ACSI Retail Scores Advance Again

DDI: 97/100

The bellwether researcher on measuring consumer satisfaction has released its latest retail and e-commerce results for 4Q05 -- and the news is good. Sometimes their insightful commentary speaks for itself: "The American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) advances for the third consecutive quarter, led by Target, Kohl’s, Amazon, J.C. Penney, and Costco. The Index is up 0.4% over the previous quarter to an aggregate score of 73.5. However, it remains slightly below the score for the final quarter of 2004, which was 73.6. As worker productivity fell in the fourth quarter of 2005, quality and customer satisfaction picked up: the quality of economic output increased but the quantity of output (per worker) declined. Falling productivity is usually regarded as worrisome, but in the light of rising consumer utility, it is not necessarily bad news since improvements in customer satisfaction often lead to increased consumer demand in the future."

The Data Dump salivates over impeccable studies like these because I can confidently tie these data on consumer opinions to the companies they affect. So with customer sat. on the rise for retailers, the DDIs for businesses like Kohl's and Amazon will improve for early 2006. Subsequently any DDIs that combine retail satisfaction attitudes with customer behavior on shopping experiences will also improve. Marketers in need of such DDIs for planning near-term retail messaging strategies should contact us as needed.

Poor Execution Flaws Customer Experience Survey

Data Dump Index: 47/100

This survey on how companies manage their customer experiences and build customer relationships is fraught with problems on methodology and execution, thus tainting any if not all of the data herein. The third-year study, conducted by a firm called Strativity Group, is a self-selected web-based survey that uses a 10-point agreement scale to measure the key metrics. This unbalanced scale will likely produce weak correlations for tracking purposes. Moreover, the segments the study builds are around region and company size; no where are data gathered on respondent titles or types of companies leading to underrepresentation of critical customer-facing behaviors within organizations. Marketers should only look to these results for directional reasons when attempting to understand trends in customer experience management and should compare with more credible data from companies such as Gartner or Forrester for more concrete understanding.

Research on Hotel Booking Behavior is Not Reserved

DDI: 84/100

Attitudes toward hospitality vendors shift like the wind and tracking studies abound to keep abreast of changing consumer travel behavior. Harris Interactive, here, presents some hard-to-find data on browse-to-buy activities among dot com travel companies that may surprise some marketers in the industry. Of particular note is that frequent online shoppers, those who say they research online more than seven times per year,
rate visuals as “very important” (37%), more often than any other factors for travel sites. Something to consider when adopting online strategies to reach consumers with discretionary income to burn.

Pew Research Reveals Web is Choice Medium for Fun

DDI: 93/100

You can always count on Pew Internet for reliable, credible data on consumer Web surfing habits. This latest study builds the ever-morphing picture of how people use the Web. Widespread coverage to date has been fair and accurate, too, and the Data Dump Index reflects this. Marketers that need confirmation that consumers use the Web for activities unrelated to shopping, purchase research, and e-mail can look here to find these data among several key demographics.

Online Security Firm Develops Internet Confidence Index

DDI: 81/100

At first glance of the press release (linked above), marketers in high-tech might wince at the methodology and credibility of the Index, developed by an online security firm. But I beg to differ. Here we have the beginnings of what could amount to be a valid source of consumer and business confidence in online transactions and commerce. With a little further development, marketers might now have a source to benchmark the "safety" of their online campaigns against an independent benchmark.

Finance Magazine Surveys Readers on Retirement Knowledge

DDI: 55/100

The stories I've seen on this research so far seem to regurgitate Kipplinger's press release on its phone survey, which likely included the bias of its readers. As such, I cannot recommend that marketers gathering data on seniors and retirement attitudes tied to financial habits look too closely at these results. Time is better spent digging through more sophisticated studies, such as those done by mutual fund companies or third-party research firms.

Dubious Research Highlight College Grad Online Habits

DDI: 47/100

The two studies summarized here (linked above) do little for marketers to see the full picture of the Web purchase habits of the recent college graduate demographic. Tainting the results is the questionable motive of the two companies sponsoring the research, both of whom target the under 30 crowd as the crux of their customer base. These data should bear no influence on marketers purchasing online ads as a lead generating mechanism or click-through purchase system in the near term.

IndustryWeek Exposes Nonsense in Survey Data

Now and then I like to recognize those in business media who jump on my data dump bandwagon and dig up the mucky and murky surveys that come across their desks. Here, IndustryWeek reporter Traci Purdum does justice to divulging the puffery in holiday-timed surveys and other PR survey "data." My favorite insight of hers is that the media are actively looking for good metrics to fill story holes -- but there is just not enough out there. Note to Traci and other journalists -- we're here to help!

Comparative Estimates on Valentine's Day Spending

Consumer Spending on Valentine's Day 

A spate of consumer surveys on their spending amounts for Valentine's Day confirms increases from last year. The Data Dump algorithms consider these survey results and conclude that spending on average will increase to $79 for 2006 (see graph). Marketers should note that this is likely due to increases in discretionary income that stem from improvements in the overall economy and generalized good feelings among consumers. But factors such as these could be fleeting and marketing plans around other impending heavy spending holidays (such as St. Patrick's Day and Easter) could prove less fruitful.

Ipsos Poll on Music Habits Skews Older

Data Dump Index: 71/100

Further inspection of the topline results to this Ipsos/AP telephone poll on music purchasing habits shows that more than one-third of the respondents were aged 50+, hardly the demographic for accurately predicting market effects for downloadable music sales. However, the survey does shed some bright lights on points of music purchase and music tastes. Marketers in need of these insights might have Ipsos replay the numbers on the younger segments to tune into their needs more specifically.

Ads On Google Better Than Other Engines, says Survey

DDI: 88/100

We know Google is king of onlne ad-related search results. But beyond the mediocre facts in Outsell's simple survey of online advertisers lie some notable nuggets that marketers might find useful -- among them that Outsell predicts that online marketing spending would grow by 19 percent, with search marketing increasing by 26 percent. Print spending, by contrast, will increase by an estimated 3.3 percent, while TV and radio will grow by a mere 2.4 percent.