Data

WHAT THE DATA SAY: Americans' interest in women's sports reaching new highs

By: Ray Day

CONTACT:

Ray Day
ray.day@stagwellglobal.com 

We wanted to share our latest consumer and business insights, based on research from The Harris Poll, a Stagwell agency.

Among the highlights of wave 140 (fielded Oct. 28-Oct. 30) in our weekly consumer sentiment tracking:

ECONOMY, INFLATION WORRIES MODERATE; JOB WORRIES JUMP:

Today, 86% of Americans are concerned about the economy, inflation and jobs – down 3 points from last week. At the same time, worries about losing a job jumped significantly.

    • 83% worry about a potential U.S. recession (down 2 points)
    • 82% about U.S. crime rates (no change)
    • 74% about political divisiveness (down 1 point)
    • 72% about the War on Ukraine (down 2 points)
    • 72% about affording their living expenses (no change)
    • 62% about a new COVID-19 variant (up 1 point)
    • 54% about losing their jobs (up 7 points)
    • 48% about the Monkeypox outbreak (up 4 points)
INFLATION AT THE NORTH POLE:

Eight in 10 (84%) Americans plan to buy gifts for others this holiday season, and they have set their 2022 gift-giving budget at $823, according to our survey with NerdWallet.

    • Close to a third (31%) of last year’s holiday shoppers are still in debt after using a credit card to pay for gifts they still haven’t paid off.
    • 72% of this year’s holiday shoppers will use credit cards, charging $663 on average.
    • Inflation is affecting how some shoppers approach gift-giving this year: 83% plan to adjust as a result of inflation, including giving different types of gifts compared to years past (36%) and spending less per person compared to years past (35%).
    • 43% say they feel pressure to spend more money on holiday gifts than they’re comfortable spending.
    • 68% plan to shop Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales this year.
    • 50% say they’ll spend the most on gifts while shopping these sales.
    • Still, 30% plan to use Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales to buy necessities for their home or family.
    • 67% say they will do their holiday shopping online instead of in-store this year.
OPEN ENROLLMENT BELT-TIGHTENING:

It’s healthcare open-enrollment season, and many workers are considering downgrading their health insurance because of high inflation, according to our survey with the Nationwide Retirement Institute.

    • 17% of respondents in the last 12 months adjusted their family’s budget to pay for health care expenses.
    • 12% canceled or changed health insurance.
    • 10% withdrew funds from their retirement account to pay for health care expenses.
    • 8% downgraded their health insurance plan.
    • 14% of Americans say they are considering downgrading their health insurance plan during this year’s open enrollment – rising to 23% for Gen Z and 20% for Millennials.
    • Americans also are experiencing high levels of stress around retirement and retirement planning because of inflation: 47% report their top stressor is inflation, 30% worry about Social Security running out of funds, and 29% are concerned about an unexpected decline in their health.
EMPLOYEES’ ADVICE TO HR: LESS IS MORE:

When it comes to HR tech platforms to improve the work experience, less is more, according to our survey with HR Brew.

    • On average, employees report using 3.4 HR platforms and 8.1 total HR and productivity tools in general.
    • 69% of employees with one HR platform said they felt confident they could find the information they need.
    • Confidence plummeted to 49% among those whose company has more than one HR platform.
    • In today’s economic climate, employees have an appetite for financial planning solutions (80% favorability among Millennials and 72% among Gen X) and the lowest need for new social networking tools.
INTEREST IN WOMEN’S SPORTS CLIMBING:

The popularity of women’s sports has grown by leaps and bounds – and consumers want to see the trend continue, according to Stagwell’s National Research Group’s new report, Leveling the Playing Field.

    • In the U.S., 3 in 10 sports fans say they’re watching more women’s sports now than they were five years ago.
    • The broadcast market for women’s sports grew significantly worldwide this year, thanks in part to successful events like the UEFA European Women’s Championship and ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup.
    • Even in the U.S., which didn’t compete in those tournaments, the market grew by 29% compared with 2021.
    • 85% of fans – including 79% of men – think that it’s important for women’s sports to continue to grow in popularity.
    • The Olympics proved there’s growing demand for women’s sports. During the Tokyo Games, in half of the 10 most widely viewed sports, viewership for women’s events was higher than men’s.
ICYMI:

In case you missed it, check out some of the thought-leadership and happenings around Stagwell making news:

As always, if helpful, we would be happy to provide more info on any of these data or insights. Please do not hesitate to reach out.

 

 

 

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