Consumer Spending Outlook Edges Up

Consumers’ planned budgets for shopping later this year are edging up slightly, according to two separate surveys fielded in February and March of this year by Optimove, a customer-led marketing platform. In the most recent survey, 22 percent of the respondent planned on increasing their budgets for shopping for summer. That’s up from 14 percent a month earlier.

Respondents’ confidence in the economy has also improved. In February, 21 percent of the Optimove survey respondents also said they had more confidence in the economy for 2023. The positive feeling rose to 24 percent in the March survey. The data aligned with consumer confidence reported by The Conference Board, which showed its Consumer Confidence Index increased slightly in March to 104.2 (1985=100), up from 103.4 in February.

“Consumer spending remains resilient in the face of mixed signals between the strong job market, interest rate rises and inflation,” said Optimove CEO Pini Yakuel. “In this environment, brands must create deeper personal relationships based on customer information and continue fostering trust. Our research consistently shows that 70 percent  or more of consumers unsubscribe from a brand due to a breach of trust.”

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