New Research Defines “Super” Lifestyle Enthusiasts of Home, Food and Travel

Scripps Networks Interactive leads media market in super serving lifestyle enthusiasts

A recent study for Scripps Networks Interactive, a leading developer of lifestyle media content, found that consumers actively engaged in home, food and travel differ markedly from other consumers in their values, expectations and actions. (Graphic: Business Wire)

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.--()--A recent study for Scripps Networks Interactive (NYSE:SNI), a leading developer of lifestyle media content, found that consumers actively engaged in home, food and travel differ markedly from other consumers in their values, expectations and actions. The research revealed that 42 percent of consumers surveyed are “super enthusiasts” who are engaged in all three lifestyle categories.

Commissioned by Scripps Networks and executed by GfK, a trusted source of market and consumer information, the research included an online survey of 2,003 adults ages 25-64 and ethnographic interviews, conducted between November 2013 and January 2014.

Super enthusiasts are influential consumers who are more likely to be regarded as experts by their peers in areas such as cooking, shopping, restaurant recommendations, vacation travel, automobiles, and home improvement. They place a high premium on the basic tenets of quality, integrity and responsibility.

Key findings of the research include:

  • Super enthusiasts “do what they view.”
    • One out of every two takes weekly action triggered by a television show or advertisement.
    • Three in every five (58 percent) take action based on something they read online, compared to only 41 percent among general public.
  • Super enthusiasts are driven by a need to fulfill personal passions.
    • More than half (56 percent) feel “more alive” when they’re actually pursuing those passions, far exceeding the general public.
    • They see cooking as an “art form” rather than a daily chore.
    • They see the home as a “place for entertaining” or a “cozy retreat” rather than a simple investment.
    • They equate travel with “adventure” and a means to connect with others.
  • Super enthusiasts are highly engaged in categories beyond home, food and travel.
    • They over-index in fitness and exercise (150), films and movies (155), and new technology (165).
    • They’re 40 percent more likely to shop at a department store and 23 percent more likely to shop at a home improvement store.
    • They over-index on new vehicle purchases (138) and leases (160) and are 23 percent more likely to spend over $40,000 and 42 percent more likely to spend over $60,000 on those vehicles.
    • They are active investors and over-index on financial products such as brokerage accounts (167), IRAs (148), money market accounts (182), and are nearly twice as likely to hire a financial planner.

The findings shore up the foundation of Scripps Networks’ “Life Lives Here” ideology, the central message in the company’s marketing endeavors, most visibly in the recent advertising sales Upfront tour.

“We’ve established our media lifestyle genre as a solid and separate advertising category, on par with sports,” said Steve Gigliotti, president of ad sales and marketing for the company. “Some networks are testing the waters of lifestyle by adding a real estate show here or a food competition series there, but this is what we do – all we do – 24/7. We’re not testing the waters; we own the whole lake.”

The impact of the super enthusiast is still to be determined but could potentially influence media strategies throughout the industry for the foreseeable future.

About Scripps Networks Interactive

Scripps Networks Interactive is one of the leading developers of engaging lifestyle content in the home, food and travel categories for television, the Internet and emerging platforms. The company’s lifestyle media portfolio comprises popular television and Internet brands HGTV, DIY Network, Food Network, Cooking Channel, Travel Channel and Great American Country, which collectively reach more than 170 million consumers each month. Companion websites complement on-air programming with video and social media that inform and inspire. The company’s global networks reach millions of consumers across North and South America, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Scripps Networks Interactive is headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee. For more information, visit scrippsnetworksinteractive.com.

Contacts

Scripps Networks Interactive
Kristin Alm, 865-560-4316
kalm@scrippsnetworks.com

Release Summary

A recent study for Scripps Networks Interactive found that consumers actively engaged in home, food and travel differ markedly from other consumers in their values, expectations and actions.

Contacts

Scripps Networks Interactive
Kristin Alm, 865-560-4316
kalm@scrippsnetworks.com