surveys

Post-BP Spill, Gulf Residents' Depression Up 25%

Post-BP Spill, Gulf Residents' Depression Up 25%

A new Gallup poll shows that the mental health of people living in the Gulf has dramatically declined after the BP oil spill, with clinical cases of depression up 25%. [More]

AT&T Comes In Last In Latest Network Quality Survey Among Consumers

AT&T Comes In Last In Latest Network Quality Survey Among Consumers

J.D.Power and Associates released a new survey last week that measured customer complaints among national cellular networks, and although different companies excel in different regions, AT&T is still consistently the laggard when it comes to call connections and overall quality. Of the six regions covered in the survey, AT&T places last in four of them. The only part of the country where it does okay is the North Central Region, where it places third, and where the otherwise highly-ranked Verizon comes in last. [More]

Things Chefs Will Never Tell You

Things Chefs Will Never Tell You

An anonymous survey of chefs across the country revealed insider tips about how to get the best value when eating out, as well as some other things that might curdle your appetite: [More]

5 Horrors Parents Most Worry About Vs 5 Most Likely To Occur

5 Horrors Parents Most Worry About Vs 5 Most Likely To Occur

According to a new survey, the top 5 calamities parents fret over happening to their kids are, in order from most fretting to least: kidnapping, school snipers, terrorists, dangerous strangers, and drugs. What they really should be concerned over are the top 5 way children actually get hurt and/or killed: car accidents, homicide by someone the kid knows, abuse, suicide, and drowning. [More]

Consumers Hate Facebook As Much As Airlines, Cable Companies

Consumers Hate Facebook As Much As Airlines, Cable Companies

Has Facebook’s ongoing foolishness with privacy settings, fine print, and advertising taken its toll on the brand? According to The American Customer Satisfaction Index’s E-Business Report, Facebook scored 64 points out of 100, which puts it in the bottom 5% of private companies, “in the same range as airlines and cable companies.” The one bit of good news for Facebook is that MySpace scored 63 points. [More]

"This Is Why I Canceled Cable," As Told In Collage Form

"This Is Why I Canceled Cable," As Told In Collage Form

Redditor Lambboy got an email from his cable company asking him why, oh god why, had he canceled cable? Doesn’t he know that without it life is but a cheap oat paste? Lambboy struggled with the best way to communicate his innermost thoughts. The radio buttons on the survey, and, yes, even the optional comment boxes, were insufficient tools with which to express himself. So, he sent them this collage. [More]

Consumers Have More Trust In Companies That Tweet

Consumers Have More Trust In Companies That Tweet

A new survey shows that 75% of consumers think companies that tweet or post Facebook updates are more deserving of their trust than companies that don’t. The CEO of Fleishman-Hillard, which conducted the survey with Harris Interactive, says he thinks it shows that companies need to respond to crises much more openly and quickly than in years past: “Not in a 24-hours news cycle, but in minute-to-minute monitoring.” [More]

Target Point Consulting Calls Stranger At Home To Insult Him

Target Point Consulting Calls Stranger At Home To Insult Him

Jon says someone called him earlier this month and claimed to be from a company called Target Point Consulting, and asked Jon to answer a survey. When Jon said no and asked how the caller got his number, which is on the Do Not Call list, things got interesting. [More]

Airlines' Approval Ratings Rise

Airlines' Approval Ratings Rise

You love the airlines now! Or at least, you don’t hate them any worse than you did back in 2007, according to a new survey released by J.D. Power & Associates. [More]

Shoppers Love Costco And Dillard's, Say Target And Walmart Are Subpar

Shoppers Love Costco And Dillard's, Say Target And Walmart Are Subpar

Consumer Reports asked 30,000 readers to weigh in on the best and worst chain stores in the country, and it looks like people really love Costco and Dillard’s. Both stores received above average ratings in things like merchandise quality and value. On the other end of the spectrum, Target’s women’s fashion, jewelery and watches were rated below-average in quality. [More]

This Is Why You Don't Answer Anonymous Telephone Surveys At Work

This Is Why You Don't Answer Anonymous Telephone Surveys At Work

Jay’s roommate says he was bored at work recently and decided to go ahead and take part in a random telephone survey. Now he’s been fired. [More]

Amazon Most Trusted Brand Of 2009; Toyota Was Seventh Most Trusted

Amazon Most Trusted Brand Of 2009; Toyota Was Seventh Most Trusted

All the money that Amazon has sunk into infrastructure and rapid fulfillment has paid off–the online retail giant was the most trusted brand of 2009, according to a brand study released by Millward Brown. The market research company spent 2009 asking consumers questions like, “How trustworthy is this brand?” and, “Would you recommend this brand?” [More]

Survey Indicates We All Distrust Big Banks

Survey Indicates We All Distrust Big Banks

This may come as a surprise to exactly no one, but it looks like most customers of big national banks are less likely to believe their banks are trustworthy, according to a new Forrester poll. Even less surprising: the same poll is done every year, and it’s always the same big banks at the bottom of the list. A Forrester VP explains, “They are public institutions who are in business to make money for their shareholder and inevitably, that shows to customers.” [More]

Zagat Releases First Cellphone Carrier Survey Results

Zagat Releases First Cellphone Carrier Survey Results

Zagat, the popular consumer feedback-based restaurant review guide, now reviews wireless carriers as well, and they’ve released rankings on the four national carriers. The company surveyed 2,319 wireless consumers and then created Zagat-style scores in a variety of categories. Here are some of the highlights. [More]

It's Official, Everybody Hates AT&T

It's Official, Everybody Hates AT&T

There’s a new Consumer Reports survey out that ranks cellphone companies by customer satisfaction, and to pretty much no one’s surprise, AT&T comes in last in all 19 cities surveyed. (Verizon came in first.) As AllThingsD notes, the survey “suggests that AT&T’s shortcomings are more widespread than the carrier would have us believe and not simply the product of a high concentration of iPhones in the country’s larger cities.” [More]

Staples Wants To Know If They're Freaking You Out With Their All-Knowing Emails

Staples Wants To Know If They're Freaking You Out With Their All-Knowing Emails

Apparently Staples is worried that their emails might be too accurate when it comes to marketing office supplies to people—accurate enough to make potential customers paranoid.

Some Ford Cars Are Reliable, Actually Worth Buying

Some Ford Cars Are Reliable, Actually Worth Buying

Several Ford cars are among the world’s most reliable vehicles, according to the latest annual car reliability survey from Consumer Reports.

Would You Live With Ghosts For Cheaper Rent? 69% Would

Would You Live With Ghosts For Cheaper Rent? 69% Would

Rent.com conducted a survey that found more than 2/3 of renters ain’t afraid of no ghosts, and would live with them as long as they got a hefty discount on rent.