65 did so just four years ago. While senior citizens have the reputation of having cell
phones for safety reasons, now they use them much the way the rest of us do.
Related: Senior Citizens Are Fastest-Growing Group Of Internet Users
Consumers Use Loyalty Cards Despite Privacy Issues
Source: The Retail Bulletin | 29 December 2004
While 86 percent of Americans use a supermarket loyalty card, about 50 percent of those have no idea the privacy issues at
stake, according to research from Boston University's College of Communication. Grocery stores are able to track each
customer's purchases for use in marketing and stocking issues. Of loyalty card users, 76 percent use them almost every
time they shop even though 52 percent are concerned about privacy.
Related: Loyalty Programmes Must Give Quick Rewards
Western Europeans Going More High-Tech With Mobile Telephones
Source: Center for Media Research | 05 January 2005
The IDC reports that more than 80 percent of mobile telephones sold in Western Europe in 2004 featured colour screens
(compared to 49 percent in 2003), while 72 percent featured digital cameras (compared to 11 percent in 2003).
Related: Converged Mobile Telephones On The Increase In Western Europe
Super Bowl Viewers Like Domestic Beer, Nice Cars, Movies
Source: Arbitron | 29 January 2005
Here are a few statistics to consider about fans of the Super Bowl, the championship game of American football: ∙ 67
percent of Americans are football fans (57 percent are men, and 32 percent are between the ages of 18 and 34). ∙ 28
percent of adults who watch the Super Bowl drank a regular domestic beer in the past month (making them 28 percent more
likely than your average consumer to have done so). Thirty-five percent drank a light domestic beer and 23 percent an
imported beer. ∙ 8 percent of Super Bowl viewers will spend US$20,000 or more for a car this year (making them 21 percent
more likely to do so than the average consumer). ∙ 23 percent go to the movies an average of once a month (making them
13 percent more likely than average consumers to do so). ∙ 31 percent bought DVD movies in the past three months. ∙ 93
percent have been to a fast-food restaurant in the past month.
Senior Citizens Are Fastest-Growing Group Of Internet Users
Source: MediaPost's Online Spin | 31 January 2005
The percentage of Americans age 65 and over who use the internet has increased by 46 percent since 2000 and 25 percent
this year, according to a study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project. This makes senior citizens the fast-growing
group of internet users. Other senior citizen statistics show that 42 percent have used a computer, 41 percent have one at
home, 31 percent have never gone on the internet, and 31 percent have internet access at home. Despite their increased
internet use, just 22 percent of that age group is online. While seniors are online, 93 percent use e-mail, 68 percent check
the weather, 67 percent read news, 58 percent look for information about a hobby, 57 percent have purchased something,
53 percent seek medical information, and 53 just browse for the fun of it.
Related: They May Be Gray, But They Are Still Surfing the Internet
People Prefer Local TV, Newspapers For News
Source: Hollywood Reporter | 22 December 2004
Local news has the advantage, according to a recent Gallup Organisation survey. Fifty-one percent of Americans surveyed
say they get their daily news from local television, 44 percent from local newspapers, 30 percent from cable news, 36
percent from network news, and 20 percent from the internet. Interestingly, however, the internet was the only medium to
increase its viewership since the last such survey.
Online Travel Shopping Increase, Especially Among Middle Class
Source: MediaPost | 17 December 2004
Almost one quarter (23 percent) of Americans used an online travel web site in November, up 13 percent from November
2003, according to Nielsen//NetRagings' e-spending report. Measuring active internet users, that number increases to 46
percent. The increase in online travel spending ≈ up from US$828 million last year to US$919 million this year ≈ is believed
to be because Christmas and New Year's Day both fall on a weekend this year. The largest group of online travel shoppers
(28 percent) are from households earning between US$50,000 and US$74,999. Twenty percent of those using travel web
sites earned between US$25,000 and US$49,999, while the smallest percentage (19 percent) earn between US$75,000
and US$99,999.
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Consumers Broaden Shops They Frequent
Source: ACNielsen | 16 January 2005
Consumers are making fewer trips to traditional grocery stores, in part because they are frequenting other stores to save
money, because it is more convenient, or to find a better variety, ACNielsen's "Channel Blurring" study shows. In 2003, the
average American went to the grocery store 72 times, compared to 69 times in 2004. Such a decline has happened each of
the past nine years. Supercenters see the most visits per year (27), while dollar stores continue to grow (with 13 visits per
year). Drug stores and convenience stores/gas stations (each 15 visits per year) have remained steady over the past few
years. Mass merchandise stores have gone down one visit per year in recent years (at 20 visits per year for 2004), while
warehouse stores have remained fairly steady (at 11 visits per year for 2004).
Music Influential For Young Adults, Gives Hints About Brand Preference
Source: What's New In Marketing | 31 January 2005
For 82 percent of those under the age of 25, music has more influence on their lives than movies or sports, according to
research by Jungle Jim. Furthermore, 31 percent said music was "more important than anything else, including where they
grew up." The study ties musical test to brand preference. For example, young adults who listen to Coldplay like Doc
Martens, while those who prefer pop music are more likely to buy Levi's.
Parents Worried About Children's Time Online
Source: Newsday.com | 06 January 2005
Concerned about content and a sedentary lifestyle, 95 percent of parents monitor their children's use of the internet ≈
including 70 percent who actually stay with their children while they are online, according to a study by the Conference
Board. In addition, more than 33 percent check the internet browser history to see where their children are spending time,
and 20 percent use their computer's parental controls to keep their children within certain boundaries. Only 13 percent of
parents allow their children to have computers in their rooms, most choosing to keep computers in the common areas of the
home. Seventy-five percent of parents limit the amount of time their children spend online, often encouraging them to be
engaged in a more physical activity.
Editors Note: Perhaps newspapers should promote their web sites ≈ or a portion of their web sites ≈ as a safe place for children to go online.
Related: New Report Helps Parents Guide Children's Media Usage
Many People Wondering What Blog Actually Means
Source: MediaPost | 01 December 2004
The words people look up are a good indicator of what they are interested in. This year, the word "blog" was one of the most
looked-up words on Merriam-Webster's online dictionary. Others in the top 10 included "partisan," "incumbent," "cicada,"
and "hurricane."
Children Around The World Stressed Yet Consider Themselves Healthy
Source: TNS | 19 April 2004
An international study by TNS shows that kids between the ages of 6 and 14 say they are stressed, do not exercise, yet
consider themselves healthy. Although 39 percent of American children are considered obese, 62 percent in the TNS study
feel good about their health and 87 percent say they are healthy eaters. Kids in Italy and France say they are most healthy
(83 percent and 81 percent respectively). Sixty-two percent of French children say they eat healthy, compared to 57 percent
in Holland and 55 percent in Italy. Only 47 percent of Swedish kids consider themselves healthy, the lowest of those
surveyed. Kids between the ages of 10 and 14 are especially stressed. In all the age groups, 79 percent of girls and 76
percent of boys considered themselves stressed. What is so stressful? Homework for 60 percent of the kids and parents for
46 percent.
Most Scandinavians Do Not Think Dinner, Mobiles Mix
Source: DMeurope | 12 November 2004
During dinner at your home or a friend's, your mobile telephone rings. Apparently, three out of four Swedes would answer,
while Finns would do so only at a restaurant, and the Danes think it's rude all around, according to research commissioned
by Nordic telco Teliasonera. Sixty percent of Nordic residents and 80 percent of Denmark residents say you should never
talk on a cell phone at a restaurant, while 52 percent of the Swedish population feels the same. Nordic youth between the
ages of 16 and 24 have a higher tolerance for mixing mobiles with their dinner.
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About This E-Newsletter: Consumer Trends for Newspapers is a bi-weekly e-newsletter produced by the International
Newspaper Marketing Association (INMA) for executives interested in consumer research and consumer trends of interest,
specifically how the research or trend affects newspaper circulation or readership. INMA members may view the complete
Consumer Trends For Newspapers archive 24/7 by clicking here. The e-newsletter is free to INMA members and available
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Dawn McMullan, a Dallas-based writer and former editor of INMA's Ideas Magazine, produces the Consumer Trends for
Newspaper based on her monitoring of 60 web sites and trade magazines. You may contact Dawn at
dawn.mcmullan@inma.org.