Does the will of the people even matter? 

When we dreamed up this company some 17 years ago, we were idealists. Public opinion polling was cracking as people jettisoned their landlines. Paid survey panels were the hot new thing, but practitioners overlooked (or obscured) the fact that people who answer lengthy questionnaires for money look nothing like the real world. 

We believed solving the public opinion research problem was borderline existential. A timely and trusted accounting of Americans’ wants, needs, hopes, and fears is essential to a well-functioning democracy and free market. Without it – we surmised – our culture, commerce, and politics will be controlled by people with the biggest megaphones and checkbooks. 

Even though we’ve solved the research problem – through the largest-scale and most reliable measure of public opinion ever built – our country only strayed further from a well-functioning democracy. America’s collective voice has been lost. 

As divided as we’ve become, there’s no shortage of issues on which we overwhelmingly agree. Limiting corporate political donations, eliminating gerrymandering, requiring age-gating on social media, and banning cell phones in K-12 schools are just a few things with near-universal public support. Our political leaders don’t give a shit. They’d rather kill two birds with one stone, pandering to their tribe on more divisive issues, while simultaneously punking the other side.

Private-sector leaders are far more attuned to the opinions of the masses. They’re not perfect, by any means. Just look at all the companies that peeled back their DEI efforts, even as public support for DEI has only increased. We all know why that’s happening.  

In business, every day is election day. Consumers vote with their wallets around the clock. Knowing how they feel and catering to them wins. Ignoring them and running afoul of their wishes fails. There’s an incentive to make decisions with the broadest possible appeal.

The math in politics is different. Our current President was elected by 31% of the adult population. Most members of Congress this year will be elected by even less. Once in office, they have no incentive to broaden their tent. They only need to do enough to win next time. 

Thus, what the masses think has become almost moot. Our government is neither truly for the people nor by the people. At least right now.

But we aren’t giving up, because people still want to be heard. We started a simple “Poll of the Day” email newsletter a couple of months ago, and, with zero marketing investment, it has become one of our top five sources of data (you should subscribe and share).

We’ll cross 7 billion survey responses in our database this year, from every shape, size, and color of warm-blooded Americans. It’s not that hard to figure out what they all want.

We just need the right people to listen.

Here’s what we’re seeing:

Consumer confidence had a minor rebound this week. After a complete nosedive in mid-January, our Economic Sentiment Index moved up and to the right in the latest reading as the nationwide panic over the job market reached equilibrium. Driving the gains this time around were significant improvements in optimism for the housing market – on cue, we saw mortgage rates hit a 3-year low. Americans are still feeling bleak about the long-term outlook for the economy and their eagerness to make major purchases remains muted. 

The potential for long-term growth in subscription online news is way bigger than you think. After years of stagnation, the percentage of US adults who pay to subscribe to online content in news, sports, pop culture, and the like has been surging since 2024 – up over 40% during that time. Surprisingly, that growth is being driven by younger consumers. The percentage of Gen Z’s who pay for at least one online subscription outnumber Boomers by 3-to-1. That means there’s a huge opportunity – and tons of customer lifetime value – in winning these paying audiences now. You should read the full report to see who these subscribers are, what they’re reading, how much they’re spending, and why. It’s way more than we should probably give away for free but I’m feeling generous.  

Promises of bigger returns have prompted an early surge in tax filings this year. In our 3 Things to Know this week, we learned that 27% of U.S. adults have already filed their taxes, up from 20% at the same time last year. No doubt, those Big Beautiful Bill windfalls had something to do with it. We also looked at what online resources people turn to for advice, with a special focus on Gen Z. Online search is still the number one starting point for most Americans – although Gen Z women are more likely to turn to social media. Also, AI assistants are on the move. Finally, we learned that 88% of U.S. adults are at least somewhat concerned about the state of public infrastructure where they live. It’s almost as if the government should do something about that. 

The dynamics of brand loyalty among Black Americans are changing fast. Expect to hear a lot more from us about brand loyalty in the weeks ahead – we have a bombshell research paper we’ll be dropping soon. In the meantime, we highlighted some remarkable trends on the subject among Black consumers this week. Most notably, Black U.S. adults have become increasingly brand-centric in their shopping behavior over the past 18 months and are more likely than the Gen Pop to have grown more loyal to their favorite brands over the past 5 years. This year, they plan to increase spending on apparel, beauty, tech, and entertainment, while the Gen Pop leads in upping spending on travel and home improvement.

The lousy winter has a lot of people hankering for spring travel. Forty-two percent of Americans report having plans to travel for leisure in the upcoming spring months, with another 13% still on the fence about it. A large number plan to travel solo, heading to a different array of locales than people traveling with friends or family. We also took a closer look at where they plan to stay (hotels vs. Airbnbs) and the supplies they need to buy beforehand. If you’re in the travel business, the good news is that most of them haven’t booked everything yet, so there’s still time to hook them.   

More awesomeness from the InsightStore™:

  • A record number of people are planning to switch auto insurers this year;
  • From last week’s 3 Things to Know: How people are digital detoxing, seasonal food preferences, and how/where people watched the Super Bowl;
  • Plans for home renovations are flat this year, but reliance on professionals is up;
  • Here’s how people are handling tax prep this year.

The most popular questions this week:

Do you think the future of daytime TV is in jeopardy?

How concerned are you, if at all, about housing affordability in the US?

How confident are you in your ability to successfully complete basic home repairs?

Have you ever ended a friendship due to opposing views on social media?

How prepared are you to host guests in your home at any given time?

Answer Key: I can’t believe it still exists; Next to healthcare, it’s the biggest problem we have; 7 out of 10; Never; Stop by anytime.

Hoping you’re well.

JD