Newspaper Circulars Still Preferred Resource for Back-to-School Shopping

DENVER, Aug. 24, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- While smartphone usage continues to increase, only 2 percent of shoppers listed mobile as a resource when planning for back-to-school shopping, showing no increase from 2010. This was revealed in The Checkout, an ongoing shopper experience study currently underway by The Integer Group ® and M/A/R/C ® Research.

Though mobile usage may be stagnant, online research is seeing growth with 35 percent of shoppers citing the Internet as a back-to-school resource, up 6 percent from last year. Newspaper circulars top the list again with 43 percent of shoppers saying this is their preferred resource for back-to-school shopping.

"While mobile may not be top of mind for back-to-school shopping today, if marketers keep shoppers' needs in mind and effectively integrate mobile throughout The Shopper Continuum™, mobile will only grow," said Ben Kennedy, group director of Mobile Marketing for The Integer Group.

When asked where they expect to make back-to-school purchases, the majority of shoppers said at mass/discount stores (29 percent). Office supply stores, department stores, and grocery stores all follow behind. It also appears more shoppers plan to buy online, doubling from 2010 (now 6 percent). However, grocery (down 4 percent from 2010), clothing (down 1 percent) and drug stores (down 2 percent) might see a decline this season.

"As eCommerce sites like Amazon and Alice.com continue to market to moms and make it easier to order household items, it seems likely that it will take away from in-store purchases from neighborhood drug and grocery stores this back-to-school season," said Craig Elston, senior vice president of Insight & Strategy for Integer™.

Data for The Checkout comes from a national survey conducted by Integer and M/A/R/C where consumers are asked about their shopping attitudes, shopping behaviors, and economic outlook. Topics range from criteria shoppers use to select retailers, to which in-store stimulus is most likely to drive purchase, to factors that might lead shoppers to leave an aisle empty-handed. The Checkout is available for download at Integer's Shopper Culture blog http://www.shopperculture.com/shopper_culture/the-checkout.html or M/A/R/C's web site http://www.marcresearch.com/checkout.php.

About The Integer Group

The Integer Group (www.integer.com) is one of the world's largest promotional, retail, and shopper marketing agencies, and a key member of Omnicom Group Inc. Integer lives at the Intersection of Branding and Selling® and creates strategic marketing solutions for clients in categories that include retail, beverage, packaged goods, telecommunications, home and shelter, automotive aftermarket, and power sports. Integer has more than 1,200 employees working in U.S. locations as well as international offices in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, North and South America. Join the conversation on shopping culture and brand strategy at www.shopperculture.com.

About Omnicom

Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE: OMC) (www.omnicomgroup.com) is a leading global marketing and corporate communications company.  Omnicom's branded networks and numerous specialty firms provide advertising, strategic media planning and buying, digital and interactive marketing, direct and promotional marketing, public relations, and other specialty communications services to over 5,000 clients in more than 100 countries.

About M/A/R/C® Research

M/A/R/C® Research (www.MARCresearch.com) is a brand development firm dedicated to helping clients create, evaluate, and strengthen their brands. Our teams design and execute qualitative and quantitative, traditional and online solutions while adhering to a client-service ethic built on being easy to work with and delivering what is promised. Our core competency is measuring attitudes and behaviors to accurately explain and predict market share, revenue, and bottom line impact of a client's actions. We help our clients address consumer, channel, and B2B marketing issues to launch better products and services, attract and retain valuable customers, and build stronger brands. Our proven, marketing-issue focused solutions, support clients' brand building efforts.

SOURCE The Integer Group

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