*Not All Is Green: According to a recent Yankelovich survey of more than 2,700 consumers regarding their environmental attitudes, only 34% of consumers feel much more concerned
about environmental issues today than a year ago. And, less than 25% of consumers feel they can make a difference when it comes to the environment. J. Walker Smith, president of
Yankelovich, concludes that "While [consumers] are highly aware of environmental issues due to the glut of media attention... 'going green' in their everyday life is simply not a big
concern or a high priority."
Even though Al Gore's book, An Inconvenient Truth, received widespread acclaim from media and scientists alike, 82% of consumers neither saw the film nor read the book, says
the study. Smith asserts that consumers are far more knowledgeable about green than they're generally given credit for. Al Gore's "10 Myths" in An Inconvenient Truth are not
considered myths by consumers at all. According to the survey:
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Only 7% of consumers believe Gore's "Myth" that it's already too late to do something about climate change;
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Only 4% believe global warming is a good thing; and,
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Only 8% agree that the warming that scientists are recording is just the effect of cities trapping heat rather than anything to do with greenhouse gases.
Source: Yankelovich Going Green, July 2008
*Study Charts Moms' Media Habits: According to a new study by the Marketing to Moms Coalition and sponsored by Current Lifestyle Marketing, moms are still the most trusted source
of information--ahead of newspapers and even highly coveted morning talk shows. The report was conducted to track the latest trends in moms' media usage and resources nationwide.
The survey asked moms to name top trusted media sources, which media they use the most and what kind of sources they turn to for particular kinds of advice. Among the top 10
trusted sources are:
1. Pediatricians (58%)
2. Friends and family (55%)
3. Evening news (39%)
4. Internet searches (38%)
5. Physician office collateral (37%)
6. Web sites (33%)
7. Parenting books (32%)
8. Morning TV talk shows (31%)
9. Newspaper articles (28%)
10. Magazine articles (25%)
Source: Marketing to Moms Coalition
*Small Business Still Negative in Second Quarter '08, But Expecting Some Improvement: The Quarterly NFIB Research Foundation Small Business Economic Trends Data reports that the
Index of Small Business Optimism rose 2.9 points to 91.1, continuing one of the longest strings of recession-level readings in the history of the survey (started in 1973). Two-thirds
of the gain was due to a dramatic improvement in the percent of owners expecting the economy to improve over the next six months, says the report. [Editor's note: The study was
conducted prior to the current financial crisis.]
Though the direction of change was positive, there's a long way to go to restore normal levels of the Index to the average reading of 100. Seasonally adjusted, there was a decline
in average employment per firm of 0.04 workers reported by small business owners in August, not as bad as July, but still on the negative side. Notable findings of the study were as
follows:
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11% of the owners increased employment by an average of 5.7 workers per firm; 15% reduced employment at average of 3.7 workers per firm (seasonally adjusted);
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46% of the owners hired or tried to hire in second quarter '08 (down 3 points);
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76% of those trying to hire reported few or no qualified applicants for the job openings they were trying to fill;
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9% of the owners reported that the availability of qualified labor was their top business problem, one point lower than July; and,
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15% reported unfilled job openings, down 2 points from July (the 34 year average is 22%).
Source: Mediapost