Recently, the HR Leaders podcast invited Inspira's VP of People & Culture, Steve Winkel, to join them to discuss how StandOut has shifted the company's approach to employee engagement and performance management. He is joined by the podcast's host, Christopher Rainey, and Amy Leschke-Kahle of the Marcus Buckingham Company.

As states across the country continue to loosen restrictions stemming from the pandemic, consumers are grappling with how they feel about returning to restaurants – especially when it comes to indoor dining. According to a study from Datassential, 42% of Americans feel truly comfortable and safe dining in at a restaurant. While that accounts for a significant portion of the population, there’s still plenty of ground to make up relative to options like curbside pickup (80%), drive-thru (80%), and delivery (75%).

Though many Americans have declared war on sugar in recent years in an attempt to adopt a healthier lifestyle, that doesn’t mean all sugary items have suffered. According to Nielsen sales data, candy and chocolates grew 2.5% and 2.8% in 2019, respectively. While the growth itself is modest, it goes to show that candy’s place in consumer routines remains secure.

Aside from a few select categories, consumer spending has stalled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, as states continue to loosen restrictions and consumers head back out into the world, we'll see an uptick in spending in areas outside of food and household goods. Below, we take a look at where the pandemic has changed consumer attitudes on spending and evaluate where we could see long-term changes in behavior.

Across the globe, sports fans have been missing out on the action with their favorite teams sidelined by the COVID-19 pandemic. Though restrictions are beginning to loosen and leagues like the NBA and NHL have announced plans to return, the reality is that things are going to be drastically different at first. Seventy-two percent of Americans said that they wouldn’t feel safe attending live events without a coronavirus vaccine, which only further cements the notion that athletes will be playing in front of empty arenas for the foreseeable future.

For agencies and event organizers, there's a lot of work to be done to assuage consumers' concerns when it comes to returning to live events. In fact, a study from Performance Research found that 60% of consumers have long-term fears about attending large events.

Experiential marketing is one of many industries that has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. In the interim, agencies and brands have been working diligently to create virtual experiences that bring joy, value, and entertainment to consumers during a difficult time.

With Americans largely confined to their homes over the past few months, most haven’t been getting much use out of their automobiles. Additionally, those who were planning to buy or lease a vehicle have largely postponed their plans to do so; of the 39% of respondents to a CarInsurance.org study who were planning to buy or lease a car between March and May, 71% said they had decided to wait until later on. In this infographic, we take a look at consumers’ auto habits during the pandemic and what they might prioritize in their purchases going forward.

During the lockdown, families were confined to their homes without much to do. So, it’s not surprising to learn that 46% of Americans say they are snacking more now than before the pandemic began. While snacking may have been a panacea for boredom, it appears that those noshing behaviors may linger even as the country begins to open up. In fact, PepsiCo recently announced the launch of two new direct-to-consumer websites — Snacking.com and PantryShop.com — to address both our love of snacks and the emergence of online shopping behaviors. Here, we look at which snacks are most appealing to consumers and where the opportunities are for brands.

Last Friday, the Association of National Advertisers hosted a virtual gala in honor of the 37th annual REGGIE Awards. The REGGIE Awards are among the most coveted in the world of marketing and signify best-in-class brand activations chosen by a jury of over 200 industry leaders.