How Consumers use Digital Technology

HOW CONSUMERS USE TECHNOLOGY AND
ITS IMPACT ON THEIR LIVES
U N I T 1 : E V O L U T I O N
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
A S S I G N M E N T 2
H A N N A H F R A Z E R M O R R I S - 7 6 0 1 2 1 6 1

INTRODUCTION
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G

INTRODUCTION
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
• T h e i n t e r n e t w a s f o r m e r l y k n o w n a s A R PA N E T w h e n i t w a s c r e a t e d a s
a m i l i t a r y a n d a c a d e m i c t o o l p u r e l y f o r e x c h a n g i n g i n f o r m a t i o n i n
t h e l a t e 1 9 6 0 ’ s ( I n t e r n e t S o c i e t y, 1 9 9 7 )
• N o w, a p p r o x i m a t e l y h a l f o f t h e w o r l d ’ s p o p u l a t i o n i s d i g i t a l l y
c o n n e c t e d i n 2 0 1 8 ( L i e d k e , 2 0 1 8 )
• B u t , a s a l w a y s w i t h t e c h n o l o g i c a l a d v a n c e m e n t s - w i t h g r e a t c h a n g e
c o m e s m a n y q u e s t i o n s , f e a r s a n d d o u b t s .
H o w h a s t e c h n o l o g y s h a p e d o u r w o r l d t o b e c o m e w h a t i t i s t o d a y ?
• T h i s p r e s e n t a t i o n a i m s t o e x p l o r e t h e i m p a c t t h a t t e c h n o l o g y i s
h a v i n g , n o t j u s t o n b u s i n e s s , b u t a l s o o n o u r l i v e s .

ACCESS TO THE
INTERNET
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G

ACCESS TO THE INTERNET
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
T h e f i r s t s u r v e y o f i n t e r n e t u s e r s , c o n d u c t e d i n 1 9 9 6 , r e p o r t e d
t h a t t h e r e w e r e a r o u n d 4 0 m i l l i o n ( C a s t e l l s , N . D )
1 0 y e a r s l a t e r , b y 2 0 0 6 , t h e r e w e r e a s t a g g e r i n g 1 . 1 b i l l i o n
i n t e r n e t u s e r s w o r l d w i d e ( S t a t i s t a , 2 0 1 7 )
F a s t f o r w a r d t o t o d a y, t h a t f i g u r e h a s m o r e t h a n t r i p l e d a s t h e
b e g i n n i n g o f 2 0 1 8 s e e s w o r l d w i d e i n t e r n e t u s e r s r e a c h 3 . 8
b i l l i o n – w h i c h i s h a l f o f t h e e n t i r e p o p u l a t i o n ( L i e d k e , 2 0 1 8 )

ACCESS TO THE INTERNET
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
1 9 9 6 : 40 MILLION
2 0 0 6 : 1.1 BILLION
2018: 3.8 BILLION

NUMBER OF INTERNET USERS WORLWIDE
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
(Statista, 2017)

AVERAGE GLOBAL INTERNET SPEED
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
I n t e r n e t s p e e d s a r e a l s o s o a r i n g ; b a c k i n 2 0 1 1 , t h e a v e r a g e
g l o b a l c o n n e c t i o n s p e e d w a s 2 M b p s . I n j u s t 6 y e a r s , t h a t f i g u r e
h a s r o c k e t e d , w i t h a g l o b a l i n t e r n e t s p e e d o f 7 M b p s i n 2 0 1 7 .
( S t a t i s t a , 2 0 1 7 )
(Statista, 2017)

DIGITAL
DEVICES
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G

DIGITAL DEVICES
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
A s t u d y c o n d u c t e d i n 2 0 1 4 b y N i e l s e n f o u n d t h a t t h e
a v e r a g e c o n s u m e r o w n s 4 d i g i t a l d e v i c e s . ( N i e l s e n , 2 0 1 4 )
( S t o c k S n a p , 2 0 1 7 )

DIGITAL DEVICES
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
A s t u d y o f U K a d u l t s f r o m 2 0 1 2 t o 2 0 1 7 f o u n d t h a t i n
2 0 1 7 , 8 5 % h a v e a s m a r t p h o n e c o m p a r e d i n t e r e s t i n g l y
t o 7 5 % t h a t o w n a l a p t o p ( C o n s u l t a n c y U K , 2 0 1 7 ) .
(Consultancy UK, 2017)

DIGITAL DEVICES
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
C o m p a r e t h e s a m e s t u d y ’s f i g u r e s f r o m 2 0 1 2 , j u s t
5 2 % h a d a s m a r t p h o n e w h i l s t 7 3 % h a d a l a p t o p .
T h i s c l e a r l y r e p r e s e n t s a s h i f t i n o u r f a v o u r e d
t e c h n o l o g y t o a m o r e c o n v e n i e n t a n d r e a d i l y
a v a i l a b l e d e v i c e ( C o n s u l t a n c y U K , 2 0 1 7 ) .
. . .

DIGITAL DEVICES
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
R e s e a r c h f r o m O F C O M i n 2 0 1 7 a l s o s u p p o r t s t h i s ;
t h e i r f i n d i n g s s u g g e s t t h a t i n r e c e n t y e a r s w e a r e l e s s
l i k e l y t o u s e c o m p u t e r s t o g o o n l i n e i n g e n e r a l :
• 6 2 % o f a d u l t s u s e d c o m p u t e r s t o a c c e s s t h e
i n t e r n e t i n 2 0 1 7 , d o w n f r o m 7 1 % i n 2 0 1 5 .
• 6 6 % o f a d u l t s s a i d t h a t t h e y w e r e m o r e l i k e l y t o u s e
t h e i r s m a r t p h o n e t o g o o n l i n e . ( O F C O M , 2 0 1 7 )
. . .

HOW CUSTOMERS SEARCH
FOR INFORMATION
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G

HOW CUSTOMERS SEARCH FOR INFORMATION
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
Interestingly, there is some contrasting
evid en c e su rrou n d in g ou r g rowin g p referen c e
for mob ile tec h n olog y, su g gestin g th at it isn ’t
all ab ou t smartp h on es.
A su r vey by th e Con su mer Barometer in 2 0 1 7
fou n d th at 7 7 % of p eop le still c h oose to u se
th eir comp u ters to searc h for information
p rior to makin g a p u rc h ase.
O n ly 2 3 % said th at th ey wou ld u se th eir
smartp h on es to d o th is.
( C o n s u m e r B a r o m e t e r, 2 0 1 7 )

O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G

O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
( S i n g h a n d S w a i t , 2 0 1 7 )
A recent report on search channels and
mob ile intern et fou n d th at con su mers seem
to b e ac c essin g mu ltip le d evic es th rou g h ou t
th e researc h an d b u y in g p roc ess:
“A consumer may prefer some channels for
s earch an d oth ers for p u rch as e or u s e a
comb in ation of ch an n els to s earch an d
p u rch as e s imu ltan eou s ly.”

O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
( O F C O M , 2 0 1 7 )
Regard less of th e d evic e u sed , searc h
en g in es reig n su p reme as con su mers’
favou red meth od of seekin g information .
A 2 0 1 7 su r vey by O fcom fou n d th at an
in c red ib le 9 7 % of p eop le u sed O NLY u se
searc h en g in es to look for information .
A mu c h smaller p erc entage said th ey h ave
ever u sed review sites su c h as A mazon or
Trip A d visor ( 4 0 %) .

O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
Unsurprisingly, Google is the top site used
to searc h for information :
• Rec eivin g an en ormou s 2 8 b illion visits
p er month . ( In d y 1 0 0, 2 0 1 7 )
A n d
• Proc essin g over 6 b illion searc h q u eries
eac h d ay. ( Lied ke , 2 0 1 8 )
(Forum, 2018)

O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
( I n d y 1 0 0 , 2 0 1 7 )

WHAT CONSUMERS
BUY ONLINE
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G

WHAT CONSUMERS BUY ONLINE
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
A r e t a i l s u r v e y b y P W C f o u n d t h a t i n 2 0 1 7 :
O f t h e c a t e g o r i e s s u r v e y e d , m e d i a c a m e o u t w i t h t h e h i g h e s t
p e r c e n t a g e o f o n l i n e p u r c h a s e s
6 0 % o f g l o b a l s h o p p e r s p r e f e r r e d t o p u r c h a s e b o o k s , f i l m s , m u s i c
a n d g a m e s o n l i n e .
W h e r e a s t h e l o w e s t c a t e g o r y r e s u l t w a s f o r g r o c e r i e s , w i t h 7 3 % o f
s h o p p e r s s a y i n g t h e y p r e f e r t o b u y t h e s e g o o d s i n s t o r e .
( P W C , 2 0 1 7 )

WHAT CONSUMERS BUY ONLINE
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
I t i s w o r t h n o t i n g t h a t r e g a r d l e s s o f w h a t e x a c t l y i s b e i n g
b o u g h t a n d s o l d o n l i n e , e c o m m e r c e s a l e s a r e o n t h e r i s e :
I n 2 0 1 7 , o n l i n e s a l e s r e a c h e d a s t a g g e r i n g 2 . 2 9 t r i l l i o n
d o l l a r s . W i t h p r o j e c t i o n s f o r 2 0 1 8 s e t t o e x c e e d 2 . 7 7 4
t r i l l i o n d o l l a r s .
( L i e d k e , 2 0 1 7 )

ONLINE VIDEO
CONSUMPTION
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G

ONLINE VIDEO CONSUMPTION
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
A n o t h e r w a y i n w h i c h c o n s u m e r s c a n f i n d
i n f o r m a t i o n i s t h r o u g h v i d e o .
W h e t h e r w e a r e d i r e c t e d t o v i d e o t h r o u g h a s e a r c h
e n g i n e , o r p r e s e n t e d w i t h v i d e o t h r o u g h a d v e r t i s i n g ,
i t i s b e c o m i n g a n i n c r e a s i n g l y c o m m o n f e a t u r e i n t h e
b u y i n g p r o c e s s .
. . .

O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G

O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
T h e c o n n e c t e d s u r v e y i n 2 0 1 7 f o u n d t h a t 4 4 % o f
p e o p l e w a t c h v i d e o o n t h e i r
t a b l e t / s m a r t p h o n e / c o m p u t e r o n a d a i l y b a s i s .
. . .
T h i s c o m e s a s n o s u r p r i s e , c o n s i d e r i n g t h a t o n e -
t h i r d o f a l l o n l i n e a c t i v i t y i s s p e n t w a t c h i n g v i d e o .
( C o n s u m e r B a r o m e t e r , 2 0 1 7 )
( L i s t e r , 2 0 1 8 )

O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
. . .
7 o u t o f 1 0 p e o p l e s a i d t h e y h a v e a m o r e p o s i t i v e v i e w o f
a b r a n d h a v i n g s e e n i n t e r e s t i n g v i d e o c o n t e n t f r o m t h e m
9 2 % o f p e o p l e w h o v i e w v i d e o s o n m o b i l e s h a r e t h e
c o n t e n t w i t h o t h e r s .
T h e s e f i g u r e s a r e g r e a t n e w s f o r a n y b u s i n e s s e s t a k i n g a d v a n t a g e
a n d i n t e g r a t i n g v i d e o i n t o t h e i r m a r k e t i n g s t r a t e g y a s :
“ U s i n g p r o d u c t v i d e o s c a n i n c r e a s e p r o d u c t p u r c h a s e s b y
a n i m p r e s s i v e 1 4 4 % ”
( L i s t e r , 2 0 1 8 )
( L i e d k e , 2 0 1 8 )
( T r i m b l e , 2 0 1 5 )

CONSUMERS USE OF
TECHNOLOGY
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
T R E N D S S E E N I N T H E L A S T 3 - 5 Y E A R S

O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
A s m o re a n d m o re p e o p l e a re a b l e t o a c c e s s
t o i n t e r n e t , a n d n o w s p e n d l o n g e r o n l i n e
t h a n e v e r b e fo re , b u s i n e s s e s a re q u i c k l y
re a l i s i n g t h e p o t e n t i a l t h a t e - c o m m e rc e
h o l d s , a n d e q u a l l y, c o n s u m e rs a re e v i d e n t l y
t a k i n g a d v a n t a g e o f t h e v a l u e d c o n v e n i e n c e
o f o n l i n e s h o p p i n g .
CONSUMER TRENDS

CONSUMER TRENDS
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
U K E c o m m e r c e s a l e s h a v e g r o w n b y n e a r l y £ 3 0 b i l l i o n i n j u s t 4 y e a r s ,
a n d a r e e x p e c t e d t o g r o w a n o t h e r £ 2 3 b i l l i o n i n t h e n e x t t w o y e a r s .
( e M a r k e t e r, 2 0 1 5 )

CONSUMER TRENDS
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
W i t h e c o m m e rc e a n d t h e u s e o f s m a r t p h o n e s
b o t h o n t h e r i s e , i t i s o n l y l o g i c a l t h a t
c o n s u m e rs w i l l i n c re a s i n g l y u s e t h e i r m o b i l e
d e v i c e s t o m a ke p u rc h a s e s :
A n a n n u a l s u r v e y c o n d u c t e d b y c o m S c o re i n
2 0 1 6 fo u n d t h a t 4 4 % o f s m a r t p h o n e u s e rs
w e re m a k i n g p u rc h a s e s t h ro u g h t h e i r d e v i c e s ,
c o m p a re d t o 4 1 % i n t h e p re v i o u s y e a r o f 2 0 1 5 .
(Farber, 2016)

CONSUMER TRENDS
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
H o w e v e r, t h e r e i s a d r a w b a c k t h a t c o m e s w i t h a n
i n c r e a s e i n c o n s u m e r s ’ u s e o f t e c h n o l o g y w h e n i t
c o m e s t o e c o m m e r c e a n d o n l i n e a d v e r t i s i n g .
S t u d i e s h a v e f o u n d t h a t b e t w e e n 2 0 1 4 a n d 2 0 1 5 ,
t h e u s e o f A d b l o c k e r s o f t w a r e g r e w b y 4 1 % -
w h i c h s u g g e s t s t h a t a l t h o u g h c o n s u m e r s l o v e
s h o p p i n g o n l i n e n o w m o r e t h a n e v e r, t h e y a r e a l s o
s a v v y a n d s e l e c t i v e a b o u t t h e m a r k e t i n g m e s s a g e s
t h e y d o a n d d o n ’ t w a n t t o s e e .
( C o c o r o c c h i a , 2 0 1 6 )

SUMMARY
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G

SUMMARY
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
• M o s t p e o p l e , a p p r o x i m a t e l y 5 0 % , s t i l l b e l i e v e t h a t o u r g r o w i n g
u s e o f d i g i t a l t e c h n o l o g y h a s a p o s i t i v e i m p a c t o n o u r l i v e s .
• W h i l s t s o m e a r g u e t h a t o u r i n t e r a c t i o n s w i t h d i g i t a l d e v i c e s c a n
a f f e c t o u r r e l a t i o n s h i p s , m a n y p e o p l e f e e l t h a t t e c h n o l o g y a i d s
u s i n m a n y w a y s .
( C o c o r o c c h i a , 2 0 1 6 )

SUMMARY
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
I N T E R N E T
A C C E S S
M O B I L E
U S A G E
E C O M M E R C E
P R E F E R E N C E
F O R V I D E O

O v e r a l l , t h e r e i s e v i d e n c e t o s u g g e s t t h a t :
• M o r e o f t h e p o p u l a t i o n h a s a c c e s s t o t h e i n t e r n e t t h a n e v e r
b e f o r e
• T h i s h o l d s o p p o r t u n i t i e s f o r b u s i n e s s e s a n d m a r k e t e r s i n t e r m s
o f b e i n g a b l e t o a c c e s s a b r o a d e r a u d i e n c e a n d e n g a g e w i t h t h e m
i n n e w a n d e x c i t i n g w a y s
• A s c o n s u m e r s , w e ’ r e u s i n g a m u l t i t u d e o f d i g i t a l l y c o n n e c t e d
d e v i c e s t o :
 S E A R C H
 R E S E A R C H
 W AT C H V I D E O S
 B U Y
 R E V I E W
 S H A R E
SUMMARY
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G

R E F E R E N C E L I S T
O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
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O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
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O F D I G I T A L
M A R K E T I N G
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