Tag: consumer behavior

What’s Keeping Mom Up at Night?

Posted on by shopkick

This Mother’s Day, we decided to look above and beyond what moms are hoping to receive as gifts and dig into the pressing issues on their minds as they raise their children.

In a survey of over 5,600 moms across the country ranging from ages 18-71, Shopkick
uncovered how moms really feel about raising children today, how their values affect their
spending habits, and more. From Millennials to the Silent Generation, from Californians to
Floridians, moms are engaging their children in dialogues about what’s happening in the world and their communities.

On Mom’s Mind

  • Biggest Concerns: Physical safety of their children is the #1 concern for moms today (30 percent), followed closely by financial security (26 percent), according to survey results. For single moms, specifically, financial security (33 percent) is the predominant concern, while physical safety remains a close second (30 percent).
  • Fostering Conversations: Seventy-five percent of moms are engaging their children in conversations about such current events, with school safety as the #1 topic of discussion (37 percent of moms engaging). Racial equality (25 percent) comes in second, followed by gender equality (11 percent), and presidential politics (8 percent).
  • Generational Differences: The up-and-coming generation of mothers in Gen Z are
    most concerned with financial security (38 percent), and the most likely to discuss
    gender equality with their children (17 percent). Millennial moms place nearly equal
    emphasis on discussing school safety and race equality (31 percent and 30 percent
    respectively). Moms that fall into the Silent Generation spend the most time of all age groups discussing presidential politics (25 percent) and racial equality with their children (38 percent).
  • Regional Insights*: New York moms are the most likely (80 percent) to engage in
    conversations with their kids about the outlined issues (money, physical safety, online behavior and privacy, health and bullying), topping Florida (78 percent), California (76 percent), Illinois (75 percent) and Texas (73 percent).* Moms in Illinois spend the most time discussing and teaching their children about school safety (44 percent).

Managing the Family Purse Strings

  • Shopping Their Values: When it comes to managing household finances, the
    overwhelming majority of moms (78 percent) state they shop their values and are
    impacted by a brand’s ethics when considering where and what to purchase. However, only 25 percent of moms change where or how they spend based on their political beliefs.
  • Generational Differences: Silent Generation and Gen Z moms are more likely to adjust their shopping habits based on their political beliefs (35 percent versus 25 percent of moms in the middle generations).
  • Regional Insights*: Floridians are the most likely (80 percent) to match their shopping habits with their values and to be impacted by brand ethics. Moms in Illinois are second only to those in California in their likelihood to change where and how they spend their money based on political beliefs (28 percent and 31 percent respectively).

Shopkick conducted a survey of over 5,600 users who self-identified as mothers to uncover the issues of most concern and their shopping decisions. Shopkick classifies age groups as: Silent Generation (over 71), Baby Boomer (54-71), Generation X (42-53), Xennial (33-41), Millennial (20-32), and Generation Z (under 20). The survey was conducted between April 6 and 12, 2018.

*Based on the top 5 states (California, Texas, Florida, New York, and Illinois) in terms of volume of respondents.

2018 tax refund trends: early filers spending on travel

Posted on by shopkick

If the only sure things in life are death and taxes, then tax refund spending is surely a seasonal shopping moment that shouldn’t be ignored. We recently conducted a survey to find out when Americans file their returns, and how they plan to spend their refunds.

The majority of those surveyed (66%) expect a refund this year and nearly 80% plan to spend at least part of it – and they plan to do so soon. Travel was a common theme, with 23% of people planning to spend tax refunds on a vacation.

70% of respondents file as soon as they receive W2s, compared with just 6% that wait until April to file. And the earlier you file, the earlier you can spend your refund. For the 23% of respondents planning to spend their refund on a much-needed vacation, filing early can make all the difference when it comes to finding and booking the cheapest flights, hotels and entertainment.

“We filed our tax return the minute our W2s came in January,” said Oklahoma City resident Kendra Barreda. “We’re planning our family summer vacation now and 90 percent of the funding for our road trip out west to Disneyland is coming from our tax refund. This isn’t the first year we’ve used our tax refund on vacation either, last year we took the family to Universal Studios and Harry Potter World thanks to our refund!”

Returns aren’t just going to vacations, however. Other ways Americans will be spending their refunds this year include:

  • Doubling down on debt: 62 percent will put their tax refund toward paying down existing debt
  • Being basic: 36 percent will use the money to pay for everyday expenses
  • Loving life: Home improvement projects (19 percent), major investments like a car or home (17 percent), self-care (16 percent) and shopping spree (11 percent) round out reported spending

Twenty-four percent of people will be saving the entirety of their refund by:

  • Sticking it in savings: 70 percent will send it into their savings account
  • Preparing for the worst: 17 report using the refund to create an emergency fund
  • Being sensible: 3 percent plan to invest in retirement accounts, the stock market or college savings accounts, respectively
  • Keeping It old school: 4 percent will stash the goods under their mattress

Shopkick now offers opportunities to earn rewards when booking travel through a variety of partnerships with leading travel sites Booking.com, Hotels.com, Hotwire and CheapOair.

Valentine’s Day Shopping Habits: Survey Results

Posted on by shopkick

It’s that time of year again, when kids bring valentines to school, romantics make grand gestures and the flower and chocolate businesses boom. We’ve polled Shopkick users to find out what kind of gift giving they are planning this year, and how gender, family, and age come into play.

According to our survey, men are spending more than twice as much as women: an average of $207.60 on their significant other and $70.24 on their children. On the other half of the heart, women plan to spend $89.54 on their sweeties and $40.30 on the little ones.

Some more key insights on Valentine’s day shopper behavior include:

  • Guys are more giving: More men (40 percent) than women (31 percent) believe it’s “very important” to give a Valentine’s Day gift
  • But most don’t care about getting in return: Fifty-five percent of men don’t find it at all important to receive a gift, and not many of either gender find it very important; only 17 percent of women and 11 percent of men
  • Getting crafty: Women are more likely than men to make a gift (15 percent vs. 7 percent) or give experiences (16 percent vs. 10 percent)
  • Tried and true: The most popular gifts are the traditional dinner out (27 percent) or flowers and chocolate (21 percent)

And finally, despite the reports that having children kills romance, mom and dad still plan to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Seventy-six percent of parents consider themselves romantic and 38 percent start planning the big day a month in advance; 55 percent are more excited about Valentine’s Day since becoming a parent.

Wishing all of our partners and friends a very happy V-day!