DWC Home | Magazine | Back Issues | Sept 2004 | Take Note

TAKE NOTE
REPORTED INCOMES TAKE UNPRECEDENTED TUMBLE

The income Americans reported to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) fell for a second consecutive year in 2002, according to information the IRS released on its Web site in late July. It was the first time since the modern tax system was introduced during World War II that reported income fell in back-to-back years, says The New York Times.

Total adjusted gross income on tax returns fell 5.1 percent, to just over $6 trillion in 2002, down from $6.35 trillion in 2000. Because of population growth, average incomes declined even more, by 5.7 percent.

The unprecedented decline was caused primarily by the big fall in the stock market and the erosion of jobs and wages in well-paying industries in the early years of the decade.
ID THEFT VICTIMS CAUTIOUS, BUT OPTIMISTIC

In seems more online Americans are learning the hard way about identity theft. According to Forrester Research, nine percent of U.S. online consumers say they have experienced this high-tech crime. And surprisingly, they remain optimistic, although cautious.

Victims have a few things in common: They tend to be higher-income and more experienced online shoppers. As victims they also are concerned about theft, fraud, credit card theft and fraudulent purchases.

Retailers should not consider these consumers lost, however. Instead they should continue marketing to them. Forrester reports 42 percent of identify theft victims said they would purchase more online if they were more assured that their

WAS THAT DONALD TRUMP AT WAL-MART?

 What’s the difference between affluent consumers and discount shoppers? Not much.

According to a recent study by Unity Marketing, a U.S. marketing research firm, entitled: “Luxury Market Report 2004—Who Buys Luxury, What They Buy, Why They Buy,” affluent consumers are just as likely to shop with the masses at Wal-Mart or Target.

Pan Danziger, Unity Marketing president, says, “One of the most important things about the luxury consumer is that he or she is not that different from anybody else. They just happen to have a little more money.”