Prospectiv Survey Reveals Consumers Go Online to Get in Shape
Wednesday, 17 May 2006
Today’s consumers want a healthy lifestyle, and they are getting it by sitting at their computers. According to a recent Consumer Preference Index (CPI) poll conducted by Prospectiv, 51 percent of consumers use the Internet as their primary source for health, beauty and fitness information.
A greater number of consumers (73 percent) want to receive health-related content via online channels in the future and that number jumps to 91 percent if the information is tailored to their specific needs and interests.
Prospectiv (http://www.prospectiv.com), a provider of online customer acquisition solutions to leading consumer brands, is the owner/ operator of the online properties Eversave.com, Healthier.com, and TheKnowledgeStop.com.
The number of people thinking about their health on a regular basis is rising along with the demand for online content. Eighty percent of those polled said they are more aware of their overall health today, when compared to five years ago. In fact, 95 percent reported being conscious or very conscious of their health.
And, though 72 percent of those people think about their wellness 12 months a year - a slightly lesser amount, 67 percent, work on their health and fitness regimen year-round. Sixteen percent said they jump-start their regimen between April and June; 12 percent begin in January through March.
"As these survey results show, consumers use the Internet to get information regarding their health, beauty and fitness – this trend creates an advantage for health and wellness marketers who leverage online programs to promote their brand and build direct relationships with consumers interested in their products and services," said Jere Doyle, President and CEO, Prospectiv. "Confirming this, we've seen an increasing number of our health-related clients invest more and more of their marketing resources into online customer acquisition campaigns."
With all of this effort put into maintaining a healthy lifestyle, it is not surprising that 82 percent of consumers surveyed have used coupons for health-related purchases. In addition, 40 percent of consumers surveyed reported doing most of their health and wellness shopping at discount stores; 25 percent shop at department stores and 22 percent prefer specialty stores.
Though only 10 percent of coupons used for health, fitness and beauty products are obtained online, 80 percent of consumers said they welcome future online promotions tailored to their interests and favorite products. This indicates a huge opportunity for health/fitness/beauty marketers to drive sales with online coupons.
How are consumers spending their money? Forty-two percent purchase over-the-counter prescriptions most often; 34 percent buy beauty products and 23 percent invest in diet/fitness programs and services.
Prospectiv conducted the 2006 Health survey online, gathering responses from over 1000 consumers across the United States. The survey was conducted from April 17 – 24, 2006.