The Recession Tracker: The Real Story of the Recession

Date Posted: 20 February 2009

London, 04 February 2009 - PRESS RELEASE: YouGov, the international research company, has announced the availability of The Recession Tracker, an online portal updated daily to provide insight into how consumers are really responding to the volatile economic conditions. The portal aims to help UK businesses identify new trends and to understand changes in consumer confidence and spending behaviour in the wake of the credit crunch. It will also report on lifestyle shifts, such as the recent trends of thrift and resourcefulness. YouGov’s sector specialists will provide additional analysis and commentary on the findings.

The daily data is gathered from 2,000 online interviews per month with YouGov’s nationwide pre-screened panel. It will be supplemented by testimonials from consumers about how they are thinking and behaving on a range of issues. These will be collected through online forums, discussion groups and surveys. In addition quotes, pictures and videos will be presented as “postcards from the recession”.

“Our instinctive understanding of how people might react to the recession could be wrong,” said Tim Britton, Chief Executive of YouGov. “The changing economic climate and unprecedented upheavals in the financial sector are prompting us all to reassess how we live. This means that not only are trading conditions very difficult, but it would seem that people’s attitudes may be fundamentally shifting. With the launch of The Recession Tracker we aim to provide companies with the visibility they need on the constantly changing behaviour of consumers under pressure.”

“We recognise how tough it is out there for our clients and we feel The Recession Tracker represents fantastic value during these challenging times.”

Since the launch, YouGov has received numerous enquires and positive feedback. Lorna Tilbian (Numis Securities Limited) noted: "Like all YouGov branded products this is timely, cost effective and accurate - a leading indicator of consumer intentions providing a much-needed predictive tool through unchartered waters."

The Recession Tracker is available at £449 per month. If you would like to subscribe to the portal or for more information, please contact the Credit Crunch team at YouGov on 0207 012 6109.

Richard Wood, BrandIndex Senior Research Executive

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