• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, February 15, 2013

According to The 2013 BrandSpark/Better Homes and Gardens American Shopper Study, with BrandSpark, 77,500 respondents contributed data weighted to a national profile of shoppers to not only select Best New Product Awards, but also to uncover what is on the minds of American shoppers.

James Carr, EVP & President, Better Homes and Gardens, says that "... these awards and companion survey are valuable tools that help us offer our audience... ideas and inspiration that they can use to better their home and the life (that) they create there... “

In addition to the winning products, the highlights of the American Shopper Study with regard to specific consumer positions on important personal habits include: 

FOOD and NUTRITION:

• Obesity is the issue that most Americans are concerned about with regard to their personal health, with 39% identifying it as one of their primary health concerns.
• High blood pressure and high cholesterol are very concerning to 36% of Americans, followed by Cancer
• More than 80% continue to believe that proper food and nutrition can help to prevent illness, and 78% of Americans report actively making changes in their lifestyle to be healthier
• 81% of Americans continue to pay attention to food labels.
• Despite nutritional information available to consumers, there remains a gap when it comes to nutrition: 64% know their recommended daily intake of calories, but just 29% follow that recommendation. 40% know their recommended intake of fat, protein, fiber and carbohydrates, but only 25% follow these recommendations.
• Italian food is the most widely enjoyed food by 91% of Americans, followed by Mexican food enjoyed by 82% and Chinese enjoyed by 76%.   These are also the same top three ethnic food types for Hispanic shoppers. 

BEAUTY:

• 50% of shoppers consider it extremely important to find products that are well-priced and proven effective
• Other important considerations for shoppers include: ease of use, trust in the brand, and that the product is gentle on their skin. A desire for gentle products is also a driver behind which ingredients shoppers avoid most in skin care: ammonia, peroxides and alcohol
• 40% of women and 34% of men consider the endorsement for a consumer-voted award very influential toward purchase of a beauty or grooming product.  Overall, 72% of shoppers trust consumer-voted awards

STORE BRANDS VS. BRAND NAMES:

• More than 90% of shoppers have purchased private label products in the past year
• More than 60% of shoppers have purchased private label dairy products, dry food and frozen vegetables
• Products in the personal care categories have stronger brand loyalty: 40% of shoppers will never purchase a private label/store brand product in certain categories including make-up and hair care.
• 72% prefer to find brand name products on sale than to purchase private label

ENVIRONMENT:

• While only 40% of shoppers are willing to pay more for environmentally -friendly products, more than 80% appreciate when the manufacturer offers an environmental benefit without increased cost
• Shoppers are increasingly skeptical of environmental claims, with 60% believing that environmentally-friendly claims are often exaggerated or misleading

MOBILE SHOPPING HABITS:

• While 90% of shoppers own a mobile phone, nearly two in three now own a smartphone, up from just over one in two a year ago
• Android OS based phones lead the market, followed by iPhone, together accounting for 84% of smartphones in the hands of U.S. shoppers.
• Over 50% of shoppers are interested in using their phone to download or scan coupons
• 30% of shoppers 18-34 indicated storing their shopping list on their phone regularly or occasionally, a proportion expected to increase with the functionality of related apps to interact with promotion-driven marketing
• 67% of shoppers reference circulars to get ideas on what to purchase on their shopping trips, making it the leading external source of ideas.  30% get ideas from recipe books and newspaper articles, and 20% cite each of TV and magazine ads as sources of purchase ideas.

For more information about the Better Homes and Gardens Best New Product Awards and consumer attitudes, please visit here.