 |
Om cooking: Dinner with a side of yoga
ISM Blog: Super Bowl XLIV: Why Google blinked.
There it was. Right after The Who had finished their Cover Band of The Who act. Right at the beginning of the third quarter. A 60-second TV spot. For Google. My thoughts ran like this: What is this? Google? On TV? WTF?
Defining indulgence in 2010 and beyond
ISM sees a cautiously optimistic approach to indulgence emerging in 2010, one in which resourcefulness, rationalization and responsibility take on new currency. Indulgence is never going to go away. The value is just morphing. Today’s (and beyond) version of indulgence is not about abundance, but about gratification in the greater sense. The key rationalization in consumers’ thought process is: “It can’t just help me, it has to help something else.” That something can be the family’s bottom line, the need to feel savvy, personal health, someone in Haiti or the planet. Compassion for others’ dire situations, and an unwillingness to appear gauche, reigns. In other words, tomorrow’s indulgences need to whisper “luxe” rather than scream it. Consumers are already starting to manage the shame of indulgence—more so than they did in previous years, when rationalizations and trade-offs were sometimes considered, but not so thoughtfully. In many ways, basic is the new luxe. Simple, efficient, small and practical will define indulgence in 2010. It’s a shift away from frivolity and toward quality. Increasingly the experience, not the brand, defines the luxury.
Consumers still want to have fun, but people felt uneasy last year when they realized they possessed a lot of stuff but very little security. All that stuff still matters, but the type and manner of accrual is shifting. Just as some of us offset our carbon guilt because it’s just not always realistic to shun cars, airplanes and manufactured goods, so too more consumers will be rationalizing indulgence as part of a recessionary mindset shift with major legs. The pressure is on to downshift. An informal survey in New York magazine revealed that it wasn’t job loss that most encouraged people to cut down on spending, but rather “just realized it was time to be smarter with money.”
How does ISM see these trends breaking down by demo? Millennials are least likely to give up discretionary purchases, especially since retirement is so far down the road. Yet, they traditionally endorse cause consumption more than any other demo, and they’re demonstrating that savings behaviors have become entrenched because of the recession. In other words, offsetting is not a foreign concept to 20somethings. Gen Xers are paring down the most, partially because of their expensive lifestage of parental responsibilities, as well as their inherently practical mindset. This typically skeptical cohort has high expectations for bang-for-buck. Efficiency and simplicity are vital for their multi-roled lives. Watch for offsetting to be manifested in shared indulgences—what’s better for my whole family is better for me. Boomers and Matures have been tolerant of rationalized indulgence ever since the Great Recession jolted them into reality. Life savings got destroyed, so anger and bitterness prevailed at first. But in 2010, expect something of a silver lining to emerge. Boomers in particular were already used to wellness-related indulgence pre-recession, so they’ll be fine with (if not 100% happy about) luxury that comes with a side benefit.
Tough times, sure. But the “Well-Being Index” is peaking
Beginning in January 2008, Gallup research developed the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index. The index measures the comprehensive emotional, physical and fiscal health of American consumers on a scale of 0-100.
During the fourth quarter of 2009, the index stood at 67.8, equal to its highest previously recorded levels. Emotional health and “daily experience of enjoyment” were both at record levels as well. Analysts say the steady uptick in well-being since its low last December is a reflection of growing optimism. The index compares well-being across income groups, and while well-being increases with wealth, all income groups have seen an improvement in the past year. Well-being can be a vague thing to try to measure. But one striking thing seems certain: Americans are feeling better about themselves and their prospects even as the economy continues to struggle. At ISM, we believe the improvement in well-being is a natural result of Americans discovering the emotional, physical and financial upside of paying down debt, spending less and generally simplifying.
Kids catch fairies in the “real world,” thanks to the iPhone
The real world can be so boring. Even augmented reality tools usually only add more info, not more fun—until now. Fairy Trails, a Gen We-geared iPhone app, adds a layer of augmented fantasy to the real world. Kids (and their parents) use an iPhone camera to reveal a magical world layered on the real world, full of shimmering fairies and butterflies. Using the iPhone as a special fairy detector, kids capture creatures. The more they catch, the more they can find. Not an iPhone family? No problem. Fairy Trails works on the iPod Touch too. Instead of a layer of augmented reality, though, players see a forest setting onscreen where they can catch fairies. It’s no secret that moms and dads are using their iPhones to keep the kids entertained. But ISM sees these kinds of apps as encouraging family engagement, physical activity and fun, as opposed to just digital distractions. Gen We is already living in a non-line world, blurring the distinctions between on- and off-line. Games, toys and tools that allow them to do this with greater depth and convenience (and greater fun) are almost sure to be a hit.
Om cooking: Dinner with a side of yoga
Star yoga teacher David Romanelli (a.k.a. Yeah Dave) is known for pairing chocolate and wine with yoga. In Jam Sessions: Yoga for Foodies, he ups the ante and gives students something they can really sink their teeth into—a 90-minute yoga class followed by a chef-prepared meal. The Yoga for Foodies tour began in January in New York with a meal by Joy Pierson, chef at Candle 79, an organic/vegan restaurant. Four other tour dates from Scottsdale to Dallas are currently planned for 2010 with well-known chefs like Dallas’s Dean Fearing signed on to cook. More dates, locations and chefs will be added soon. Nearly 16 million Americans practice yoga. At least a part of that population is made up of foodies. Combining these two passion points in one concept is a delicious idea. Yoga is one of the most customized fitness trends out there—yoga for dogs, yoga for Boomers, yoga for punk rockers.
Why shouldn’t food lovers have a practice just for them? ISM believes that combining people’s passions into unique experiences creates a platform for attracting new customers and building business. A sweaty, centering workout plus a delicious gourmet meal? That just might be the recipe for nirvana. |
|
 |
|
The quest to get a driver’s license at 16 is on the wane among the digital generation, which no longer sees the family car as the end-all of social life. Federal data shows that 30.7% of 16-year-olds got their licenses in 2008, compared with 44.7% in 1988.
-- Washington Post 1.24.10
Travel was down among lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender consumers in 2009, particularly business and cruise vacations, according to the Gay and Lesbian Tourism Report. 44% of LGBT travelers took fewer business trips; and, among cruisers, 45% took fewer cruises.
-- TravelWeekly.com 1.10.10
"More than one-third of all calls on Skype are video calls."
-- Josh Silverman, CEO Skype, Consumer Electronics Show 1.6.10
"Humility is a key leadership trait we need to have. How can we be empathetic to consumers if we’re not humble?"
-- Bob McDonald, CEO, Procter & Gamble, speaking to a gathering of general managers in Cincinnati, Cincinatti.com 1.15.10
According to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, in the first 9 months of 2009, the rate of ticketed airline passengers who were denied boarding was 1.22 per 10,000 travelers, up from 1.12 in 2008. That equates to nearly 54,000 passengers being involuntarily bumped, up from about 47,000 fliers in 2008.
-- Los Angeles Times 1.23.10
"Riding off into the sunset, we’ve all bought into this idea. It’s a mass delusion…I had a woman in here just today who told me she was nauseous walking down the aisle knowing every step of the way that it was the wrong thing."
-- Author and therapist Lauren Mackler on why people sometimes marry when they have serious doubts about the relationship, Philadelphia Daily News 2.4.10
The recession prompted consumers to turn to coupons more in 2009 than in 2008, the first increase in 17 years, according to an Inmar study. While use of online coupons increased, newspaper inserts still account for 89% of coupons distributed to consumers and more than half of coupon redemption.
-- InternetRetailer.com 1.26.10
Despite warnings that rock music would damage their ears, Boomers have better hearing than their parents, as the rate of hearing problems continues to drop. University of Wisconsin researchers say it’s because there are fewer noisy jobs and better work-site ear protection as well as immunizations and antibiotics that prevented certain diseases.
-- AP 1.27.10
According to wedding planners, photo booths will be big at 2010 weddings, along with cupcakes, lighting that shines the couples’ names or initials around the reception hall, live entertainment and dancing to or from the altar. Expect brighter, richer colors, too—like red or bright blue shoes with white gowns.
-- Chicago Tribune 1.24.10
New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority carried 75 million fewer riders in the first 10 months of 2009, costing the agency over $100 million of revenue.
-- Reuters 1.14.10
Americans may have reached an obesity peak, according to CDC data, which indicates that rates have remained constant for at least 5 years among men and 10 years among women and children. 34% of adults are obese, more than double 1980’s percentage, while the number of obese children tripled, to 17%.
-- New York Times 1.13.10
South Carolina state troopers have handed out more than 1,200 coupons in partnership with Chick-fil-A since the Click It for Chicken program began on November 24. The coupons are handed out during traffic violation stops and roadblock checks. Speeders will still get a ticket, but perhaps also a free sandwich if they’re buckled up.
-- GreenvilleOnline.com 12.28.09
A USA Today/Gallup Poll showed that only 16% of respondents plan to fly more or stay in hotels more often in 2010 than they did in 2009; about 30% say they’ll travel less often.
-- USAToday.com 1.7.10
People are happier and feel better on the weekends, no matter what profession or salary and even among those who love their jobs, according to a U of Rochester study, which also found that people feel more competent during the weekend than they do while at their day-to-day jobs.
-- Los Angeles Times 1.15.10
Americans bought $4.4 billion worth of frozen pizza in 2009, up from $3.1 billion in 2000, according to Datamonitor Inc.
-- StarTribune.com 1.6.10
In a December 2009 survey from Horizon Research Consultancy, 44% of people in five major Chinese cities said that counterfeit and shoddy goods were the second-worst blot on China’s image, behind corruption at 59%.
-- USAToday.com 1.7.10
According to industry group the Brewers Association, during the first half of 2009 craft brewing grew 5% by volume and 9% by dollars, numbers made more astounding when you consider that overall beer sales nose-dived 1.3%.
-- Slashfood.com 12.16.09
|
|
|
 |
|
|
