As we saw in last week's update, more Indonesians are spending more time doing more things at home. What is everybody doing for entertainment, other than watching TV, shopping or pursuing their hobbies?
Urban or rural, old or young, man or woman, over 80 million people like entertaining their friends and relatives at home more than anything else. Food and music follow, at a distance.
Every other pastime outside the home pales in comparison. That's probably the lingering effect from a year of counting the pennies, ever since the second fuel price hike in 2005.
These observations are based on Roy Morgan Single Source, Indonesia's largest syndicated survey. The survey has now expanded to include over 27,000 respondents annually, which is projected to reflect 90 percent of the population over the age of 14.
Being welcomed to a cozy meal at home by my Indonesian friends has always been a special treat. The conversations -- where we exchange views and learn of each other's way of life and share concerns and joys -- have always been enriching. That's in sharp contrast to the idle banter of Jakarta's party circuit, with its hordes of people hobnobbing. But that's just a personal observation.
Marketers eager to understand preferences and habits, entrepreneurs in the entertainment arena, restaurateurs and budding franchisers would be happy to know that music is alive and well as a form of entertainment.
Dangdut reigns supreme, in the city and the village. Inul's rise from humble beginnings to national icon status is easy to understand. Her influence spreads far and wide. That traditional Indonesian music is still appreciated by 7.5 million people in the countryside will come as a pleasant surprise to many.
Another 5 million aficionados of gamelan and the flute are keeping ancient traditions alive even in the cities of Indonesia. Over 4 million have been to a live wayang (puppet) show, with three out of four of them hailing from the villages.
Nearly 9 million people went to a live pop or rock concert in the last three months, with enthusiasts predictably falling into a younger demographic. Less than two million people went to a nightclub or disco during the same period, some often, some not so often.
Eating out is also popular -- witness the mushrooming of restaurants and cafes across urban Indonesia. Without including the working meal at a warung, over 11 million have been to a restaurant recently, two out of three patrons being residents of cities and towns.
Many of them are among the 7 million who visited a fast-food restaurant and the 4 million who visited a cafe for a coffee or tea during the same period. The number of people who fill the bars and pubs around the country usually hovers at just above a million people, many of them most likely regular visitors.
Visits to the movies had hit a plateau for some time but recently the big screen started to lose even more ground, despite an increase in "Made in Indonesia" films.
There's more to living the good life than just eating, drinking, listening to music and enjoying the company of friends. What do Indonesians do way of sports and leisure?
One out of seven people appear to be walking regularly, for exercise, making it the nation's No 1. There are over 15 million joggers, almost 14 million soccer players, over 10 million cyclists.
Are marketers and agencies working these opportunities to the common gain of brand, consumer and country? Judging by the conversations I often have with self-proclaimed pundits who actually live in blissful ignorance, these opportunities are both under-estimated and under-valued.
This is equally true of media owners who fail to appreciate the social damage they are doing to Indonesia by blindly promoting a culture of meaningless glitz to the minority, almost to the exception of anything with mentally stimulating content. Television content endlessly promoting shallow values is triggering the rejection of the pseudo-culture it represents, as is evidenced by the growth of conservatism across the country.
If the marketing and media fraternities, hand in hand, continue to view Indonesia through the narrow prism of the Top 10 cities, they will be contributing to the social divide, not the social development of Indonesia as a whole.
After all, those cities are home to less than 20 percent of the population. If not for their country but for their wallets, they would be serving their shareholders better by simply getting their facts right to begin with.
The contributor is an advertising professional turned researcher and consultant, based in Melbourne. He has lived and worked across the Asia Pacific region, including Indonesia. He remains a regular visitor.
Find Article by Date