Back-to-school is for the little tots, too

Census Bureau figures indicate slightly more than one-half of the nation's 3- and 4-year-olds are enrolled in school, so kids specialty retailers can take advantage of back-to-school events for little learners. When it comes to 5- and 6-year-olds, nearly all will be heading to school come August and September.

Online merchandising carries over to brick and mortar

Busy consumers are more often turning to the Internet to research products before making a purchase. Two recent surveys, one by New York-based WebCollage, the second by Boston-based Aberdeen Group, both make that point.

In WebCollage's 2007 Survey of Online Consumer Product Research Habits, 91% of online shoppers polled said that they felt it was "important" or "very important" for retailers to provide complete product information to allow them to research products online.

Unfortunately, 44% said retail Web sites did not have the most complete information on manufacturers' products. One-third were concerned that retailer product content was out-of-date.

Seventy percent of online retailers reported to the Aberdeen Group that browsers to their Web sites were more likely to become buyers when their Web site's search functions were used.

The WebCollage Survey indicates the price of having poor online content can be steep. Shoppers who are not able to find the information they need to make a purchase are ready and willing to go elsewhere. In the search for more complete, up- to-date content:

55% said they would go to a manufacturer's Web site to find their information.

37% of shoppers said they would visit a competitor's retail Web site to find the information they needed.

82% of the shoppers surveyed reported they were more likely to return to retail Web sites that were able to provide them with complete product information to do research and make purchases in the future.

71% said they would be more likely to purchase products in the physical store of the retailer whose Web site they had used to perform product research.

The employment picture

The nation's unemployment rate has remained relatively stable since last September, hovering between 4.4% (in March) and 4.6%. The national unemployment rate in May was 4.5%. Regional and state unemployment rates were little changed in May. Compared with April, the unemployment rate was up in 26 states, down in 15 plus the District of Columbia and the same in nine, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. For the year, jobless rates were down in 28 states and the District of Columbia, up in 18 states and unchanged in 4 states. The Northeast and South posted significant unemployment rate decreases (-0.3 percentage point each), while the Midwest recorded the only significant rate increase (+0.3 point).

Looking ahead, the outlook appears to indicate more of the same. Among the more than 14,000 employers surveyed by Manpower, 29% expect an increase in their hiring activity in the third quarter, while only 7% expect a decline in their hiring pace. According to the seasonally adjusted survey results, the third quarter hiring pace is expected to remain unchanged from the April — June period. This stability comes after three consecutive quarters of slight declines in employer confidence levels. This trend is apparent in the year-over-year comparison, which shows employers were slightly more optimistic about staffing plans one year ago.

Compared with the second quarter, employers in the Midwest and South expect to maintain a similar hiring pace for the July-September period. Those in the Northeast anticipate slightly weaker labor market conditions in the next three months, while a slightly improved hiring pace is predicted for the West. A comparison of regional hiring activity shows employers in the West predict the most rapid hiring pace, while those in the Northeast report the country's most conservative hiring plans.