Tag Archives: product testing

Extreme Cutting Back is Extreme!

336Caught a 2am rebroadcast of Kathie Lee and Hoda (Link here if you can bear it) interviewing a couple that moved with their two kids into a 336 square foot house they built. Apparently, this is a thing now, so they say. The couple really didn’t seem to be too smug about it (unlike, say, the enviro-hipsters at my old job who ride their single-gear bikes to work every day even though it’s 88 degrees in Charleston by 9am and you smell like a mule the entire day.) Anyhoo, these folks lost everything in the Crash, had to start over, and didn’t want to be in debt ever again.

Yeah, but 336 square feet? “It brought us closer together…” Geez, you think?

How about some more practical tips on cutting back? Try “54 Ways to Save Money” from AmericaSaves.org. Ideas include everything from keep a jar of change to buying the new light bulbs to only using YOUR bank’s ATM, and 51 more!. Some good stuff there.

So, what about you? Could you have a fire sale and move your family into 336 sq ft? What ways have you cut back? Are you saving much? Let us know over at the MindField Online Facebook page!

Consumer Culture Hall of Fame!

1981905_710425518979512_1357359628_nIf you asked me what the biggest consumer trends of the past however-many years would be, I would say cell phones are at the top of the list. I remember in 1985 being fascinated by the ONE guy I knew with a cell phone… it looked like something Radar might use to call Sparky at the 8063rd on M*A*S*H: a big blocky unit, the size of a VCR, with a shoulder strap and a wired handset.

Turns out I am correct – or, rather, one-twelfth correct. Cell phones are on the list, as compiled by the London Globe and Mail. What else is on the list? Lots of things, not just technology but also trends. Here are the highlights…

  • Everyone is a designer: And don’t I know it! For many years, I was a Professional Video Producer. Now, any Joe with a camera and a laptop can make videos that I needed a ROOM full of technology to achieve!
  • Brands are keepers of culture: Sadly true. I was looking at my second-grade class picture. Know what I didn’t see? Nike, Spider-Man, Dora, or Red Bull t-shirts!
  • Everything you need fits in your pocket: See the picture above. A guy from 1990 carries 200 pounds of crap – a camcorder, VCR, TV, telephone, dictionary, road atlas, etc. – in contrast with carrying a smartphone.
  • Life is a project to be optimized.: “I’m living life to the fullest – even with my mild-to-moderate plaque psoriasis!” See also: Viagra.
  •  Technology never sleeps: Oof, I am guilty of this one. Wake up at 3:45am. Hit the bathroom. Then, check the iPhone for emails or texts.
  • Scarcity is something to embrace: Ehh, not so sure about this one. There is a certain stripe of people who think that the itty-bitty SmartCar is cool, but I don’t know any of them.
  • Connectivity is like oxygen: Want to see a super freakout? Tell somebody that the WiFi is down!
  • Nothing is from one place any more: Remember “American Made”? Now it’s “Assembled in America from parts from who knows where”… and we’re OK with that!
  • Crowds know more than experts: Who do you trust to give you the lowdown on that new restaurant – the trained culinary expert, or a bunch of Joes who post on Yelp?

So, those are the highlights. Check out the original piece for further insights. So. what do you think? Are these relevant? Are there other cultural and technological phenomena you would add to the list? Let us know over at the MindField Online Facebook page!

Dollar Store Don’ts!

Dollar-Store dontThe hard-hitting sequel! Or something.

As much as I love the dollar store, there are some items you probably shouldn’t bother with, as the value doesn’t quite stand up. A relative term, for sure… it’s $2.50 someplace else, a dollar here, but it’s probably only worth 79 cents. Are you actually going to make a trip back to return it? You will spend more on gas!

Nevertheless, value is value, so let’s take a look at items to avoid, as listed by Wisebread.com…

Dollar Store Don’ts…

  • Anything With a Plug: forging that “UL Approved” label is not unheard of.  About the only electrical thing I buy here is lightbulbs.
  • Food Storage Bags, Aluminum Foil, and Cling Wrap: Sometimes you have to buy 4 boxes to get as many bags or feet of wrap as you would at Walmart, so you aren’t really saving.
  • Kitchen Utensils: For a college dorm or your niece’s first apartment, maybe. For regular grownups, no.
  • Vitamins and other drugs: Not dangerous, but sometimes lacking ingredients, sometimes past their expiration and, again, there may be very few in the bottle compared to the grocery store or pharmacy
  • Toys: There are so many safety regulations for toys, and some of the dollar-store kind come from far, far away, if you know what I mean.
  • Tools: Been there. Planning to use that screwdriver exactly once? Buy it at the dollar store!

A general note, courtesy of Me: Along the lines of “how many aspirin are in the dollar bottle?” I often consider how much they had to shrink the product to make it possible to sell for a dollar. If you have to buy 3 or 4 of them, are you saving? (I’m asking!)

Also, I am generally wary of anything in the store that costs UNDER a dollar. I think “One Dollar” is a powerful psychological cue. If everything else in your basket costs a dollar, then you won’t mind (or even notice) that the can of peas you are paying 85 cents for is actually 60 cents at Walmart!

So, that’s the lowdown. Again, I LOVE the dollar store. But if you shop it smarter, you can enjoy it even more! What are YOUR dollar store do’s and don’ts? Let us know over at the MindField Online Facebook page!

Dollar Store Dos and Don’ts

Dollar-StoreConfession time… for me, the dollar store has replaced Goodwill as my go-to retail therapy option. My main reason? Too many times I have seen an item from the dollar store – one that cost a dollar! – still in the package and for sale at Goodwill for $1.91!

Anyway, love that dollar store! And, let’s get it straight; I refer to the one that has the green color scheme, where everything is truly a dollar or less. But I have learned that there are certain items you can feel comfortable buying there, and ones you can’t.

So I was intrigued to find this list, “10 Things You Should Never Buy at the Dollar Store (and 10 You Should)” from Wisebread.com, to see if my instincts are correct. Let’s check out some highlights from the “Do” column (with bonus dumb commentary!)

Dollar Store “Do’s”:

  • Gift Wrap, Cards, and Party Supplies: I literally discovered gift bags and tissue paper here. Magical moment.
  • Glassware, Cups, and Mugs:  Fancy? No. But do they hold liquid, and transport said liquid from the table to your face? Done.
  • Coloring Books, Crayons, etc.: As long as your kids don’t mind that the coloring book is from Iron Man 1 and not Iron Man 3. For some kids, this is really a challenge!
  • Batteries: Probably my biggest purchase. I would classify dollar store batteries as “half as good for a quarter of the price.”
  • Holiday Decorations: You’d have to talk to Sgt Wife about this but, yeah, why not?
  • Most Cleaning Products: I would say mostly the basics. Bleach is bleach, but you won’t find the 14 kinds of bleach that Clorox thinks we need to survive. Another catch… I buy this generic Febreze, but I am convinced it is about ¼ the concentration of the name brand, and I go through it quickly.

Next time we’ll look at the Don’ts. What do you think?  Are you a dollar store freak like me? What are your big purchases? Let us know over at the MindField Online Facebook page, and have a great weekend!

Tracking the Consumer’s Mobile Habits

tabletsareclickingMobile devices and smartphones are changing the way we get our information and entertainment, as well as our shopping habits. This is no shocker; what’s surprising is how quickly these changes are happening, one on top of the other, such that advertisers can hardly keep up!

The constant-flux nature of the digital landscape means that brands must rapidly adapt their marketing strategies to map the shifting consumption habits of consumers. In order to be present where consumers are focusing their attention, brands must be aware of the shifts in real time, as they are happening.  Tnooz.com

Which is pretty much what I just said, dudes! Anyway, Nielsen has released a report that attempts to capture these changes in our mobile consumption habits. Here are some highlights…

We consume 60 hours of content across different devices weekly. Ehh, seems like a lot. I have an iPhone, iPad and a laptop and, yes, I probably do come close to 60 hours a week – but I am a professional social media person! How about in YOUR house?

Each month we spend roughly…

  • 134 hours watching TV, down 3 minutes since 2012
  • 34 hours using browsers/apps on a smartphone, up 10 minutes.
  • 27 hours using the web on a computer, down 2 minutes.
  • 13 hours watching time-shifted TV (DVR, Hulu, etc.), up 2 minutes.
  • 7 hours on a game console, no change
  • 5.5 hours watching DVD or BluRay, no change.

Another fun fact… when we look a retailer up on our smartphone web browser, (somebody we visit a lot), and we find out that they have an app, about 84% of us download it!

So, it seems that the balance between devices is changing – but not that greatly.  It looks like we are simply finding more time to consume more info and entertainment, and we’re using mobile devices to do it! It’s no wonder that the wireless carriers are getting SO DARNED AGGRESSIVE in courting your business – free phones (even the fancy ones!), no contracts, offering to buy out your old contract, etc.

So, what about you? Are you shifting your consumption habits to a more mobile platform? Are you downloading specific apps more often now? Are you doing it because you want to, or because you don’t want to get left behind?  Let us know over at the MindField Online Facebook page, and have a great weekend!

Another MindField Difference…

roundabout simple signIf you are a big doer of surveys (known in scientific circles as a “survey-doer”) you may have heard of Routing. Or maybe not – it’s only a few years old and it’s sort of an “inside baseball” term.

Anyway, routing means that, if your survey company works with a larger consortium of survey companies (as MindField does now) then you log in to a certain survey opportunity, then maybe you don’t qualify, and then the big computer in the sky keeps pulling you along to the next opportunity, and the next, until it finds a survey that you qualify for.

Basically, the practice has several benefits for the survey companies and the clients who commission the surveys. For the panelist, maybe not so much. You do eventually qualify for something, but how long will that take? The answer is, it varies between survey companies.

It leads to one of the biggest complaints panelists have about routing: Respondent Fatigue. And it’s a big reason that MindField doesn’t do it!

At MindField, we make our best attempt to target the sample to the needed qualifications and should you not qualify you are finished with that opportunity rather than being passed around until something finally fits.

In the research we conducted, we found routing to be a huge complaint among panelists and something we listened to.

In other news: Email avalanche! One panelist asked, “I’m getting 30 email invites a day! I’m overwhelmed! Is that normal?” Well, going forward, no. This is one reason we are going to the Survey Cloud. With all these new opportunities, you would be bombarded with invites! So, invites are ramping down while Cloud is ramping up – and we are in this temporary “between time” that will end shortly.

So, again, a time of change, growth and increased opportunity. Will we break a few eggs along the way? Probably. We just ask for your continued patience as we build a bigger, better MindField for you!

MindField: Committed to Data Security!

internet_securityWhen it comes to online security, the sad fact is that the good guys have to get it right every single time, but the bad guys have to get it right just once.

What can the good guys do to keep their data – and that of their clients and customers – safe? They have to be PROACTIVE. They can’t just cross their fingers and hope for the best. And, although no system will ever be 120% secure, they have to study their systems with a critical eye, look for any potential weaknesses and then do something about them, BEFORE they become a problem.

By the way, in this scenario we – MindField Online – are the good guys.

Some members have experienced some password, login and cash out problems in the past few days. Some have seen a Client Maintenance prompt, asking them to complete or update security information. Some folks have also had difficulty getting to surveys right away, and that’s frustrating.

The good news is that this system check and upgrade is almost finished. We ask that you provide the info requested, and please be patient. We swear it’s all in the name of a tighter, more secure system that will better protect member data AND provide a more reliable product for our clients.

For more information about MindField Online security, you can visit the security page at our website. And, you are always welcome to contact the helpdesk during regular business hours at [email protected] or 800.969.9235.

Inside the Grocery Game

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Reader’s Digest, by way of The Consumerist, has published quite the expose about the grocery biz. It has some good tips on savings, as well as the way stores get you to spend more time and, of course, more money.

We’ve always known the supermarket is a veritable jungle, set with snares and traps designed to lure even the most observant shopper into buying whatever that heavenly smelling thing is, or lulling us into a contented stupor so we linger longer in the aisles. Consumerist

Feeling the fruit: Produce workers say that people pick up the fruit and put it back a LOT. Be warned!

The carts never get cleaned: You don’t even want to think about the gross stuff that makes contact with that cart. At least Walmart offers disinfectant wipes when you pick out your cart

Ten for $10 trickery: Take an 89-cent can of something, mark it 10 for $10, and watch them fly off the shelf. My Publix does this a lot, Well, the secret’s out, suckers!

Bigger carts, bigger sales: Apparently new, larger carts (or Buggies as we say in SC) are responsible for 20% more purchases.

You probably only know the price of four items: I know even fewer than that, and I do all of the shopping!

Feel the heat! Kroger uses heat sensors to track where shoppers are in the store, so when they sense a rush coming on, they can open more registers.

As usual, just the highlights. Many more to be found at the original pieces, Here and Here. What do you think? Any surprises here? Let us know over at the MindField Online Facebook page, and have a great weekend!

Ups and Downs in 2014, el parte dos

I knitted this for you.
I knitted this for you.

Now, a brighter look at prices in 2014. While wine, BMWs and the McDonald’s Dollar Menu are all going up (grrr!), there is some good news on the horizon. Let’s take a look at some prices expected to fall this year, as reported by DealNews.com…(with bonus dumb commentary!)

  • 3D Printers: are you following this? You take a bucket of chuh, pour it into a printer and make things! Like, real things! The possibilities are limitless (and terrifying!)
  • 4K HDTVs: 4K is supposedly SUPER HD. I’m always behind. Just now bought an HDTV, and the next big thing has already happened!
  • Gold: Yeah, we’ll see about this. Gold only comes down when the economy is doing well.
  • Crude Oil: Probably the best news on this list.
  • Off-Contract Smartphones: This is the only way to go. Used, refurbished phone and no contract? No-brainer.
  • Xbox 360 & PlayStation 3: That is, the OLDER systems. They’re not as sexy, but the manufacturers are promising to support the old tech.
  • Touchscreen Laptops: Because nobody wants them!
  • 1080p Laptops: See above!
  • Smartwatches: Because that’s apparently a thing now!

There’s more at the original article, so check it out! So, what do you think? Any of these items sound good to you? Are you planning any big purchases this year? Let us know over at the MindField Online Facebook page, and have a great weekend!

Retail of the FUTURE!

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amazon droneYou may have seen the gizmo above in a viral video that went around the web last month. Apparently, when we’re finished blowing up al Qaeda, Amazon wants to employ flying drones to deliver your packages same day – maybe even same hour – depending on where you live. (And, really, shouldn’t we employ veterans?)

The video shows the folks at the Amazon warehouse packing your order in these special tubs. The drone comes by, clamps the tub and takes off. An hour later the tub is dropped at your doorstep. I wonder what we’re supposed to do with the tubs?

Anyway, that’s just one of the retail advancements being speculated in a Business Insider article entitled “10 Predictions For How Shopping Will Completely Change In The Future.”

Here are some highlights (with bonus dumb commentary)! See if any sound good to you…

  • Companies are researching you in unprecedented ways. (No! that’s the government’s job!) Looking at the ways we perceive value, and hoping to manipulate them, I guess.
  • Same-day (or hour) delivery will become common. Either by drone or by some dude in brown shorts.
  • Traditional stores will have the same analytic intelligence as online. “How do we arrive at our buying decisions?” That’s what they’re after.
  • Social feedback will factor into purchases. Retailers are paying attention to platforms like Pinterest, where shoppers post pics of the items they like or have purchased. The retailers then take those items and feature them more prominently.
  • Privacy will become a business. As we have seen recently, maybe Target should get into that business!

Per usual, just the highlights. Lots more at the original piece, so check it out! What do YOU think? Good changes? Do you think retailers are doing these things to make life easier or to make $$$$$? Let us know over at the MindField Online Facebook page, and have a great weekend!