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The Foster Letter —

Religious Market Update

The FOSTER Letter is a bi-weekly e-mail religious market intelligence report targeted to Christian market channel and ministry leaders.  Each issue reports on news, trends, events and research that will directly or indirectly impact your audiences and businesses in a convenient summary format  Better informed leaders make better choices!

Researched, Edited & Published by Gary D. Foster

Excerpts from the

December 25, 2009 edition of

The FOSTER Letter—Religious Market Update

Apple’s E-Book Reader, Tablet will launch in the spring of 2010 with a 10.1-inch LCD screen. Apple is said to be offering publishers a deal that will allow them to release their content on other online stores, such as for Amazon's Kindle, or for new, forthcoming digital storefronts from major publishers. Apple is also approaching book publishers with a very attractive proposal of a 30/70 revenue split in favor of publishers. A typical Amazon Kindle split is 50/50, rising to 30/70 if given exclusive e-book rights. Apple, unlike Amazon, is also expected to allow advertising in content it sells for its device. (Apple Insider 12/9/09) 

Boomers (ages 45 - 64) are heavy online users, with 93% using email and 71% shopping online. Other regular online activities of Boomers are: Reading news (73%), Gathering information (67%), Paying bills (66%), Watching videos online (30%), Going to networking Web sites, forums, message boards and chat rooms (39%). (Center for Media Research Brief 11/19/09) 

Home Schools Make Better Citizens A new study by the Canadian Centre for Home Education (CCHE) reveals that home-educated adults in Canada excel in all measured areas of adult life, including education level, religious observance, civic and community participation, life satisfaction, and income. The study, Fifteen Years Later: Home-Educated Canadian Adults, surveyed adults whose parents had responded to a 1994 study on home education. Ranging in age from 15 to 34, the respondents answered questions on a variety of topics for which Statistics Canada has comparable data from the wider population. The results were astounding, says CCHE. Overall, when reflecting on the value of being home-educated, most felt that it was an advantage in their adult life. “In terms of income, education, entrepreneurial endeavors, involvement in their community, and all the other attributes measured, home-educated adults not only excel, but also make meaningful contributions to their communities,” stated Paul Faris, president of CCHE. “They are the type of neighbors we all want.” (LifeSite News 12/3/09) 

Nichepreneur is someone who is an expert in a specialized market. Today’s market is in a cycle of unprecedented specialization. If you are looking for Christian market expertise, I’m the nichepreneur who can help you. Contact 419-238-4082, Gary@garydfoster.com or www.garydfoster.com. 

Digital Content Creation and distribution will become our primary focus, says Mike Hyatt, President of Thomas Nelson, in a recent blog. “Physical books will become an after-thought. I don’t know when the tipping point will occur, but I believe it will happen in the next few years. You can’t create a media-rich experience like the SI Tablet is capable of delivering without thinking about content in an entirely different way. Some people will always want printed books, just as some people enjoy candles today. But we will eventually think of these as ‘souvenirs’ (to quote Tim O’Reilly) or decorative artifacts for our home or office. Most people will consume content digitally.” (feedblitz@mail.feedblitz.com, Michael Hyatt’s blog 12/8/09) 

Post-High School Students Feel Closer to God, finds a Fuller Youth Institute study. Students in their 2nd and 3rd year of college were asked “Since leaving high school, what’s changed about the way you view God?" Among the 14 different responses given, the top 3 were: 1) Feeling closer to God, 2) Believing that God is bigger than they once thought, and 3) Having a greater understanding that God is with them and for them. Previous research revealed that 40-50% of students struggle in their faith after high school graduation. But 2 to 3 years later, they are experiencing positive changes regarding their faith. More of them now see God as more active, involved, and important in their day-to-day reality. Many students also said they became closer to God through the adversity and challenges they faced since leaving high school.  (Christian Post 12/1/09) 

The Baby Boomer population will grow by 25% in the next decade while other segments remain flat. As the U.S. population grows older, it becomes more multicultural, busier than ever, and increasingly cynical toward traditional sales pitches. Communications and creative strategies need to address these facts. I can help you ensure your strategy is on target. Contact 419-238-4082, Gary@garydfoster.com or www.garydfoster.com. (Direct 10/07) 

Prefer Part Time 66% of U.S. women with children ages 17 or younger work either full-time or part-time. Most have full-time jobs outside of the home (74%), but just 37% of working mothers prefer this role. 62% would prefer to work part time—a job situation enjoyed by only 26% of working mothers. Over a decade ago, just 48% of working mothers said a part-time job would be ideal. (Pew Research Center 10/1/09) 

Digital Courage The most popular form of entertainment for teens today is the Internet. Due to its anonymity, deception and fantasy are rife on the Internet. Parents should be concerned that such deception, what counselor, author, and speaker Mark Gregston calls ‘digital courage,’ can spill over and fuel an attitude of deception in other areas of the teen’s life. He tells parents to “Follow their instincts.” Even if there is no obvious cause for concern, they should keep a wary eye on their teen’s online surfing and make it a policy to know all of their teen’s web passwords. Knowing that Mom and Dad are monitoring will go a long way toward keeping a teen honest in what they see, do, and say on the Internet. Dishonesty is rooted in an attitude of disrespect: disrespect for others, for authority, for other people’s things, for your family’s values, and for oneself. Getting away with lying, cheating, or theft today can lead to a lifetime of dishonesty, and it can land them in real trouble or heartache in the future. (OneNewsNow Perspectives 12/9/09) 

Pornography distorts people’s concept of relationships, which leads to altered sexual attitudes and behavior, finds the Citizens for Community Values and the Family Research Council. Their study reveals: Men who view porn regularly have a higher tolerance for abnormal sexuality, including rape, sexual aggression, and sexual promiscuity. Married men involved in porn are less emotionally attached to their wives.  Wives notice and are upset by the difference. Sexually oriented businesses harm the community and lead to increases in crime and decreases in property values. Porn degrades an affectionate family life, which is the best environment for raising happy, healthy children. (CitizenLink 12/2/09) 

China Economic Boom For the first time, the Chinese will buy more cars this year than Americans. Skip to next paragraphAnd it is not just cars; China is surpassing the U.S. as the world’s biggest market for many consumer goods. Among China’s 1.3 billion people, rising incomes are finally making large numbers of Chinese prosperous enough to make big-ticket purchases. Retail sales are growing 17% a year after adjusting for inflation, almost twice as fast as the overall economy.  The country’s rapid consumption growth is good news for the whole world. For the first time, China—not the U.S.—is a locomotive helping to pull the global economy out of a slump. (NY Times 12/8/09) 

Time for Courage When times are good and money is abundant, it’s easy to coast on yesterday’s reputation. You’ve seen it happen. But when there’s not enough business to go around, the rules revert to “survival of the fittest.” This is when courageous little companies leapfrog their traditional masters and leave them behind on the trail. I can help make sure you are a thriving survivor. Contact me at 419-238-4082, Gary@garydfoster.com or www.garydfoster.com. (Monday Morning Memo form Wizard of Ads 12/3/07) 

God Compass Religious believers are particularly likely to use their own beliefs as a guide when reasoning about God’s beliefs compared to when reasoning about other people’s beliefs, assert researchers behind a report recently published in the official journal of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. The study found people’s estimates of God’s beliefs were more strongly correlated with their own beliefs than were their estimates of a broad range of other people’s beliefs—such as those of the average American. In light of their findings, the researchers concluded that believers are not only likely to acquire the beliefs and theology of others around them, but may also seek out believers and theologies that share their own personal beliefs. The team noted that people may use religious agents as a moral compass, forming impressions and making decisions based on what they presume God as the ultimate moral authority would believe or want. “The central feature of a compass, however, is that it points north no matter what direction a person is facing,” they concluded. “This research suggests that, unlike an actual compass, inferences about God’s beliefs may instead point people further in whatever direction they are already facing.”  (Christian Post 12/13/09) 

U.S. & British Faith 61% of Americans say they have “no doubt” that God exists, compared with just 17% in Britain. 37% of Brits describe themselves as atheist or agnostic vs. 8% in the U.S. While 70% of Americans say they adhere to a particular religion, believe in God and attend religious services, only 26% of Brits say this. The National Center for Social Research survey identified what it called the “fuzzy faithful” (those who identify with a religion, believe in God or attend services, but not all three). In the U.S., fuzzy faithfuls make up 24% of the population, compared with 36% in Britain. In Britain, 73% feel people with strong religious beliefs are often too intolerant of others vs. 66% in the U.S. 79% of Brits think religious faith provides comfort in times of trouble while 95% of Americans think so.  (Christian Post 12/19/09) 

E-Books Delayed HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster and Hachette Book Group will delay release of e-book editions of certain higher-profile releases in 2010. This is partly due to the e-book $9.99 price war between Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.com. It also follows the tradition of releasing paperback editions after hardbacks have had their run. Publishers are seeking to find a profitable e-book model. (Various sources 12/8/09) 

What Americans Do and Do Not Believe A recent Harris Poll finds 82% of American adults believe in God, exactly the same as in two earlier Harris Polls in ’05 and ’07. 76% believe in miracles, 75% believe in heaven, 73% that Jesus is God or the Son of God, 72% in angels, 71% in the survival of the soul after death, and 70% in the resurrection of Jesus. Only 45% of adults believe in Darwin’s theory of evolution, but this is more than the 40% who believe in creationism. (Harris Poll Weekly 12/15/09) 

Teens Are Cheating And Stealing More, according to the latest Report Card on the Ethics of American Youth by the Josephson Institute of Ethics. The report indicates an increase in lying, cheating, and stealing among youth since ’06, when the report was first published. 42% of youth surveyed lied recently for financial gain. 64% cheated on a test during the past year, and 38% cheated more than once. 83% recently lied to their parents about something significant. 33% of boys and 25% of girls admitted to shoplifting in the past 12 months. 24% had stolen something from a relative or parent and 20% from a friend during that time. Most serious of all, 93% are satisfied with their personal ethics and character. (OneNewsNow Perspectives 12/9/09) 

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