Perception Analyzer Dial.Log

AARP uses the Perception Analyzer to better understand "How She Will Decide"

As part of its 50^th anniversary celebration, AARP teamed up with iVillage to create the dynamically interactive town forum – “How She Will Decide” – on February 1, 2008, at the historic Alex Theatre in Glendale, California. To learn about how important topics will shape the way women will vote in the upcoming presidential election, hundreds of women from all walks of life were invited to express their opinions and be engaged by forum moderator Val Zavala and panelists Ron Brownstein, political director for Atlantic Media Company; Frank Luntz, political consultant and author of Words that Work; Nancy LeaMond, AARP Group Executive Officer and Director of the Divided We Fail initiative; Donna Addkison, political consultant and pollster; and Paula Madison, Executive Vice President of Diversity, NBC Universal.

Each of the 400 women were given a Perception Analyzer dial as they arrived and used it to give feedback and register their opinions in real-time during the event.  Such involvement became the focal point of the event as audience opinions were instantly generated and displayed on large projection screens.

“The goal of our event was to engage the audience and involve them in a two-way conversation to discuss the issues,” said AARP Research Director, Jeffrey Love. “Using the Perception Analyzer did just that.”

The event may be watched in its entirety at iVillage.com.

Perception Analyzer used during Democratic presidential debate in Philadelphia

Most debate watchers have seen those opinion line graphs that get plotted during televised debates. Those graphs are created by our Perception Analyzer system during dial groups.

For the April 16, debate in Philadelphia the Perception Analyzer was used to get real-time feedback from a group of undecided voters. An overview of how the technology was used maybe watched here and the news story about the research during the debate may be watched here.

Hey Kids, Here Comes the Pitch (VI)

The British Heart Association has launched the Food4Thought campaign designed to give kids the real (and sometime scary) scoop on what they're eating and how to make better food choices.  They aim to shock with images of raw, unprocessed ingredients in such fast foods as hot dogs, chicken nuggets and burgers.  But more importantly, they offer food facts (for the good and the bad), a glossary of food label items, recipes and more.  This is a great effort!

Previous relevant posts:
Hey Kids, Here Comes the Pitch
Hey Kids, Here Comes the Pitch (II)
Hey Kids, Here Comes the Pitch (III)
Hey Kids, Here Comes the Pitch (IV)
Hey Kids, Here Comes the Pitch (V)

via [Slashfood]

McSubway

This is an interesting study - customers of McDonald's and Subway were interviewed on their way out of the respective restaurants and asked how many calories they thought they had consumed.  Those data were then compared with how many they actually consumed.

The results of the Cornell University and University of Illinois study as published in USA Today are:

• Customers at McDonald's consumed about 710 calories and estimated that they had eaten about 670 calories each.
• Those at Subway each ate about 560 calories but estimated only 335.

"The customers at McDonald's ate a lot of calories and knew they'd eaten a lot," says Wansink, director of Cornell's Food and Brand Lab. "But those at Subway experienced the 'halo effect,' which allowed them to think they were eating better than they were."

Online Stats

CNN.com has an interesting special report called Online Evolution. Particularly interesting is a summary of online data collected from various sources.  I can't link directly to it, but you can see it by clicking the "Tracking life online" link in the "How Has The Internet Changed?" section.  And, in case you were wondering, "Britney Spears" was the top Google search term of 2004 followed by "Paris Hilton," "Christina Aguilera," "Pamela Anderson" and "chat."  At least we have our priorities straight.

TiVo-proofing Commercials

In an effort to make television commercials effective even when seen through a DVR in fast-forward mode, research firm Frank N. Magid Associates suggests the following:

• Give an ad the "fast-forward test" to be sure "if people fast-forward they can decipher what's going on"
• Use more text which can often be more effective in the no-sound environment of fast-forward
• "Focus for longer periods on interesting images rather than quickly cutting from image to image"
• "Graphics should be placed on the screen where the DVR fast-forwarding bar isn’t covering the screen"

This Media Life article (from where the above recommendations came) also contains other stats on DVR viewing habits gleaned from a Magid online study.

via [Lost Remote]

Appeal of Off-beat Product Names

In a recent paper, marketing professors from Wharton and Boston College looked at the positive response consumers have to imaginative names, even if they are not particularly descriptive.  Very interesting!

via [Seth's Blog]

Hey Kids, Here Comes the Pitch (IV)

Dan Jaffe of the Association of National Advertisers believes research is showing that advertising may not be the primary culprit in the increasing childhood obesity problem.

For those interested in advertising, Dan Jaffe's blog seems like a great one to keep up with.  Very interesting.

via [Adrants]

Sleep, Work, Watch TV

AdAge reports on how the average American spends their time each day.  The top three - sleeping, working and watching TV.  Here's a chart and the full article (free subscription required).

via [TV Squad]

Turn Respondents into Audience Members

Brand Autopsy points to a strategic planning, branding and communications consultancy called Just Ask a Woman that has a very interesting twist on the traditional focus group.  They create a talk show environment populated with "audience members" (rather than respondents).  This shift of perspective seems like it could lead to a very interesting and valuable dynamic.  Check out their site for a more detailed overview and clips of some actual "episodes."

Hey kids, Here Comes the Pitch (III)

As a follow-up to my last post, this article cites how PepsiCo is planning to restrict advertising to children and reduce serving sizes in schools.  A trend that I, for one, hope catches on.

via [URBANintelligence]

Hey Kids, Here Comes the Pitch (II)

British consumer advocacy group, Which?, has taken issue with cartoon characters being used to market unhealthy foods to kids.  Their research showed that "77 percent of people think using kids' favorite cartoon characters such as Shrek, The Simpsons and Scooby Doo, on the packs of foods high in fat, salt and sugar makes it difficult for parents to say no to their children."  This, to me, is one of those "no-duh" stats that only makes me wonder what the other 23% are thinking?

I do the grocery shopping in my household and am always on the lookout for foods that I think my young son will find fun and interesting.  I turn over box after box and package after package of food items being marketed to and for kids only to put them right back after reading the ingredients.  High-fructose this and trans fat that.  There is no way I'm putting that stuff into my kid's body in any significant quantity (except for the occasional treat or to allow him to be social).  Overall, kids' activity levels are down and their consumption of high-fat and high-calorie packaged and prepared foods is up and we all know what it's doing to their weight, general health, self-confidence and well-being.

If tobacco companies can't market to kids because their products are known to be addictive and unhealthy, why is the same not true for food companies?  If Joe Camel can't be used to promote cigarettes, why can the likes of Shrek be used to promote sugary cereals and high-fat snacks?

via [Blogging Baby]

Gaming Passes Hollywood

Joystiq reports 2004 gaming revenues to have been $9.9 billion with portable gaming contributing $1 billion of that.  Compare that to record-breaking 2004 movie theater revenues of $9.4 million.  The entertainment tide is shifting.

via [Airbag]

Why We Go Mobile

A recent study of mobile phone users by IDC yields three distinct perceived benefits that come from using mobile phones, at least one of which people feel they receive:

Safety and security
Productivity and convenience
Style and status

Interestingly, "males, more than females, rate style and status as important mobile phone benefits while females regard safety and security as more valuable."

via [Adverblog]

Better Polling

Interesting article in Wired magazine about the challenges pollsters face today and ideas on how to make the process better.

Thanks to Bruce for the link.

Best and Worst Airports 2004

J.D. Power & Associates has just released results from its annual Global Airport Satisfaction Index Study. Of large airports (30 million+ passengers/year), Hong Kong ranked best while JFK ranked worst.  My hometown airport in Portland (PDX) ranked 4/35 for medium-size airports (10 million to less than 30 million passengers/year).  Way to go PDX!

What I also find fascinating, and I think about this every time I go to the airport, is that according to the study 59% of passengers still check-in at the main ticket counter even though it takes longer (avg. 19 min.) than checking-in via kiosks or curbside.  Kiosks are used by 18% of passengers at an average of eight minutes and curbside is used by 10% of passengers at an average of 13 minutes.  I'm actually surprised kiosks were found to be faster than curbside as my experience is the opposite.  I find people are still confused by kiosks even though they really couldn't be easier.  First, people seem afraid to approach an empty kiosk, then when they finally get up there they stare at the screen as if it were written in another language.  I personally love curbside check-in.  Those skycaps know what they're doing and I'm always in and out fast. Though when not checking bags I have begun enjoying the convenience of checking-in online which the study shows is only being used by 5% of passengers.

Download PDF

via [Right This Way]

Who Do We Trust?

Results have just been released from Gallup's annual survey of what professions people find to be most honest and ethical.  Interesting stats.

via [FC Now]

People Want Better Meat

Results of a new survey by Harris Interactive for The Boston Consulting Group show what categories of products people are willing to pay more for (i.e. trade up) and to pay less for (i.e. trade down).  What distracts me from the rest of the data is that the second thing people choose to trade up most often is meat - MEAT!  Perhaps it's just that I am always amused by the word "meat."  Don't know why - just think it's a funny word. Anyway, here are the top 10 trade up and trade down items with the percent of respondents who chose them:

Top 10 Trading Up Categories  

1. Personal computers: 52.1%
2. Meat: 51.3%
3. My home or apartment itself: 50.7%
4. Furniture: 49.4%
5. Sit-down restaurants: 48.1%
6. Cars: 48.0%
7. Bedding: 47.6%
8. Kitchen appliances: 46.7%
9. Home entertainment products: 46.6%
10. Travel/Vacations: 46.3%

Top 10 Trading Down Categories  

1. Canned foods: 50.0%
2. Dry goods: 46.6%
3. Snack foods: 46.4%
4. Household cleaners: 46.0%
5. Paper products: 46.0%
6. Fast-service restaurants: 45.7%
7. Accessories: 45.0
8. Soft drinks: 44.8%
9. Bottled water: 43.6%
10. OTC health remedies: 43.1%

via [re:invention]

Television Viewing Stats

Here are a few TV viewing stats that speak to what people do when they watch television.  Nothing groundbreaking, but we love new stats, right?!?

What Mobile Phone Users Want

Interesting stats from eMarketer about what mobile phone customers do, and say they want to be able to do, with their mobile phones.  Honestly, these numbers are lower than I would have expected.

New Ad Recall Stats for DVR Fast Forwarding

CBS has conducted a study that shows ad recall by DVR viewers at 23% for commercials they fast forwarded through.  While the story covering this new research does not mention what traditional ad recall is, CBS's executive vice president-research and planning, David Poltrack, says, "You wouldn't get that kind of recall if you asked people to watch a regular TV commercial."

In a previous study it was shown that while fast forwarding, viewers said they "always" notice commercials 15% of the time and "sometimes" notice commercials 52% of the time.

In another previous study, 65% said they "always or sometimes" notice and 33% said they "rarely or never notice" the brands being advertised while fast forwarding.

The common thread coming from all this research is that people at least have their eyeballs on the screen when fast forwarding as opposed to them getting up and doing something else during commercials.  This is where keeping product placements and logos on the screen as long as possibly will help advertisers.

via [MediaPost]

Aggregating Online Buzz to Precict TV Hits and Misses

Initiative, a New York media agency, has developed a tool called PropheSEE that "measures which (television) shows are being talked about most on the Internet. Unlike other systems that do the same thing, it also gages whether the talk is positive or negative." 

It seems to have accurately predicted the fate of a number of shows this season, but not everyone is convinced.  Read on...

Newspapers and Local TV News Viewed as Most Credible

MediaPost has reported on a survey that ranked newspapers and local TV news as the most credible forms of media.  The rest of the rankings:

30%    Newspapers
30%    Local TV News
24%    Cable News Networks
21%    Online News Sites
20%    Broadcast TV Network News
16%    News Magazines
13%    News Radio
13%    Talk Radio
4%      Blogs (Web Logs)
9%      Other

Other interesting stats in the article.

via [Adrants]

 

Mobile TV

According to Engadget, CNET has reported that Texas Instruments says 70% of cellphones will have digital TV tuners by 2007. Should this prophecy come to pass, what might this hold for the advertising industry? Will we see specially designed commercials optimized for television viewing via mobile devices? I think the answers is undoubtedly, YES!

Considering all the ad-zapping associated with DVR viewing of television, advertising via mobile device could be the next frontier.

The Future of Television

Two more interesting bits of television news today:

Bill Gates discusses the possible future irrelevance of broadcast television.

Media Life magazine reports on how television usage among men 18-34 is up (due to video games, DVD's and DVR's) even though television viewing among the same group is down.

via [Lost Remote & Lost Remote]

DVR Watchers Skipping More Ads

MarketingVOX references a recent study by Media Planning Group finding that "nine out of ten respondents said they usually or always skip [television] ads - even with live programming - when they use their digital video recorders (DVRs)." Other data that is not necessarily in synch with these findings can be found here.

Night of the Media Heavyweights (III)

Dynamic Logic's second CrossMedia Forum provided for a great evening of lively debate between top executives representing the eight major media categories. Much of the debate was spurred on by nearly 200 members of the audience using Perception Analyzer® dials to respond to the question, "Which medium is facing the toughest road ahead?" The audience responded as follows:

Broadcast TV (35%)
Newspaper (28%)
Radio (11%)
Magazine (10%)
Direct Marketing (5%)
Cable TV (4%)
Outdoor / Out-of-Home (4%)
Internet (2%)

The debate that followed has been well covered by the following outlets:
MediaPost iMedia Connection DM News

Many thanks to Dynamic Logic and the other sponsors for a great event. Onward to Round 3...

U.S. Broadband Penetration

Internet Retailer reports on Nielsen/NetRatings' current findings of the 10 most and least connected U.S. cities via broadband. While nationwide broadband penetration is 51%:

The top 10 cities most connected via broadband are:
San Diego, 69.6%
Phoenix, 68.4%
Detroit, 67%
New York, 66.8%
Sacramento, 64.9%
Orlando, 64.7%
Seattle, 63%
San Francisco, 63%
Los Angeles, 61.6%
Boston, 61.4%

The 10 least broadband connected cities are:
Baltimore, 50.1%
Miami, 49.6%
Chicago, 48.4%
Denver, 48.3%
Minneapolis, 46.9%
Milwaukee, 39.3%
Salt Lake City, 35.3%
Pittsburgh, 33.3%
Charlotte, 31.6%
Columbus, 26.9%

via [Lost Remote]

Impact of DVR's on TV Advertising

Some good thoughts over at Bold Approach blog about the impact DVR's are having on television advertising and how to make advertising better overall.

Dave also links to an interesting Forrester study that delves deeply into this topic.

For more info, I previously looked at this topic here, here and here.

Gaming Up

MediaPost's Media Daily News reports on a Ziff Davis Media study that provides more data on the impact video game playing is having on television watching and other media consumption:

• 54.5 million U.S. households play console-based video games
  
• 52.3 million U.S. households play PC-based video games
  
• 26% of respondents said their TV viewing has decreased in the last year as a result of video game usage
  
• 20% of respondents expect their TV viewing to decrease in the next year as a result of video game usage
  

I previously addressed the impact gaming is having on television watching and there is more good info in the MediaPost article, as well as over at Adrants.

Media Multitasking (III)

Whether consuming multiple forms of media at the same time or just trying to consume all types of media faster, the way people interact with media is changing fast. This article at seattlepi.com sums it up very well. As I've previously addressed here and here, marketers and advertisers need to keep-up and find new ways of getting their messages through.

As an aside, I love the way a well written piece can make you feel the emotion and pace the author is trying to convey. I actually found myself speed reading this article without even thinking about it. Fun read.

[via Lost Remote]

I Want My TV

According to USA Today, a new study found that 80% of men 18-34 would give up their video game consoles before giving up their TV sets. Though this is contrary to a study earlier this year by a video game industry association that showed "about 52% of video and computer game players say they're watching less TV and spending more time on games," others believe it is more about media multitasking than choosing one medium over the other. According to the publisher of Maxim magazine (which co-sponsored the study), "25-year-old guys watch MTV, surf the Web, talk on their cell phones and instant-message their friends — all at the same time. These guys are black belts in media consumption."

via Adrants

Eating Habits of Teens

The July/August issue of Quirk's Marketing Research Review magazine published results of a Teen Health & Nutrition study by BuzzBack Market Research (p. 8, content not available online). Over 500 U.S. teens were surveyed and here is some of what they said:

Favorite fast-food restaurant:
Subway (64%)
McDonald's (48%)

Top five snacks:
Potato/tortilla chips (63%)
Cookies (55%)
Chewing gum (47%)
Fresh fruit (47%)
Ice cream (47%)

Top five snack brands:
Oreo (22%)
Ritz (21%)
Doritos (20%)
Coca-Cola (19%)
Snickers (18%)

Motivators for trying new food products:
Curious about it (71%)
Offered a new flavor (67%)
Looked appetizing (63%)
Convenient to prepare/eat (54%)

My observations - 1) I'm very surprised that Subway beat McDonald's by 16%, 2) Combine that with fresh fruit tying for the third place in the top snacks category and it looks like many teens are making good eating choices (though "good" is certainly subjective), 3) I'm not sure gum can really be classified as a snack, 4) I find it interesting how the top five snack brands do not follow suit with the rankings of the top five snacks.

HDTV Interest and Content On the Rise

Two interesting bits of HDTV (high definition television) news today:

First, eMarketer summarizes a study by Yankee Group that shows 78% of consumers are aware of HDTV, 20% plan to purchase HDTV sets and predicts the installed base of HDTVs will be nearly 60 million by 2008.

Second, while the major television networks are dramatically scaling back coverage of the upcoming political conventions, Lost Remote reports that HDNet, co-founded by Mark Cuban, will provide more extended coverage of the conventions to its subscribers as well as make "the gavel-to-gavel national high-definition feed of the conventions available to MSOs and satellite providers who wish to provide the telecast to their subscriber base."

As the price of HDTV sets goes down and the quantity of programming goes up, this will continue be an interesting evolution to watch develop.

TV Technology Stats

New study reports on current in-home TV technology numbers:

• DVRs in 4% of homes (up 100% in 6 months)
  
• HDTV in 6% of homes (up 50% in 6 months)
  
• Dual DVD/VHS decks in 18% of homes
  
• TV tuners in PCs in 5% of homes
  

I'm actually surprised HDTV is slightly out-pacing DVRs, but that DVR number is no doubt going to take off in the coming months. Advertisers better get ready.

via Lost Remote

Gen Y Blog

If you or your clients market to Generation Y, a blog called Ypulse will no doubt be a valuable source of information. Check it out.

via Micro Persuasion

DVR Study Yields Good News for Advertisers

As a follow-up to this post I refer you to this article in The Hollywood Reporter regarding results of a new TV viewership study that includes data on DVR viewing habits.

Key stats:

DVR penetration is expected to be "6% of domestic TV households by year's end"

"...after TV watchers start using their new DVR, the amount of time they watch television per week increases 24% from an average of 19.2 hours to 23.9 because the device reduces the need for irritating channel-surfing..."

"...even while skipping through commercials, only 33% of DVR users report that they rarely or never notice the brands being advertised...65% always or sometimes notice them"

"...nearly 55% of DVR users have found themselves rewinding or pausing a TV commercial in order to better understand the advertised product"

The article goes on to discuss how even though DVR watchers tend to fast-forward through ads, they don't walk away from the TV like non-DVR watchers. So, even the passing imagery of an ad has more impact than no imagery at all. It also points out how advertisers are working to make ads more effective in reaching fast-forwarding DVR watchers by using such tactics as:

"...30-second ads that keep the brand logo or a discount offer on the screen throughout so that viewers who hit the fast-forward button might still get a clear sales or brand message; ultrashort commercials designed to end by the time users can grab the remote and fast-forward; and three-minute ads that masquerade as content, encouraging users to record them daily."

Ad Dollars Moving from Traditional Media to Web (II)

Since we're on a roll with this topic today, here's an article from The New York Times that suggests TV add spending could be down as much as $100 million to $300 million for the upcoming 2004-5 season.

Web Also a Threat to Print Media

Interestingly, as a follow-up to the last post, here is a post at Adrants that summarizes a survey by the Association of National Advertisers asking marketers about their opinions on print media as an advertising outlet. Amid many interesting stats is also the fact that one of the top three things marketers feel are the greatest threats to print advertising is "the Internet as an alternative source of information."

Ad Dollars Moving from Traditional Media to Web

As a follow-up to this post, here is an article from Media Life magazine, courtesy of Lost Remote, that helps explain the increase in online ad spending and from where the ad dollars are coming.

Want Do Customers Want and Why? Just Ask.

This post over at the Good Experience Blog, about the simplistic customer research methods of Hallmark founder Joyce C. Hall back in 1915, makes a good point about how sometimes more simple and direct methods can yield the most valuable and compelling results. He simply observed people doing their thing and asked them why they did what they did. Do our advanced research methodologies of today sometimes take away from the simple beauty of, and clean results derived from, just asking people what they want and why they do what they do? Granted, it may not be the most efficient or cost effective method, but it sure seems as if it may be one of the more accurate. How much more pure can you get?

Mobile Phone Service - Second Worst for Customer Sat

Right behind cable providers are mobile phone service providers with the second lowest ranking in the University of Michigan's customer satisfaction index. Key complaints: dropped calls, poor customer service, penalties and fees.

My biggest complaint -- why can't we get the coolest phones and latest technologies that show up in Japan and Europe?

Actually, scratch that...my biggest complaint is exemplified by something that happened to me last week. On of my employee's mobile phone bills was $75 higher than normal (on a $65 monthly plan). I noticed it was all concentrated under the "Roaming" section of the bill and all calls took place over a three day period. She has never incurred roaming charges before. I called the service provider and they said that on those days she was in DC where another carrier's signal is stronger. The phone picked-up the stronger signal and I was charged for roaming (and long distance) for all calls during those days. Now, as if that wasn't bad enough, the next thing I was told was that for $5 per month I could eliminate all roaming and never have this problem again. Where were they before? Where were they when I needed them - before the roaming incident that no reasonable person could have avoided? That, my friends, is why this industry is floating in the customer sat commode.

Media Multitasking (II)

More data to support the fact that people's media-consumption is becoming more and more splintered. Television ad premiums will certainly continue to be challenged if the audience's attention is that diverted, further justifying advertiser's intent to move ad dollars from television to other media outlets.

Moms Online

Another Ad:Tech session partial transcript by Heath at FC Now - this one about how moms use the Internet as told by Joanne Erickson, research director for Disney Online.

Key stats:

"According to Nielsen, there are 31 million moms online. They're 38, tend to be married, are very smart -- college educated -- and are working moms. Moms forever have been key decision makers. What's interesting is how that translates to the Internet."

"Nine out of 10 new Internet moms agree that the Internet helps them simplify their lives. 68% visited sites for food and cooking. 61% visited sites for news information. And 56% visited sites for parenting and children's education information. I'm online researching schools and interviewing teachers."

Sounds Like a Stretch

In this post we referenced how, partially due to the proliferation of DVRs (digital video recorders), more advertisers are moving parts of their advertising dollars to media outlets other than television. Today, Lost Remote links to an article about a study that suggests 96% of DVR viewers stick through commercial breaks as opposed to the 49% of non-DVR viewers (claiming the other 51% of non-DVR viewers flip around to other channels during commercial breaks). The caveat in the article that, in my opinion, makes the statistic worthless is, "96 percent of those viewers actually watch TV commercials when they become DVR subscribers, albeit in fast-forward mode."

I have a DVR (TiVo) and fast forward through commercials at the fastest fast forward speed and I can tell you that I have absolutely no idea what any of those ads are. Even though the article claims that, "most fast-fowarders "notice" TV commercials either "always" (15 percent) or "sometimes" (52 percent) while zipping through the spots," I'd say "notice" is a pretty weak term and not one on which advertisers are going to want to spend millions of dollars.

Purchase decisions 95% subconscious?

According to Harvard Business School professor and author, Gerald Zaltman, 95% of consumer's purchase decision making takes place in the subconscious mind. This piece in HBS's Working Knowledge offers Professor Zaltman's thoughts on the matter and how he proposes getting into the subconscious mind of the consumer.

Internet ad revenue up 21% in 2003

Led by a spike in keyword search ads (fees advertisers pay online companies to tie a listings and/or links to their site to specific search terms), Internet ad revenue experienced a health bump in 2003 according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB). This is especially relevant during a time when other forms of advertising are flat at best. And, while keyword search ads jumped 20%, banners dropped 8%, clearly showing that context-relevant ads work.

Advertising agency and consumer disconnect?

Church of the Customer posts interesting stats on what the American public thinks about advertising vs. what the chairman of the American Association of Advertising Agencies has to say.

Quant v. Qual

Knowledge@Wharton has an interesting article on the balance needed between quantitative and qualitative research approaches. The theme of the article can be summed-up by a statement by Peter Fader, marketing professor at Wharton, who says, "Thanks to technology and other innovations we know far more about our customers than we ever did before, but I would contend that we don’t understand more about our customers than we did 40 years ago."

The article also cites opinions of Americus Reed, marketing professor at Wharton, on the need (and techniques by which) to overcome respondent's unwillingness to be candid regarding certain topics or their uncertainty of why they do certain things by getting them to "project" what they really think. We previously referenced Professor Reed's opinions on focus groups in this post.

More broadband = less TV?

While U.S. figures may be different, a recent survey of 800 European broadband users, by Strategy Analytics, revealed that 56% are spending less time watching TV since subscribing to broadband. Though it would be nice to know how much less TV they are watching (which the survey may reveal, but the article does not), this does speak to the fact that fast and efficient communications, entertainment and content delivery via broadband will likely continue to whittle-away at traditional television viewership over time.

Online BOOMers

Results from a new survey by the Pew Internet and American Life Project conclude that boomers (ages 38-56) are nearly as likely to use the Internet (68%) than those 18-37 (78%) with older Americans at 34%. The key here, as pointed out by Forrester Research analyst Jed Kolko, is that as boomers become seniors, more and more seniors will be online. For our purposes, that will making researching seniors via the Internet much more feasible.

Media multitasking

The Media Center at the American Press Institute concludes that 70% of media consumers use multiple forms of media at the same time. The goal of the study was to provide "quantifiable data on consumer media behaviors as an alternative to traditional audience measurement techniques, which at best capture bodies or time in front of devices but do not necessarily capture mindshare or influence."

Key stats:
• People who regularly or occasionally watch TV and read the newspaper at the same time: 74.2%
  
• People who regularly or occasionally watch TV while going online: 66.2%.
  
• For simultaneous online users, TV viewing is down 8.8% among 18 to 24 year-olds and down 12.2% among 25 to 34 year-olds in favor of video games
  
• What people do as they wait for downloads from the Internet: listen to the radio (52.1%); watch TV (61.8%), read the newspaper (20.2%)
  
• Importance of word of mouth when it comes to making purchase decisions: 72.5% of all consumers say it's very important versus 80% among cell phone users.
  

This is what we're saying!

For years, we at MSInteractive have been saying (and our clients agree) that using the Perception Analyzer® in focus groups helps eliminate "group-think" by allowing everyone to respond to questions based on their own opinions and not be influenced by the more vocal respondents in the group. It also facilitates more honest feedback through the anonymity derived from their own personal dials because people are not afraid to share opinions that may be embarrassing or unpopular.

Well, every once in a while we have our position validated by people far smarter than us. In this case, it is by way of a quote from Americus Reed (marketing professor at the Wharton School of Business). The context of the quote is in reference to traditional focus groups as compared to ethnographic research, the topic of the article in which he is quoted.

"A focus group is like a chainsaw. If you know what you're doing, it's very useful and effective. If you don't, you could lose a limb. Group opinion can be swayed by more vocal and strident members and findings can be skewed by participants' reluctance to share their true feelings in front of a group." [L. Tischler, "Every Move You Make," Fast Company, (April 2004), 73-75.]

Users of the Perception Analyzer certainly know what positive impact the elimination of those two concerns have on their research.

Home Internet access stats (II)

U.S. household broadband penetration of 18% significantly lags behind other nations according to this Business Week article.

Home Internet access stats

According to a new report by Nielsen/NetRatings, home Internet access penetration jumped from 66% in February 2003 to 75% today. However, the important caveat from the report is, "Internet access penetration is defined as the percent of people aged 2 and over living in households equipped with a fixed line phone, who have home Internet access, though not necessarily logging online during a specific period of time." So, take that for that it's worth.

Boomer women have the money and power

While most of us already know this, an article by Fast Company offers some interesting statistics - two that caught my eye:

• By 2010, spending by people 40 and older will be a trillion dollars greater than spending by people between the ages of 18 and 34 -- $2.6 trillion versus $1.6 trillion
  
• Women control or influence 80% of all purchases of both consumer and business goods and services
  

How DVR's will impact television ratings

Much is being made of the impact DVR's are going to have on television viewing, subsequent ratings and ad buys. TelevisionWeek has a very comprehensive article on what the future may look like.

Poll shows advertisers wary of TV buying season

According to this new poll by the Association of National Advertisers, 58% of advertisers are dissatisfied with the spring "upfront" buying season for television spots and 40% plan to move part of their ad budget to other media outlets. Primary reasons cited for the dissatisfaction are the network's practice of making frequent, often short notice changes to programming and the proliferation of DVR/PVR’s.