Pulse Legacy Archive March / April 2012 | Seite 22

conversations
killer. That [awareness] has since grown to 70 percent and the
campaign has touched nearly two million women.

P: Based on Edelman’s research, how has the definition of wellness changed?
P: The definition of wellness has become broader, holistic,
expansive and much more embraced, with people looking at
wellness today as a proactive pursuit. Wellness is something
that people are really mindful about—how am I going to eat
healthier? What types of activities for my family lead to a healthier household? What healthy education [programs] can I take?

Young adults see greatest social role
in personal health Social health engagement and
influence also highest in this ‘emerging’ market
79%
18-30 YRS OLD

46-64 YRS OLD

38%
20%

P: Which consumer demographic seems to be most
engaged and willing to embrace this new definition?
P: I think, whoever the gatekeeper of the family—whether
the mom or the dad, as we are increasingly seeing more dads
at home while moms are the breadwinner—is out in front
with embracing wellness and in thinking different ways in
which they and the children can be healthy, whether setting
healthy examples [for the children] or defining wellness at
home as using environmentally conscious products or having
healthy food in the refrigerator.

One thing we are often seeing is just
about every generation embraces
wellness but in different ways:
MILLENNIALS: Really driven to embrace wellness.
As a generation, they are social-minded and view wellness
as a badge of honor, which is why they tend to quickly spread
information to their social network.
GEN X: These are the gatekeepers who are front and center
in taking care of themselves, their family, children and even
their aging parents.
BOOMERS: Interested in wellness because they are thinking
of their own longevity. They are probably thinking,“I may have
another 20 years to live, how can I make the most out of it?”

P: Why is it critical for businesses today to maintain
or reinforce health engagement?
P: Every year, Edelman conducts a global study called the
Edelman Health Barometer wherein we talk to about 15,000
people in several different countries. In our last Health
Barometer, one of the things we’ve learned, resoundingly so,
20 PULSE

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March/April 2012

Me

My family & friends

Data from the Edelman Health Barometer 2011

is that health is a business imperative today, regardless of
industry. The public expects companies across industries to
embrace health in several different dimensions.
In fact, 82 percent of the respondents globally expect businesses to embrace health, but only 32 percent think that
businesses are meeting expectations.
The public is also saying that health engagement equals
trust. The more companies are engaging in health, the more it
increases people’s perception that such company can be
trusted to do good.

P: What are some of the key insights from the Edelman
Health Barometer 2011 that may impact the spa landscape?
P: One of the things that really struck me from the latest Health
Barometer is just how much more broadly people are defining
health today. In the past, people defined health [solely] as the
absence of disease. Now, 80 percent [of the global respondents]
define it broadly, to include [not just the absence of disease] but
also digestive health, emotional health, heart health, fitness and
exercise, weight management, to name a few.
The other thing is this incredible trend of social influence of
health. One of the things we saw is that people are driven to be
healthy through social influences, by what their friends and
family members are doing. When you look at how people are
changing behavior, many times it’s through the power of community and social influence.
My thinking for the spa industry is: How can the spa industry galvanize consumers to move the perception of spa from a