Most businesses want to build a loyal customer base, people who will frequent their stores or buy their products on a regular basis and talk positively about their experiences with their friends and associates.  Loyal customers provide a steady revenue stream, higher profit margins and confirmed evangelists who do much of their marketing for them. 
With the country in the grips of a recession, however, consumers are focusing on price more than where they purchase goods.  Recent surveys have reported a decline in corporate allegiance.  But all is not lost for …

Mark Laceky, Vice President, Price & Promotion Practice, North America, The Nielsen Company
The economic downturn continues to put stress on consumers, resulting in accelerating changes in basic purchasing patterns. An important part of the overall equation for consumers is the relationship between price and value. As consumers develop new value systems, how should manufacturers and retailers view and manage the other side of the equation-price?
If your business models and pricing strategies pre-date recent changes in the economy and consumer behavior, you could be headed for trouble. Perhaps now more than …

Based on an examination of over 100 client engagements related to cost innovation conducted over the past five years, Nielsen illuminates the right way to navigate this challenge and highlights important principles to adhere to in embracing the risks and rewards of downsizing, upsizing, changing the package material, and making product reformulations.

 Tom Pirovano, Director, Industry Insights

Health Claims – “Now with More Calcium”, “Good Source of Antioxidants”, “Natural”, “Made with Real Sugar”.  First look for claims you can make without reformulations.  Then consider adding nutrients to add perceived value. 
Unique Packaging – Consider Dean Milk Chugs in a category dominated by private label.  Older shoppers may appreciate packaging that easier to open, easier to re-seal, and easier to read without glasses.
Line Extensions – Look at the soda category with only 6.1% private label share.  Every year we see many new soda flavors, but …

Charlie Buchwalter, Nielsen Online
Having been to just about every ad:tech show during the last 10 years, I have to say that the show in San Francisco this week was one of the best ever. The Moscone West venue was great, the keynotes were superb, and sat through a number of panels with top-notch panelists and moderators. And there’s nothing better than reconnecting with some of the great friends I’ve made over the years in the interactive space.
The folks at socialmedia.com hosted the ad:tech Chairman’s reception Monday night, and I gave …

Baby Boomers may be the perfect catch for advertisers in this unstable economy, according to new research from Nielsen.  Not only are Baby Boomers spending the lion’s share of consumer packaged goods, but are also watching more TV and spending more time on the Internet than Millenials age 18-44. Boomers watch 39 hours of TV per week compared to only 27 hours a week for Millenials.   Boomers also use the Internet almost 7 hours per week compared to 6 hours a week those for those 18-44.  Read the full study here.
More …

As a preview to Nielsen’s Consumer 360 conference May 12-14 in Orlando, Nielsen’s Mark Leiter took a few minutes to chat with scheduled presenter Tom Davenport, author of Competing On Analytics. In this interview, Davenport discusses the economy, pricing, and advice for marketers. For more information visit consumer360.com.

Mark Leiter, Nielsen’s President of Professional Services Interviews Tom Davenport, Author of Competing on Analytics and Babson College Professor
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Charlie Buchwalter & David Wiesenfeld, Nielsen Online
More and more researchers are waking up to the reality that mining the growing volume of conversations on blogs, message boards and social networking sites (i. e., “listening” to consumers) can provide timely, penetrating insights on a wide range of issues and brands.
A series of parallel studies we conducted with Procter & Gamble demonstrates that both surveys and listening are often required to tell the whole story. We looked at a number of brands and products: everything from orange juice, to razor blades, to …

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 …

Marketers across industries are being charged with cutting back their marketing schedules to fit leaner budgets. However the dilemma for most is deciding what media hits the cutting room floor. Nielsen’s recession analysis demonstrates how a marketer at a movie studio or any industry can offset much of the potential reach/effective reach declines that would be caused by declining marketing budgets due to the recession.