No matter where one lives, going out to eat can be one of life’s great pleasures.  But what factors determine how global consumers choose restaurants? According to results from the Nielsen Global Online Survey of respondents in 52 countries across Europe, Asia Pacific, Americas and the Middle East, the prime driver is the type of cuisine, with 27 percent preferring their local cuisine over international fare.  The second most important factor is reasonably priced food (24%), although diners in several countries, notably Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, the Netherlands and Belgium, …

The early predictions were gloomy: the recession gripping the U.S. would make for a dismal holiday shopping season for retailers.  And while many retailers certainly felt the effects of the economic downturn, holiday dollar sales in 2008 actually increased 5.8 percent or $99.5 billion across grocery and drug stores, mass merchandisers and convenience stores, according to Nielsen.
Categories that drove the highest sales spikes were musical instruments and accessories, with more than half of the purchases for the year made in the last eight weeks of 2008.  Women’s and children’s fragrances, baking …

While uncertain economic conditions have forced most marketers to cut back their budgets, they can take a number of steps to compensate for fewer available dollars and maintain the effectiveness of their campaign.  By moving beyond the use of traditional media age/sex demographics and having a clearer understanding of what networks and programs best reach actual brand targets, marketers have an opportunity to change their mix.  These new schedules can diminish the impact lower marketing budgets could have on a brand’s in-market presence.
Nielsen conducted a recession analysis that replicated the …

It’s a long running joke: men and women are wired differently.  But the field of neuroscience has proven that this is no joking matter, and the ramifications are tremendous for consumer goods manufacturers, as women buy or influence the purchase of 80 percent of all consumer goods in the U.S.
So what are the key differences between the male and female brain? There are some key structural differences, such as a larger hippocampus in women, as well as a heavier reliance on brain areas that contain mirror neurons, which enable a …

As economic uncertainty continues to loom over most of the country, Americans are watching their money and shopping less. But while that fact might spell doom for the nation’s retailers, there are a number of opportunities available to those companies who are able to look at how consumers are changing their behavior and innovate in how they do business to leverage these changes.
“Big Players Think Small in Format Fights,” an article in Consumer Insight by Todd Hale, senior vice president, Consumer & Shopper Insights with Nielsen, outlines how the economy …

Over the last decade, Americans’ awareness of and sensitivity to the environment has grown dramatically, and environmental concerns regularly top opinion polls as being important.  Going hand-in-hand with this awareness is a desire to purchase products that are green, such as those that are organic, natural or have an environmentally friendly benefit. Retailers, food and consumer product manufacturers have sought to capitalize on this trend by launching new lines of products touting their natural qualities. The Natural Marketing Institute estimates that the size of the green marketplace will reach $420 …

Unlike past recessions, few countries have been spared from the economic downturn.  Nielsen’s top industry thought leaders recently discussed how shopping patterns around the world have been affected by economic conditions, how consumer packaged goods manufacturers and retailers are adapting to the new marketplace realities and what lies ahead.
The participants were Todd Hale, Senior Vice President, Consumer & Shopper Insights, Nielsen U.S.; Jonathan Banks, Director, Retail Insights, Nielsen Europe; James Russo, Vice President of Marketing, Nielsen U.S., and; Jean-Jacques Vandenheede, Director, Retail Insights, Nielsen Europe.  Key themes were:
Consumers: It does …

Neuroscience has a surprise for marketers: the way we are neurologically wired can actually prevent us from accurately reporting what we really think and remember, when asked.
Writing in the January issue of Nielsen’s “Consumer Insight” online newsletter, Palak Patel of NeuroFocus Inc., explains that the real truth lies beyond the reach of typical consumer research methods, like surveys and focus groups — in the subconscious mind.
According to Patel, answers are essentially corrupted information — biased by the conscious mind, which is influenced by everything from what language you speak to …

Baby boomer households represented more than 50% of sales in 98 of 122 consumer packaged goods (CPG) product categories analyzed in a recent study by Nielsen and the Hallmark Channel.  That adds up to almost $200 billion in total sales in those categories. 
But despite the evident buying power of boomers, many advertisers — intent of wooing loyal lifetime customers — continue to focus their advertising on younger consumers.
Writing in the January issue of Nielsen’s “Consumer Insight” online newsletter, Howard Shimmel, Senior Vice President, Consumer Insights, Nielsen, and Jess D. Aguirre, …

Coupons are already well-established as a promotional vehicle in the U.S., with coupon-clipping Americans comprising 86% of households and driving 89% of all-outlet dollar sales, according to Nielsen.
But that doesn’t mean manufacturers and retailers shouldn’t be looking for ways to make it simpler for households to receive and redeem coupons. 
Writing in the December issue of Nielsen’s “Consumer Insight” online newsletter, Todd Hale, Senior Vice President, Consumer & Shopper Insights, Nielsen, outlines what today’s coupon shopper can expect as new technologies revolutionize couponing methods and mediums.