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.”
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