honey I'm home (10.11.24)

Remember 2020, the year of a LOT of indoor (also known as ‘isolation’) time? It may be almost 2025, but according to the American Time Use Survey, many Americans continue to embrace the idea of being home, alone (not to be confused with?Home Alone). In fact, their data shows that from 2003 to 2022, the average time spent at home among American adults has increased by 10%, or one hour and 39 minutes per typical day.

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The additional time spent at home seems to be rising across the board, regardless of age, gender, race and ethnicity, income level, education, or employment status. However, a few groups stand out. For example, respondents under the age of 35 spend less time at home than adults 55 and older, but the increase in time spent at home between 2003 and 2022 was greater for younger adults than for those over 55.

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Of course, there are factors that have dramatically changed the amount of time spent at home, such as the rise of remote or flexible work. While this existed pre-COVID, it has since become a far more common professional practice across many industries since 2020. If you use yourself as a survey group of one, what (if any) activities are you now doing at home (or doing at home more often) than you were 5 years ago?

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This is a very complex conversation. For the sake of focus, I don’t want to delve into whether spending more time at home equates to loneliness; plenty of studies cover that, and being alone is very different from being lonely. Even this study focused on whether people felt happy or sad during their activities, both in and out of the home, rather than on feelings of loneliness.

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The key takeaway here for marketers is recognizing that activities done and time spent at home unlock potential new opportunities for engagement, entertainment, education, and ways to alleviate friction—if you can crack the 5 Ws(remember that throwback?):

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-WHO: Who are they with when at home or during specific activities at home? Are they alone by choice, or with others by choice?

-WHAT: What are your consumers doing at home versus outside the home? Have those behaviors changed? Does it depend on factors like the season, companionship, cost, or weather?

-WHERE: Are certain activities being done at home? In specific spaces (e.g., communal spaces like living rooms that encourage gathering, or isolated spaces like bedrooms that evoke privacy)? What activities have been brought into the home that were previously done elsewhere (e.g., shopping, entertaining, celebrating)?

-WHEN: When are consumers engaging in these activities at home? Is it driven by season, milestone moments, tentpole events, or religious calendars?

-WHY: What is driving consumers to choose home for specific activities? How has this changed over the past 12-24 months? Was COVID the catalyst, or did it simply accelerate the inevitable? How do economics and spending influence these decisions? What role do resources play in determining which activities are brought into the home versus those that remain external?

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How can you better understand the dynamics and drivers that influence which activities consumers choose to do at home (or will soon adapt to doing) versus outside the home? How can you evolve your storytelling, messaging, and even product or service offerings to be present in moments of opportunity—driving connection, alleviating friction, and showing consumers that you can (literally) meet them where they are?

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Going back to my ‘focus group of 1’ question, for those activities you’ve brought into the home over the past 5 years, how have the 5Ws evolved for you, and why did they evolve this way? Oftentimes by understanding behaviors (and behavioral insights) as humans first, we’re able to best tap into their clout as marketers.

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To those who celebrate, g'mar chatima tova & have an easy and meaningful fast. To those who don’t, Happy Friday!