According to a new study from IHL Group, reported by Marketing Charts, eight in 10 US mobile phone users currently uses or will use mobile text coupons within 24 months. The other two retail-related consumer mobile activities currently used by more than 20% of mobile phone subscribers are regular barcode and 2D barcode. Coupons on mobile screen only have 16% current engagement, but 38% planned engagement within the next 12 months, second only to text coupons in this category.

A unique segment of active online users within the ranks of home cooks, labeled "Real Cooks," is constantly seeking new recipes, products and cooking techniques, according to About.com's 2010 Food and Cooking Study. The study also revealed that Real Cooks find online food and product advertisements that include printable coupons and nutritional value the most appealing.

According to Chad White, research director at Responsys and author of the Retail Email Blog, as of Oct. 29, 57% of top online retailers had begun their holiday email marketing campaigns. Prior to October, first references to the holidays by retail email marketers we're running ahead of both 2008 and 2009 levels. During the first weeks of October, first mentions slowed to below the levels seen in 2008 when retailers were urgent to kick off the holiday season before the economy got any worse. However, first references to the holiday season surged during the week of 10/25, and now …

Todd Hale, Senior Vice President, Consumer & Shopper Insights, and Dan Brady, Director, Insights Consulting, The Nielsen Company, have summarized new research from Nielsen showing that multichannel shoppers spend significantly more money than single-channel shoppers in many consumer product goods verticals. Life used to be much simpler, notes the report. The local drug store was the natural destination for cough syrup, and cereal and frozen meals were bought at a grocery store. Today, shoppers can take their pick of the number of locations they can find these or most any items.

iProspect, in conjunction with comScore, conducted a 2010 study to uncover the true effect of the digital media channels, and the effect of branding on customers' purchase paths. The research involved both real-time monitoring of Internet user behavior, and post-behavioral surveying of those users. The key finding of this study is that online digital media assets have considerable branding influence, and that specific combinations can significantly impact a brand's success. The study shows that search marketing and online display can be viewed as viable branding channels worthy of their fair share of branding budgets, and requiring development of means …

According to the 2010 Cone Consumer New Media Study, loyal followers can be hard to come by for companies trying to reach consumers online. New media users still choose to demonstrate affinity ("like" or "follow" or subscribe to RSS feed) for an average of only 4.6 companies online, making this an exclusive club. Consumers are more open than ever to engaging with companies via new media (86% vs. 78% in 2009), but it still takes a big effort on the part of the company to reach the upper echelons of the consideration set. To stand out, companies need to …

According to a new study by The Online Publishers Association, partnered with Innerscope Research, "Biometric Evaluation: Assessing the Effectiveness of the OPA Ad Unit," 90% of participants notice OPA Ad Units in the first 10 seconds of being on a webpage. Users who fixated on the Ad Units were as emotionally engaged with the advertising as with the rest of the webpage content. The study further revealed that 67% of users returned to look at the Ad Units after spending time elsewhere on the webpage.

According to the third quarter Nielsen Global Consumer Confidence Index consumers find a full economic recovery in 2010 to be highly unlikely. After an upbeat start to the year with two consecutive quarters of increased optimism, global consumer confidence fell three points in September to an Index of 90.

According to the results of the first quantitative mobile consumer study by Adobe Systems, when it comes to the mobile user experience, respondents generally favor mobile browser experiences over downloadable mobile app experiences across all four key consumer categories: consumer products & shopping, financial services, media & entertainment, and travel. Within the consumer products & shopping as well as the media & entertainment categories, 66% of respondents cited that they prefer the mobile Web for accessing content compared to 34% who cited a preference for downloadable apps. 38% of respondents said they had not purchased anything in the consumer …

According to a compilation and analysis of current studies, Mintel predicts nine key consumer trends for the year ahead, examining how long term behavior has been impacted and created a new way of life. In 2011, consumers are living for the long term with attitudes inspired by a changed value set, says the report, written by Alexandra Smith and Richard Cope. Alexandra Smith, global trends analyst at Mintel, said "...consumer trends for 2011 are a legacy created by economics... and are set to influence the global consumer mindset for a long time to come."