Americans’ work follows them home
A weekend is hardly a break anymore when Americans are using their two free days to get more done at home and on the job. Overall, Americans have cut back on time previously spent relaxing and watching TV and the weekends are no exception, according to the 2010 American Time Use Survey by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, McLean, Va.
Thirty-five percent of workers overall work on weekends. A slightly greater percentage of part-timers work on weekends than full-time employees. On average, those who work weekends work five-and-a-half hours. More than half of sales workers work on weekends, the largest percentage among occupations in the survey. But weekend duty is a fact of life for only 20 percent of office and administrative personnel.
More than half of those with multiple jobs work on weekends, compared with about a third of those with just one job. Almost 40 percent of those with more than one job work at home, compared with about 22 percent of those with a single job.
Women worked more hours overall than they did two years ago, especially on weekends. Employed women, who historically have worked fewer hours than men, are catching up as the hours men work are decreasing. While employed men still work about 40 minutes more a day than women, the average employed woman spends seven hours and 26 minutes a day doing work or work-related activities - more than 10 minutes more than last year.
Shame shopping - women indulge but hide their loot
It’s no secret that women go to great lengths to save money but pinching pennies isn’t a cure-all for the guilt some feel after making a purchase. Thirty-seven percent of women reported that they have saved $51-$100 while making a purchase but - good deal or not - 67 percent of women have felt guilty about a purchase they made because of the price, according to Wakefield, Mass., daily deal site Eversave.
Thirty percent admit to hiding a purchase in the trunk of their car until they can sneak it in the house undetected and 55 percent of women have also thrown something out or donated an old item to make room for new purchases.
On the other hand, 18 percent of women shop guilt-free regardless of price. The most common ways women save money are by using coupons and/or promo codes (93 percent); shopping during sales (93 percent); using daily-deal sites (83 percent); and signing up to receive e-mails with coupons and savings from their favorite brands (80 percent).
What does your digital screen mean to you?
You may not think that you have a deep, personal relationship with the screens of your computer, television or smartphone but research says you do. BBDO Worldwide and Microsoft Advertising partnered with Paris research company Ipsos to conduct a study examining which Jungian archetypes go with which digital screen, according to Karl Greenberg’s June 20 article, “Understand What Screens Mean On Jungian Level,” for MediaPost.
Using projection techniques, picture interpretation, quantitative and qualitative analyses, the study examined how consumers emotionally connect and interact with each screen. BBDO and Microsoft then applied Jungian archetypes to give each device a personality.
So what kind of different responses do the various kinds of digital-screen devices evoke? Consumers polled think of TV as a kind of “everyman, an old friend” - an essentially passive person who is comfortable in your home. In the U.S. and U.K., people have a strong friendship with TV, driven to some extent by feelings of nostalgia.
People think of the PC as an older sibling - someone that people can learn from, show off to and compete with. People trust their PCs more than their TVs, especially in China and former Soviet-bloc countries and among younger consumers.
The mobile device represents “a new lover,” since it is the most personal device and something consumers want with them at all times. It is still new and its archetypal appeal cuts across cultures.