B. Line with Beth Mauro - Print Inserts Pass TV Ads As Influencer

Women are contributing to purchase decisions and TV is not such a big influencer with men as it used to be. Those are the findings of the Vertis Customer Focus: Decade of Data study.

The Customer Focus: Decade of Data study, which surveyed 3,000 consumers via telephone, further revealed the following:

27 % of adults indicated they look for information in advertising inserts as part of making a purchase decision. That's up from 19% ten years ago.

Vertis revealed that for adult men 18 and older, TV advertising is no longer the main influencer in their purchasing decisions, down 8 percent from 1998 to 22 % What has eroded that number? It's not like we are looking at fewer screens- I am guessing that the Internet is also more of an influencer. Or could it be now we can easily flip through and bypass the commercials or the we just are so oversaturated we ignore the commercials?

In 2008, 91 percent of women ages 18-24 report they are a part of the decision making process when it comes to technology purchases, with cell phones, desktop computers and digital cameras being some of the most popular purchases for this age group. That is up from 68% 10 years ago. Women are buying and using technology, as an industry we need to reach out to these customers by using that technology both to facilitate crafting as well as communications.

68 percent of women age 50 and older now have access to the Internet, up from 30 percent in 1998 (see above!)

In 2004, 31 percent of adults indicated they entered a store without any prior research; this number is down to 17 percent in 2008. Prior to entering a store in 2008, the study indicates approximately 57 percent of adults will look through advertising circulars, 50 percent will conduct research on the Internet, and 38 percent will utilize catalogs to retrieve additional information. This tells me the consumer is more informed than ever When they come in your store, they know about products and their uses, it is critical for retail staff to be just as knowledgeable.

Folks, the consumer is more informed than ever. My only concern about all of this "research" is that just as the Internet is a great source of facts, it is also a source of misinformation and disinformation.

If you promote products on your website you should consider linking to the manufacturer's website as an additional informational source. We want our customers to get the correct information, particularly about techniques. We all know how not following one critical step in the use of a product can change the outcome of the project for the worst.

Websites are going to be the key method of communicating with customers in the next five years. If you haven't looked at having a store website, now is the time.

My publisher David Pyle and our Interactive Media Marketing Manager Tim Langlitz are doing a terrific program at the CHA-Winter Show on Saturday at noon. If you want more information on this topic- in lay terms.... I urge you to check it out.--Beth

2/5/2008 12:13:52 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)

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