(Source: Business Wire)Renowned for its in-depth consumer research, digital agency Resource Interactive presented "Recession Rewired: Leaner Times Hit Home for Moms and Younger Millennials" to an audience of more than 2000 digital and multichannel retail executives at the 2009 Shop.org Annual Summit. Kelly Mooney, Resource Interactive President and Chief Experience Officer, presented the agency's latest research exploring the recession's impact on two of the economy's prime players.

Resource Interactive began pinpointing the preferences and predispositions of both women and millennials in 2004 and 2006, respectively. "By exploring the two collectively, we gained a clear understanding of not only how their shopping attitudes and behaviors have effectively been ˜rewired' in the new economy, but also the importance of the co-shopping journey," Mooney said.

"The economy has prompted most consumers to rethink their spending, but this reaches further than the recession. We are seeing a cultural shift toward value and practicality. However, it isn't a doom and gloom scenario for retailers”there's real opportunity in the new consumer mindset," Mooney continued. "What the recession requires is a reevaluation of marketing truisms about consumer behavior. Knowing your consumer has never been more important. Retailers need to be ready to test new ideas in order to innovate their way out of the recession."

Mooney's keynote acquainted the Summit audience with the new needs and expectations of moms and millennials rewired by the economy, deconstructed their co-shopping journey and unveiled prototypes offering retailers ideas and inspiration to reach these crucial consumer segments. The keynote was fueled by Resource Interactive's qualitative and quantitative research, conducted in partnership with Shop.org, Sterling Commerce, BIGResearch, Harris Interactive, and ExpoTV.

Key findings and presentation highlights:

The recession is forcing the second-wave millennial generation to grow up faster, displacing self-centered worries, while moms view the recession as an opportunity to reset family values, become more resourceful and better prepare for the future.

Moms are trading way down, but teens have proven to be more brand loyal and less likely to compromise on their favorite brands. Their shared coping mechanism: shop sales and buy less. Teens look to mom as the guru of bargain shopping for help locating favorite brands at a discount.

Moms are cutting back whether they need to or not. Regardless of whether the respondents experienced loss of income or net worth, the mere threat caused them to reevaluate household spending. Moms are moving from conspicuous consumption to conspicuous curtailing, displaying an overall sentiment that society has been wasteful in the past.

Mooney is co-author of The OPEN Brand: When Push Comes to Pull in a Web-Made World, which dissects the social web revolution”from the rise of personal brands to the online consumer's inclination to create, share and influence.

The premier gathering of internet and multichannel leaders, the Shop.org Annual Summit is designed as an interactive forum for Shop.org members and guests to gather for networking, strategizing, fact-finding and education in a non-commercial atmosphere. The Summit runs until September 23 at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.

About Resource Interactive

Resource Interactive is one of the nation's preeminent digital marketing agencies, helping Fortune 500 companies thrive in the evolving internet economy with award-winning digital strategy, creative and technology solutions. Known for its revolutionizing consumer insights, leading edge interactive design and technological innovation, Resource Interactive is ranked among the top ten independent interactive agencies in the nation.

Unique in the industry as female-founded, owned and operated, Resource Interactive has grown over its 28-year history from its first marketing relationship with Apple to ongoing partnerships with clients such as Procter & Gamble, Hewlett-Packard, The Coca-Cola Company, Victoria's Secret, Sherwin-Williams and L.L. Bean, among others. For more information, visit www.resource.com.

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