Conflicting Reports About Consumers Spending And Saving
Monday, March 29, 2010, 12:10 AM | 1 Comment
During the last couple of years, dubbed as the Great/Worst Recession since the great one of the 1930s, there have been some reports, especially recently, questioning the wisdom that consumer behavior has been profoundly changed. Multiple conflicting reports to that effect have come to see the light of the day. The following three reports in particular are at odds with one another.
The last two are in agreement and in essence say the first one is wrong while the first one rejects the other two’s research as well as what the media has been reporting.
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The Hartman Group
This is a Washington State-based research and consulting firm. In its report, it challenges the popular assumption of a new normal. The report is entitled “The New Value Paradigm: The Theatrics of Thrift.” It basically says that consumers won’t really cut back as much on their spending as they say, or as much as being reported in the media.
“The frugality reported so widely in the media is a myth,” the report says. “We have seen and heard it all before. Current frugality habits are just short-term responses to a climate of anxiety.”
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The Nielsen Company
From the world’s largest marketing research company, a report is out that says “consumer spending will remain at restrained levels for the foreseeable future. For the past two years, consumers have moved through the worst of the recession. It’s mostly the fear and anxiety that consumers have become so frugal in their everyday spending.”
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Packaged Facts
The New York City-based research publisher agrees with Nielsen report. “Frugal behaviors adopted during the recession are reflecting a new normal, regarding consumer shopping, dining out preferences.”
In a Nutshell
These researches are done for vendors that directly market to consumers. As such, we – the consumers – should not be bothered by them. We live our own lives. Whatever we believe, we must live it for our own good. The reports will be interesting for those folks, one way or another, whose lives are based on “What the Jones’ do, I must do too.”
What do you think?
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