Kids need more personal finance advice

While personal finance classes are offered in many schools, the American Savings Education Council's (ASEC) 1999 Youth & Money Survey found that most students would rather get their savings lessons at home. Trouble is, adults may not have the advice they need. The 1999 Youth & Money Survey, released by the ASEC, the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI), and Mathew Greenwald & Associates, shows that 94 percent of students ages 16-22 say they turn to their parents for financial advice. But the 1999 Retirement Confidence Survey (RCS) found that one-third of adults do not think they are disciplined at saving, 30 percent spend money compulsively, and over 40 percent do not payoff their credit cards at the end of every month.

"Students today are more money savvy, but they are also bombarded with opportunities to spend," says Don Blandin, president of the ASEC. "Our survey shows that students are turning to family and friends [instead of schools] for financial advice, so it is vital that everyone learn the facts about saving and investing."

The youth survey found that only 21 percent of high school and college students have taken a course on personal finance in school (almost 80 percent have not). That isn't for lack of opportunity: 62 percent of students say their current school or a prior school they attended has offered a financial education class. At the same time, students who took a personal finance course said they felt more knowledgeable about money management, but the survey found that they were no more likely than nonattendees to think it is important to save money on a regular basis, or to actually save money that they receive from jobs and/or allowances.

The survey also shows that today's students have significant work experience and are making money. Forty-one percent of students worked full-time last summer (35 or more hours per week), according to the survey. Twenty-four percent of students typically earned $5,000 or more annually, and only 36 percent earned less than $2,500 in a year. The youth survey, underwritten by the TIAA-CREF Institute, also shows that 39 percent of students receive an allowance or other regular money from their parents (59 percent of the allowance is tied to either grades or chores).

What are students doing with their money? According to the Department of Education, students used credit cards to borrow £38 million last year, compared to $27 million in 1997. The Youth & Money Survey found that 28 percent of students with credit cards are already rolling over credit card debt each month. Other top items and expenses paid by students include: entertainment (82 percent); clothes (58 percent); car or related expenses (50 percent); vacation or trips with friends (45 percent); and school needs (31 percent). Students are also investing their money in mutual funds (18 percent); stocks (18 percent), and CDs (16 percent). The 1999 Youth & Money Survey surveyed 1,000 students ages 16-22 regarding their attitudes and behavior towards personal finance.

Home equity market drying up?

The home equity credit market appears to be built on an eroding foundation, according to results in a recent research study by Atlanta-based Synergistics Research Corp. entitled "Innovative Channels for Marketing Home Equity Credit." About one in 20 (6 percent) homeowners currently have a home equity line of credit, with about half of these (3 percent) being inactive holders reporting that they do not have a balance or have not accessed their line in the past year. About one-fifth of the homeowners have had a line in the past. This is about three times the number of cllrrent holders. Comparisons with previolls Synergistics research studies show that incidence of home equity credit has declined since 1992. "As the new millennium approaches, lenders face a challenge to rebuild the home equity market by reintroducing home equity products to homeowners. If lenders take immediate action, they could reverse the declining fortune of this product. Because it is a small niche product, even small conversions of non-holders will translate into significant market growth," says Anne Morgan Moore, president of Synergistics.

Doctors have taken to the Net

In June, Caduceus Marketing Research, Mt. Arlington. N.J., conducted an on-line survey among a sample of 100 physicians who agreed to complete a survey using the firm's on-line system. Respondents included physicians from the following specialties: primary care physicians (FP/GPIIM); cardiologists; obstetricians/ gynecologists; and pediatrics. The questionnaire contained a number of questions specific to Intemet usage, as well as some product-specific questions.

Highlights from the study include:

  • Internet access: 62 percent of physicians access the Internet from their home; and 36 percent of physicians access the Internet from their office.
  • How often do they use Internet? Every day, 69 percent; several times/week. 28 percent; once a week, 3 percent.
  • How long have they been using the Intemet? More than two years, 69 percent; one to two years, 23 percent; six to 12 months, 9 percent.
  • How frequently do they check their e-mail? Every day 59 percent; several times a week, 32 percent; once a week, 9 percent.

About half of the respondents report they have searched the Internet for pharmaceutical product information. New products are most often the target of their lntemet searches.

Doctors were asked how the Internet helps them most often with their practice. Researching new products, quick access to current medical information and access to Medline are the most often mentioned ways in which the Internet helps their practice. When asked what the pharmaceutical industry could do to help physicians with their practice, the most popular responses were: provide information on new products, update information on drug interactions, and provide access to clinical tlial infonnation.

Half of the physicians responding recommend educational Web sites to their patients.

Physicians were asked to specifically rate several potential services to gauge their interest in receiving these services. Physicians are interested in the ability to: order prescription samples on-line; receive new product information via email; and request samples of over-the-counter medications.

1st & Ten scores

According to a poll released by Harris Interactive (HI), a Rochester, N.Y., research firm, an overwhelming majority of football viewers like the 1st & Ten technology that electronically superimposes a first-down line on the playing field during televised broadcasts. Nominated for an Emmy Award in the Innovative Technical Achievement category, 1st & Ten, developed by SporTVision, was premiered by ESPN during the 1998-99 NFL season for its Sunday night games.

The on-line poll found: 83 percent said they like the 1st & Ten system; 92 percent said they would like to see the superimposed first-down lines used on all football telecasts; 64 percent of "casual" viewers said that 1st & Ten increased their understanding of the game, with almost half of them saying the 1st & Ten line would increase their likelihood of watching football games; 92 percent believe it will increase the understanding for kids; four out of five viewers report that the 1st & Ten yellow line increases their level of enjoyment. Nearly three-quarters (71 percent) believe that the first-down line would add to the level of enjoyment when watching games on "jumbo" screens in stadiums.

The technology underlying 1st & Ten is sophisticated. The location of the first-down line is entered into the system computer by the broadcaster's statistics staff. The system then gathers data on the camera's pan, tilt, zoom and focus functions. With this information, the system knows where in each frame of video the line should appear. The computer then analyzes the line 30 times per second and determines whether the images in the frame of video are the field, a player, the ball, referees, or something else.

HI was commissioned by SporTVision to conduct the research, which used the same Internet methodology that was used in Harris' 1998 Election Poll. The survey for SporTVision involved 1,285 qualified respondents - which were defined as individuals who observed the 1st & Ten marker on ESPN last year. Three out of five (61 percent) of the respondents reported that they were avid football fans. HI weighted the results to reflect the universe of NFL television viewers. The testing was done at the 95 percent confidence level.

Top 10 'junior wired' Cities

Based on a survey conducted by Digital Marketing Services, Inc., a Lewisville, Texas, on-line research firm and a wholly owned subsidiary of America Online, Inc. (AOL), AOL has uncovered the 10 most "junior wired" cities in America based on the amount of time children ages 2 to 17 spend on-line (according to more than 16,000 randomly selected parents visiting AOL's Opinion Place from May 24-June 3).

The Top Ten "Junior Wired" cities are:

  1. New York
  2.  Philadelphia
  3. Tampa/St. Petersburg/Sarasota
  4. Los Angeles
  5. Cleveland
  6. Boston
  7. Detroit
  8. Washington, D.C.
  9. Chicago
  10. Seattle

In these cities, the approximate average time spent on-line weekly increases with age and is as follows:ages 2-5: three hours; ages 6-11: four hours; ages 12-14: six hours; ages 1517: seven hours.

According to Jupiter Communications, more than five million children under the age of 12 are on-line, with that number expected to grow to 20 million by the year 2002. By any measure, computers are an increasingly integral part of young people's lives. In a recent AOL Families Channel poll, AOL parents said their kids are more likely to "fight" over the computer than the telephone. Additionally, 25 percent of 10,000 parents polled said their kids are using the computer by age 2 and 90 percent said their children are using the computer by age six.

Tortillas on a roll

The Tortilla Industry Association (TIA) has announced the findings of a market research study which confirm the tortilla's standing a fast-growing segment of the baking industry worldwide, with global sales estimated at more than $6 billion in 1998. Specifically, the survey revealed that the North American and European tortilla markets continued to grow in 1998, with sales surpassing $3.5 billion, and projects sales to reach more than $5.5 billion in the next five years. Respondents to the survey indicated that, in 1998, the growth rate of corn tortilla sales surpassed that of wheat flour tortillas. However, the flour tortilla still reigns as the principal product in the industry.

The study, executed by Penn and Associates, Cleveland, was conducted via telephone interviews with 101 North American and European tortilla manufacturers in April and May 1999. The growing popularity of tortillasis attributed to the acceptance of tortillas by non-Hispanic cultures as a staple food, much like bread. The emergence of wraps (recipes using flour tortillas with a wide variety of non-Hispanic fillings) helps to bridge the transition of tortillas from ethnic item to mainstream dish. In addition, the study also highlights increased consumer awareness due to more advertising, the development of flavored tortillas, and expanded shelf space as trends responsible for market growth.

Study identifies trends in sports participation

According to a survey of 16,190 Americans conducted by American Sports Data, Inc. (ASD), Hartsdale, N.Y., paintball, artificial wall climbing and the use of elliptical motion trainers were the fastest-growing activities in the U.S. during 1998.

Though not measured since 1988, when it claimed only 658,000 participants, paintball emerged as the top U.S. growth activity, with 5.9 million people having engaged in the activity at least once in 1998 - an increase of 800 percent over the decade. In the product market, this growth has been underscored by the industry leader, Brass Eagle, Inc., an Ark.-based firm which has doubled its sales over the past year. Further confirmation of the activity's growth, according to ASD President Harvey Lauer, lies in the number of recent converts to the activity. "Forty-nine percent of the participant base nearly three million paintball players - are first-year entrants. This strong recruitment rate is suggestive of high growth potential" he says.

Another fast-growing activity monitored by the study is artificial wall climbing - a hybrid fitness/outdoors phenomenon which has spurred the rapid growth of indoor climbing walls at health clubs and small studios dedicated to the activity. In 1998, 4.7 million individuals over the age of six performed the activity at least once, a 42 percent increase over the results of a pilot study conducted by ASD for 1997. Moreover, 62 percent of all 1998 participants were newcomers, further underlining growth prospects for wall climbing. By contrast, the study uncovered only two million "outdoors" mountain/rock climbers, who used technical climbing gear.

Elliptical motion trainers - by far the hottest fitness equipment trend have surged to 3.9 million users in 1998, an increase of 63 percent over 1997. This recently-introduced cardiovascular equipment involves an elliptical-shaped pedaling motion which has been described as a cross between a Nordic ski machine and stair-climber. Here again, a sharp Increase in participation has been validated by a very high percentage of first-timers (57 percent) in the 1998 user population. But unlike various equipment fads which have come and gone, the study found evidence of staying power for this fledgling activity."Elliptical trainers have passed the litmus test of health club acceptance," Lauer says. "The majority of these machines (56 percent) are used in health clubs and Ys, compared with only 13 percent for cross-country ski machines and 15 percent for aerobic riders - the latter two being infomercial-driven trends which were never accepted at clubs, and in the end, could not be sustained." Indeed, from 1997-1998, Nordic skiers and aerobic riders were among the worst performers, suffering respective declines of 23 percent and 32 percent for the year. Another infomercial-driven product, abdominal machines/devices, sustained a participation loss of 20 percent.

Overall, the exercise boom seemed to be taking a breather. With the exception of home gym exercise, which earned a gain of 11 percent, the remainder of fitness activities could muster only a lackluster performance at best. Weight training driven by women and seniors to a degree that seems counterintuitivegained only 4 percent in 1998, rising to a participant population of 41.3 million. Treadmills, the dominant cardio equipment and premier moneymaker, finally plateaued with a slight increase of 3 percent from 1997-1998, but up 743 percent from 1987.

A first-time-ever measurement of spinning revealed 6.8 million total participants, of which 1.6 million were dedicated exercisers who performed the activity on at least 100 occasians during 1998. However, an influx of only 28 percent first-year participants in 1998 suggests that the activity may be cooling. An equal number of recumbent cyclists (6.8 millian) were projected by the study, and overall, stationary cycling reflected a slight lass far the year (-4 percent) as it declined to 30.8 million.

Several star performers at yester-year were no longer ascendant. Inline skating, which had tapped the growth charts far years, was flat at (+ 1 percent). Golf, perhaps aided by the Tiger Woods blip of 1997 when it had jumped by 11 percent, retreated to a 3 percent loss in 1998. After reaching its zenith in 1996, mountain biking, the beneficiary of triple-digit growth in the 1990s, was stable (+2 percent). While snowbaarding could achieve anly a 10 percent gain in 1998, a substantial infusion of new blood (44 percent of all boarders were new converts) augurs well for the activity.

For the first time in recent memory, fishing has risen by a significant 10 percent to. 55.5 million participants in 1998, but this favorite American pastime is still below the level of 58.4 million first measured in 1987. Even fly fishing - which despite the fervor af its aficianados and excessive media hype (including a major Hollywood film) had nonetheless plummeted by 42 percent from 1987-1997 - enjoyed a leap af 11 percent in the current year. While this appears to be good news for the fishing industry, Lauer cautions that "It's doubtful that all the deep-seated problems of fishing - such as depleted stocks, changing values toward 'blood' sports, increasing competition from New Age activities and so on - can be reversed in a single year. Chances are that fishing, along with other outdoor pursuits, was simply the beneficiary of good weather in 1998."

Mild weather may have also aided RV camping (+ 13 percent), tent camping (+4 percent), day hiking (+8 percent) and ather outdoors activities. While no camparative data exist for the first-time-ever measurement of kayaking, 43 percent af its participant base of 3.5 million were newcomers, a very positive indicator.

Overall, the U.S. sports participation picture was not bright. Most remaining sports and activities were uniformly flat or depressed in 1998: baseball (-7 percent), basketball (-6 percent), football (-4 percent), soccer (-.3 percent), softball (-5 percent), volleyball (-8 percent), tennis (-3 percent) and racquetball (-5 percent).

This apparent industry malaise, according to Lauer, "is a complex result af population aging, competition from other leisure activities, not to mention the abdication af responsibility by our schools. Encouragement of physical activity should begin early on, but this doesn't seem to be an educatianal priority anymore. And to make matters worse, our prime pool of sports participants isn't growing. Far example, despite the steady grawth af the U.S. population, the 20-29 age group has actually shrunk by 10 percent from 1990-1997. And last but not least, there's technalagy - the natural enemy of physical activity. Only today it's not the elevator or the automobile - it's the Internet. Tomarrow, it could be a magic pill that prevents weight gain."

The Superstudy af Sports Participation was conducted in January 1999 and based an a nationally representative sample of 16,190 people over the age af six, who were among 25,000 targeted in a sample drawn from the consumer mail panel of NFO Research, Inc. Over 100 sports and activities were measured along with over 20 demographic, attitudinal and behaviaral dimensions. Data were also collected an health club membership and other subjects pertinent to physical fitness.