Hiring, inflation, fake reviews: 5 interesting stats to start your week

Hiring a marketing professional takes an average of six weeks

It takes businesses an average of six weeks (42 days) to hire a marketing professional.

This figure does not include the notice period for the successful candidate, which is 28 days on average, meaning the typical time that passes before a vacant marketing role is filled is 70 days.

Hundreds of candidates being placed in marketing roles were analysed, ranging from account directors and managers to marketing executives and more junior positions. The research was carried out from January to October this year.

Job vacancies in the UK currently stand at around 1.3 million, having hit record levels this year.

“Right now, the demand for marketing skills is outstripping supply by some distance. This is creating major skills shortages in the marketing industry and stopping employers from hiring the talent they desperately need – whether that’s to grow or even just plug gaps so they can continue providing their services to customers,” says Aspire founder and chairman Paul Farrer.

Source: Aspire

October shop price inflation hits new high

Shop price inflation accelerated to a new high of 6.6% in October, according to the latest BRC-NielsenIQ Shop Price Index.

In September, the shop price inflation rate was 0.9 percentage points less at 5.7%, while the three month average rate is 5.5%. October’s is the highest inflation rate since records began in 2005.

Food inflation jumped to 11.6% from 10.6% in September, with fresh food prices rising by 13.3%, up from 12.1%. Both mark the highest inflation rates in their categories on record. Ambient food inflation rose to 9.4% from 8.6%, the fastest rate of increase in the category to date.

Non-food inflation accelerated from 3.3% in September to 4.1% in October, above the three month average rate of 3.4%.

According to Helen Dickinson, CEO of the British Retail Consortium (BRC), even the price of the most basic items saw “significant” rises in October, including the price of a cup of tea.

“While some supply chain costs are beginning to fall, this is more than offset by the cost of energy, meaning a difficult time ahead for retailers and households alike,” she says.

Source: BRC-NielsenIQ

Fake reviews cause consumers to lose trust in brands

A majority (52%) of consumers say fake reviews make them lose trust in a brand, according to a survey of 10,000 global shoppers.

Just one fake review can cause cynicism among shoppers, with three-quarters stating that if they noticed one fake review it would make them less trustful of other reviews for the brand.

The research suggests this loss of trust could be costly for brands, with 81% saying they would avoid using a brand and 56% saying they wouldn’t purchase from a brand again. Meanwhile, 48% would leave a negative review and 16% would post about the company on social media.

Seven in 10 consumers say they want new standards for the retail industry to tackle fake reviews. Almost three-fifths (59%) think only verified customers should be able to post reviews, while 49% want retailers to undertake daily checks of customer content to weed out fake reviews. Over a quarter (27%) also want to see brands fined between 21 to 30% of their revenue if they breach standards.

Source: Bazaarvoice

Cost of living and inflation set to impact Black Friday spending

Spending during this year’s Black Friday sales is expected to fall to £1.7bn, a drop of around 15%, according to research from Retail Economics and HotUKDeals.

The data suggests that despite an expected “positive impact” from the FIFA World Cup, spending will drop as consumers face increased economic pressures. Consumers from the ‘average’ household are expected to spend £177 this year, a decline from more than £200 in other years.

It’s also claimed the “most affluent” households will bring their spending forward to Black Friday to take advantage of deals on offer, spending 13% more on average.

As this year’s Black Friday coincides with the World Cup, Retail Economics suggests that around one in five shoppers anticipate they’ll be spending more during this period compared to other years, as a result of the tournament.

Source: Retail Economics and HotUKDeals

Less than one in five people prefer to shop only online

Only 18% of people prefer to shop online only, with 42% preferring a mix of online and in-person shopping.

When it comes to consumers choosing to shop in person, convenience is key. A majority of consumers (59%) prefer in-person shopping to be between two to 10 miles from their homes.

While many shoppers are still keen to visit retailers in person, they may turn to online sources before making their visit. An overwhelming 95% of those surveyed say they use Google to find local business information online generally.

Missing or incorrect information can stop shoppers from visiting a business, with 45% stating they are unlikely to visit a business with these issues online.

The research also finds the average person reads six reviews before deciding on a business. Google is the most trusted platform for reviews.

Source: Rio SEO and Forsta