Marketing Forecast from Ad-ology

According to a new study from Scarborough, the American auto industry will be putting the pedal to the metal in 2012. Seven percent of American households, representing 8 million households, plan to purchase a new vehicle in the next year. And 42% of American households that own domestic new vehicles either plan to purchase a new vehicle in the next 12 months or already own a domestic vehicle which was purchased new in model year 2000 or earlier, representing purchase opportunity.

According to a new survey of auto and homeowner policyholders, age is the most significant factor in carrier loyalty. Twenty percent of 18 to 34 year olds changed auto carriers in the prior 12 months, compared to only 10% of those 51 and older. Price remains the biggest single element the survey participants consider when purchasing personal lines insurance.

Apple’s digital assistant Siri has serious potential to change how people use their smartphones, mostly by streamlining the fast-growing smartphone shopping experience both in, near and out of stores. As the use of personal assistants like Siri grows, mobile shopping will happen more frequently and easily. eMarketer estimates that 68.6 million Americans will use a smartphone to conduct mobile research and browsing activities this year.

Americans plans to spend an average of $145.28 on everything from apparel and candy to food and decorations this Easter, according to a new NRF survey. Nearly half (48.5%) will take advantage of spring sales to buy apparel, with total spending on those items expected to reach $3B, while the majority (89.3%) will shell out more than $2B on traditional favorites such as chocolate eggs and jelly beans.

January’s cruise ship accident off the coast of Italy is causing confusion amongst American cruisers; one in three Americans do not know which cruise line was involved in the accident, according to a recent Ipsos poll. As there is evidence of some hesitation surrounding the cruise industry, cruise lines may benefit from providing additional reassurances to future travelers that all due care is being taken.

According to an annual study of the consumer music market in the U.S. by The NPD Group, growth in the music market can be traced to an increasing number of CD and digital download buyers, and an increase in the total amount that consumers are spending for music. After years of decline, total music-track sales rose 4% during 2011. The number of paid download buyers increased 14% in 2011 to 45 million customers.