Are You Ready For Some Football? Marketers, Audience Are

As the nation’s attention turns to the Super Bowl this weekend, marketers are busy preparing for the subsequent bump in sales associated with the event. According to the Retail Advertising and Marketing Association’s 2008 Super Bowl Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, conducted by BIGresearch, consumers plan to spend an average of $59.90 on Super Bowl-related merchandise, up from last year’s $56.04.

The game has taken on “unofficial” holiday status, with 158 million people expected to watch this year’s game. The recent survey polled 8,447 consumers on their shopping behaviors and shopping trends related to the Super Bowl. Here are some more noteworthy findings:

* total spending related to the game is expected to reach $9.5 billion;

* consumers plan to buy 3.9 million televisions for Super Bowl Sunday, 50 percent-plus more than last year’s 2.5 million;

* viewers expect to purchase 1.8 million pieces of furniture, up from 1.3 million last year;

* consumers aged 18 to 24 figure to be the top spenders, with 9.8 percent expecting to buy a television and 4.9 percent buying new furniture;

* 70 percent of consumers plan to watch the Super Bowl, nearly identical to last year’s 69.7 percent;

* 67.4 percent of those watching the game will be buying food and beverages;

* 6 percent plan to purchase team apparel and accessories;

* 41.5 million consumers (36.3 percent of the television audience) will be tuning in to watch the commercials;

* 75.7 percent of viewers say they look at Super Bowl commercials as entertainment;

* 18 percent of the game’s television audience wishes advertisers on the telecast would just save their money and pass the savings along to shoppers; and

* 18- to 24-year-olds are twice as likely as other groups to say Super Bowl ads encourage them to buy products from the advertisers (12.6 percent vs. 6.1 percent average).

For more information go to www.bigresearch.com .