Posts Tagged ‘thrift’

New Consumer Sighting: 999bottle

Ever wonder how much good you’re doing–and money you’re saving–with that reusable water bottle? Aftefact’s Fernd Van Engelen did, and he’s come up with the 999bottle–a concept bottle that lets the user keep track of how many times it’s refilled. An app interprets the number and presents it in a visual way (e.g., at 147 bottles, you’ve saved $326 and seven gallons of oil by replacing a stack of plastic bottles that would run 15 stories high). Social media is also integrated into the concept, with groups of friends able to visualize their collective contribution.

Read more about it on Artefact.

New Consumer Factoid

Americans  shaved $3.7 billion off shopping bills in 2010 by redeeming 3.3 billion coupons, according to NCH Marketing Services.

Image credit: Creative Commons/KaCey97007@flickr.com

Smarter Shopping at Supermarkets

We know from our global studies that consumers are getting smarter, using new technologies and communications channels to find the best deals and team up with others to gain the advantage at retail. Looking at the U.S. sample in our New Consumer study, 74 percent of mainstream consumers and 87 percent of leading-edge Prosumers said they are smarter shoppers now compared with a few years ago. Sixty percent of the mainstream and 82 percent of Prosumers also admitted to being more demanding shoppers these days.
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Extreme Couponing II

In April, we posted about the trend of “extreme couponing.” Today, Advertising Age looks at the issue and shares research findings showing that coupon use has actually fallen over the past decade. What’s on the rise is the extreme variety–a phenomenon that runs counter to the notion of coupons as loyalty builders.
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The Green Thing

Received this via email today. The author is unclear, though some sites attribute it to Tom Dooley. In any case, it makes some excellent points:

In the line at the store, the cashier told the older woman that she should bring her own grocery bag because plastic bags weren’t good for the   environment.
The woman apologized to him and explained,
“We didn’t have the green thing back in my day.”
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Frugality Holding Strong

Euro RSCG’s New Consumer study found signs of a populace grown weary of throwaway culture and the constant quest for more. Looking at the U.S. stats:

  • 87% felt good about themselves when saving money
  • 49% were getting a sense of satisfaction from reducing their purchases during the downturn
  • 52% claimed they wouldn’t go back to their old shopping patterns even when the economy rebounded
  • 48% were making an effort to buy fewer disposable goods
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Planting a Seed to Grow a Movement

Are you ready for April 12?

Get out your spade and seeds, it’s Home Farming Day!

Since 2010, Kraft’s Triscuit brand has been on a mission to get Americans to discover “the simple joy of growing and sharing their own herbs and vegetables.” It’s healthier for people and the planet–and it’s a great way to save money in tough economic times.
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Extreme Couponing

Have you seen “Extreme Couponing”? OK, we haven’t either. It’s a new show on TLC (U.S.) that showcases those obsessive penny-pinchers who make creative use of coupons and promotions to reduce their grocery bills by as much as 90 percent. The show has elicited some strong reactions–pro and con. We thought we’d share with you one comment from a visitor to the Entertainment Weekly website. The response perfectly encapsulates the mindset of the New Consumer and how passionately some are fighting back against our culture of hyperconsumption.
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The Repair-Ware Revolution

Respondents to Euro RSCG’s New Consumer survey are tired of living in a culture of “throwawayism.” Just more than half (54 percent–ranging from a low of 48 percent in the U.S. and Japan to a high of 75 percent in China) are making an effort to buy fewer disposable goods, and around three-quarters (72 percent) said reducing the amount of waste they create makes them “feel good.”

Assisting in the cause is a young British designer named Samuel Davies, who hopes to spark what he calls a “repair-ware” craze that will inspire other designers to build products consumers can actually fix themselves.

Click here to read more about the repair-ware revolution on AlterNet.

Image credit: Creative Commons/postbear@flickr.com

Changing Models of Ownership

On Shareable today, Claro Partners’ Rich Radka writes:

    In societies saturated by hyper-consumption, the joy of acquiring, of holding the new object in your hands and knowing with satisfaction that it’s yours, is familiar. Equally recognizable, though, is that creeping anxiety when the sheen starts to fade and your mind gets distracted with a new, better, life-improving version, and at this intersection, ownership becomes a pain, a burden. The product’s value becomes outweighed by
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