Marketing Forecast from Ad-ology

While brides still know best and are sticking to their budgets, the 2012 “What’s on Brides’ Minds” survey uncovers new trends that are beginning to take shape, such as sharing resources. For the last two years, more than a third of brides (38% in 2011, 36% in 2010) have considered buying a second dress to wear for the wedding reception. While brides continue to cut back, they are less likely to cut spending on reception essentials including venue, decor and alcohol.

According to NRF’s 2012 Valentine’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions survey, the average person celebrating the holiday will shell out $126.03, up 8.5% over 2011 and the highest in the survey’s 10-year history. Total spending is expected to reach $17.6 billion. Discount stores are expected to see the most traffic, but tablet owners will also make a mark; more than half of all tablet owners (53.8%) will use their device to research products, compare prices, redeem coupons, look up retailer information or purchase products.

According to a new survey by the Retail Advertising and Marketing Association, 173 million people will watch the game Sunday, February 5, the most in the survey’s eight-year history and up from an estimated 171 million in 2011. Consumer spending for the Super Bowl will reach an all-time high, too, with the average game-watcher expected to shell out $63.87 on related merchandise, apparel and snacks, up from $59.33 last year. Total Super Bowl spending is expected to reach $11.0 billion.

According to new consumer research from Leichtman Research Group, 69% of households in the United States have at least one high definition television set, up from 17% in 2006. Over the past five years, 52% of US households adopted HDTV. In addition, 21% of all households purchased a new TV set in the past 12 months, and 19% of all households plan to purchase a new TV set in the next 12 month.

The peak time for toy sales remains the holiday season but consumers purchase these products at other times during the year. Not surprisingly, digital marketing is becoming increasingly important for parents as they research what their children ask for. And, new data indicates that marketers could boost results by shifting their ad strategies.

Just when consumers thought they’d seen it all with respect to bells and whistles on their televisions, manufacturers are ready to sell something new. This year, large screen TVs with extra slim profiles will be lining store shelves. To move these products, both manufacturers and retailers will be rolling out new ad campaigns.