Images of rioting protesters in the news and political ads are scaring people eager for a break from the coronavirus lockdown from venturing out, according to an unusual study of how the nation is trying to inch back to normal.
With major cities, notably Portland, Oregon, hosting regular Black Lives Matter protests that sometimes turn violent, those considered “ready to go” consumers are pulling back, as are sizable numbers of Republicans.
The latest Back-to-Normal Barometer, a business survey Secrets has closely followed as the coronavirus has ebbed and flowed, found that 68% of those eager to travel and engage in leisure activities, and 68% of Republicans who also want to go out, have pumped the brakes as the protests and riots continue.
The survey included a warning that a return to normal consumer activities might not happen until after Election Day. That’s because people are not just expressing anxiety about news coverage of Portland and other protests, but also the images in political ads. Some pro-Trump ads, for example, use those images in portraying President Trump as a “law and order” candidate and Democratic challenger Joe Biden as weak on crime.
“Scenes of rioting appearing repeatedly in certain media outlets, and featured in certain candidates’ ads, seem to be discouraging Republicans in particular from venturing out and helping restart the economy,” said Rich Thau, president of Engagious, the company with which the Sports and Leisure Research Group and ROKK Solutions conducts the surveys.
“This should be highly concerning to the travel and leisure sector, which is eagerly awaiting large segments to reengage, particularly those ‘ready to go,’” he added.
The key points from the survey:
- 68% of “ready to go” consumers say they are either very concerned (45%) or somewhat concerned (23%) about the potential for social unrest to affect the resumption of their travel and leisure activities. These are consumers who indicate they are ready to return to these activities but have not yet done so.
- An equal 68% of Republicans say they are either very concerned (46%) or somewhat concerned (22%) about the potential for social unrest to affect the resumption of their travel and leisure activities, compared to 54% of Democrats and 52% of independents who are very concerned or somewhat concerned.
“Our ongoing Barometer work has identified that concerns about social unrest are at similar overall levels to those about public health and the economy,” said Jon Last, the president of the Sports and Leisure Research Group. “To see this concern disproportionately impact those who would otherwise be more apt to reengage in leisure activities puts further stresses on our ability to return to normalcy.”
The survey, shared with Secrets, is provided to industry groups to estimate how quickly the nation might return to normal. It helps industries prepare for when the “open sign” turns back on.
“Our research takes an unprecedented review of consumer attitudes of the past compared to today’s environment so that a vast variety of industries can make strategic business decisions to navigate the difficult terrain ahead to get back to normal,” said Ron Bonjean, a partner at ROKK Solutions, of the online survey of 717 registered voters with a plus or minus confidence rate of 3.66%.
