Marketing research and insights news and information. This issue's keywords: social media; customer services; gift cards; customer engagement; mobile coupons; financial health

Social media is among the last places consumers want to go for customer service, according to a survey commissioned by software solutions firm NICE Systems and the Boston Consulting Group, which focused on customer interactions with providers of financial, telecom and insurance services and interviewed consumers across the U.S., the U.K., the Netherlands, France and Australia. The survey found that the number of consumers using social media to resolve customer service issues has dropped compared to two years ago. While daily, weekly and monthly use of social media channels doubled between 2011 and 2013, those same categories declined between 2013 and 2015, while the number of respondents who never use or are not offered social media customer service rose from 58 percent in 2013 to 65 percent in 2015. Thirty-three percent of respondents who do not use social media said it takes too long to address issues, while 32 percent said it has limited functionality and 30 percent said it isn't feasible for complex tasks.

Of all age groups who received gift cards during the last holiday season, Millennials, at 31 percent, were the quickest to redeem them, doing so by January 2016, compared to only 23 percent of Baby Boomers, shows a survey by the International Council of Shopping Centers, New York. Millennials are also the most likely to purchase additional items when redeeming gift cards (64 percent). This includes spending on additional items in the same store where they redeem their gift card or picking up an online purchase in store and even making purchases at stores for which they did not have gift cards to redeem. Two-thirds (66 percent) of all American adults received gift cards during the holiday season. The most popular gift cards were for full-service restaurants (29 percent), followed by discount stores (26 percent), general Visa/MasterCard/American Express (21 percent), coffee/fast food (19 percent), online only (18 percent) traditional department stores (14 percent) and electronics (10 percent).

Marketers are increasingly focused on customer satisfaction and customer engagement as their top measures for success, according to a report by San Francisco customer success platform Salesforce, based on a survey of global marketers. In addition, high-performing marketers are creating journeys for customers, with 65 percent saying they've adopted a customer journey strategy and 88 percent saying it's critical to their marketing success. The research also shows that nearly two-thirds of high-performing marketing teams (63 percent) are implementing digital transformations across their organization, compared to 8 percent of underperformers. The majority of high-performing marketing teams surveyed (58 percent) strongly agree they're driving customer experience initiatives across the business, compared to 8 percent of underperformers. Sixty-three percent of high-performing marketing teams surveyed say they're excellent at creating personalized, omnichannel customer experiences across all business units compared to 2 percent of underperformers.

Consumers who rely on mobile coupons when food shopping are much more likely to experiment with new brands, according to the latest release of The Survey of the American Consumer by GfK MRI, New York. The research shows that 33 percent of U.S. adults agree completely or somewhat with the statement "I rely on mobile coupons while food shopping." Forty-four percent of these mobile coupon users say they like to "change brands often for the sake of variety and novelty," compared to 30 percent of the general population. Additionally, 60 percent of these mobile coupon users say they will "gladly switch brands to use a coupon," compared to 49 percent of all consumers. Forty-eight percent say they like to receive mobile coupons based on their current location, compared to 36 percent of the general population. The data also shows that 26 percent of adults living in high-income households (earning $200,000 a year or more) report using mobile coupons when shopping for food. These consumers also have higher-than-average willingness to switch brands for the sake of using a coupon (53 percent) and receive location-based coupons (51 percent). Mobile coupon use when food shopping is reported by 42 percent of 18-to-34-year-olds - the highest level among key age groups - and by 31 percent of those ages 35 to 54.

Sixty-seven percent of consumers feel their financial health will improve in the next six months, giving them the confidence to splurge, according to a new quarterly IRI Consumer Connect survey by Chicago-based researcher IRI. These splurges, however, are not impulse buys made on a whim but are more about making informed choices, with 55 percent of shoppers saying they will pay more for food and beverage solutions that provide added benefits beyond basic nutrition, such as vitamins, minerals and extra protein. And 55 percent also will pay more for household cleaners made with environmentally-friendly cleaners. In addition, 36 percent are regularly buying premium-quality beauty products, while 34 percent will pay more for environmentally-friendly packaging. The survey also found that though shoppers are making some splurges on specific products, they are still looking to keep their budgets in check for everyday pantry items. For instance, 60 percent of consumers buy bulk to get a lower price per serving/usage and 58 percent generally purchase the lowest-priced option when buying groceries. Nearly half (49 percent) will buy over-the-counter medications other than their preferred brand because it's on sale. Forty-two percent often select food and beverage products that aren't their preferred brands because they have a coupon and 39 percent will buy a beauty and personal care product other than their preferred brand because it's on sale.

These reports were compiled from recent issues of the Daily News Queue, a free e-newsletter digest of marketing research and insights news and information delivered each business morning. Not already in the Queue? Sign up here!