School Marketers Bullish
On Second Quarter 2014
Five Year Forecast Suggests
Major Turn-Around
Bob Stimolo | School Market Research Institute (SMRI)
I
n early April of this year SMRI conducted its first
quarter sales survey of school marketers and found
the results surprisingly positive. For the first quarter of 2014, almost twice the percentage of responding
companies reported sales increases in 2013 and fewer
companies reported sales decreases or flat sales.
• 42 percent of the respondents reported sales
increases for the first quarter of 2014
compared to 24 percent in 2013.
• 25 percent said sales were flat for the first
quarter of 2014 compared to 29 percent in
2013.
• 33 percent said sales were down for the first
quarter of 2014 compared to almost half or
48 percent in 2013.
Overall, the average change in first quarter 2014 sales
was a -1 percent when compared to the first quarter of
4 essentials | summer 2014
2013. The mode or most frequently reported change
in sales was 0 percent or flat sales. Among those companies reporting sales increases, the average increase
was +4 percent; the most frequent occurrence was an
increase of +5 percent. For companies reporting sales
declines, the average decline was -14 percent and the
mode was -5 percent.
Economy and Funding Sources Blamed
Respondents overwhelmingly cited the economy
and changes in school funding as having an effect on
their 1st quarter 2014 performance. Twenty percent of
the respondents said that bad weather conditions across
the country had a negative effect. Almost 60 percent
of the respondents expect a modest improvement in
economic conditions before the end of the 2013-2014
school year.
Two thirds (67 percent) of the survey respondents
planned no change to their promotion and advertising
budget in response to economic conditions.