I guess I’m normal.  I recently was recalling several instances where I stumbled upon some things while doing work-related research that ultimately trickled over into my personal life.  An online coupon for a play I wanted to take the kids to.  A cool Art in Bloom exhibit at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts that I ended up attending with my Mom.  A floating B&B perfect for the anniversary celebration we’d been trying to plan. 

It’s probably not that strange since I work in consumer marketing and I am, after all, a consumer.  Furthermore, since we monitor a lot of lifestyle blogs and Web sites, it’s only natural I’d find some things of interest.  However, I was starting to wonder whether I should feel a bit guilty for discovering these things while “on the clock.”

According to a recent Research Brief from the Center for Media Research, I’m not alone.  The new study reveals that “Americans are spending 60 percent of their waking hours at work, more than ever before.  And, marketing chiefs are rethinking their ad budgets and advertisers are preparing to meet a new, highly coveted, yet entirely untapped demographic on their own beige-carpeted turf.”

The survey looks at the unique shopping behavior of consumers during the workday, including the role of online search as a catalyst to retail purchase, grocery shopping, casual and fast food dining preferences, and new media consumption.

At-Work Consumer Media & Shopping Behavior Survey Highlights:

• Word-of-mouth is highly influential on purchases made by at-work consumers, with 95.6% indicating they regularly or occasionally give advice to their peers about products and services, and 92.9% indicating they also seek advice from peers before making purchases.
• Workplace presents the perfect environment to create buzz for product introductions and new store openings. While taking a break from work, 67.8% at-work consumers socialize with co-workers and 42.2% also indicate they communicate with friends and family during the workday.

More on this new study can be found here.