As households are subjected to a negative media onslaught on a daily basis it is unsurprising that they are becoming increasingly reticent to spend on anything other than essentials.

“Third quarter was volatile and challenging for global economies and financial markets amid stagnant U.S. unemployment figures and a worsening euro zone debt crisis,” said Dr. Venkatesh Bala, Chief Economist at The Cambridge Group, a part of Nielsen. “A recessionary mindset is growing among consumers.”

Consumers today are increasingly mobile and as technology advancements continue around the world, retailing will evolve to keep pace. And while online shopping has shown impressive growth momentum over the past few years in industries such as travel, publishing, electronics and even clothing, the pace of change has been much slower for consumer-packaged goods.

Nearly six in 10 (59%) global consumers look for sales to save on household expenses—the leading saving strategy of eight measured across all regions and most prevalent in North America (73%) and Europe (60%), according to Nielsen’s 2011 Global Online Survey of more than 25,000 Internet respondents across 51 countries. Using coupons was the second most popular saving strategy, used by nearly half (48%) of global online consumers.

Consumers around the world continue their broad efforts to save money at the checkout counter, but while low prices are important to shoppers, getting a good value for their money takes priority.

The first quarter of 2011 started off slowly, with nominal value rising 2.3 percent across Europe, a slight decrease from the fourth quarter of 2010.

The U.S. market, which faced six straight quarters of declines in ad spending, has seen a turnaround in 2010, with a 3.8 percent increase year-over-year.

Through the second half of 2010, the pace of recovery is split between lagging developed economies mired in economic malaise and developing economies that exhibit stronger consumer spending.

The Nielsen Company conducted an online survey in March 2010 of more than 27,000 consumers in 55 markets to get a better sense of the steps being taken to save money in view of uncertain economic conditions.

While improving economies may prompt consumers to return to restaurants or take a vacation, one trend that looks likely to remain—and perhaps even grow—is the shift to private label goods.