The evolution of technology and the internet has significantly impacted how consumers use and access the internet in their daily lives. There are now over 4.92 billion internet users globally who primarily access the internet using mobile devices. The widespread adoption of smartphones and mobile internet access has allowed consumers to be constantly connected online. Video consumption has also increased dramatically, with many consumers now spending over 10 hours per week watching online videos. As internet speeds and connectivity improve further, it is predicted that internet-connected devices will continue proliferating and changing the way consumers work, learn, entertain themselves and interact with each other in their daily lives.

1. EVOLUTION OF DIGITAL
MARKETING-
ASSIGNMENT 2
HOW CONSUMERS USE
TECHNOLOGY AND ITS
IMPACT ON THEIR LIVES
Name: Gail Gore
Student Number :66006284

2. Introduction
The inception and evolution of the internet has steadily and progressively given rise to a
more connected world with most of our days being spend using a connected device
whether its for work or pleasure.
It has become a massive part of consumers daily lives and has continued to grow and
evolve in various innovative ways through for example e-commerce, social media,
gaming, streaming services etc in the past 20 years.

3. 1969
APARNET – first
ever network used
by US Dept of
Defense
1991
World wide Web is
introduced by Tim
Berners Lee
1993
First web browser
Mosaic is released
1996
Hotmail is
introduced
1996
First mobile phone
with internet
access
1998
Google is launched
2000
Dot-com bubble
bursts after
reaching its peak
2001
Launch of 3G
technology
2003
Myspace and
LinkedIn are
launched
2004
Facebook is
launched
2005
Creation of
Youtube
2008
Google Chrome is
released & becomes
the most used
browser in the world
2009
Microsoft Bing
browser is
launched & the
arrival of 4G
2010
First photo is
posted on
Instagram
2012
Facebook reaches
1 billion active
users & acquires
Instagram for $1bn
2014
Facebook
purchases
WhatsApp for
$19bn
2016
TikTok is
developed in China
2018
GDPR in the EU
takes effect
2020
There are 4.79
internet users
worldwide
2020
sees the arrival of
5G technology
Introduction: Some important years in Internet history
The evolution
of the internet
over the years
has had no
one person
responsible
for its
creation. From
1969 to today
here we can
see some of
the important
dates in its
evolution.
Image 1: Gail Gore. Evolution of
the internet. [Original]

4. Global access to the Internet
In 2020 its estimated that there are 4.92 billion active users of the internet
worldwide with the distribution through out the globe divided into the regions
below with Asia having over half of the world users. (Internet World Stats, 2020)
Image 2: Internet World Stats. (2020) Internet users Distribution in the world – 2020 Q3. [Online]
Users Access Timeline
2014 – users reach 3 Billion
2019 – users reach 4 Billion
Source: VPN Geeks (2020)
2005 – users reach 1 Billion
2010 – users reach 2 Billion

5. Global access to the Internet by country
Divided further into the top 20 countries
as of 2019 with china and India being
the top two.
It would be predicted that developing
countries will have the biggest growth
over the next 10 years as currently
these are the countries with lower
penetration rates
In the last 12 months alone India have
gained more than 100m users which is
up 10% on last 12 months. (VPN Geeks,
2020)
Image 3: Internet World Stats. (2020) Top 20
Internet countries 2019 [Online]

6. Global access to the Internet by age group
Broken down to age
demographics Statista
states that as of 2019 the
biggest age group
accessing the internet is
the 25-34 year old group
with a third of users being
in this age bracket.
(Statista, 2020)
The Generation Z (18-24)
population is a significant
portion as this age group
and younger have a big
influence in household
purchases.
Image 4: Statista. (2020) Age Distribution of Internet users worldwide 2019. [Online]

7. Global access to the Internet by gender
Here we can see by area how there is a gender gap in access to the internet
where generally men are more likely to have access than women
Image 5: Web Foundation (2020) Global access to the internet by gender. [Online]

8. Internet Speeds
Image 6: Statista.(2020). Average internet connection speed in the US 2007-2017 [Online]
Internet speed have improved
greatly in the space of 10
years from 2007 – 2017 going
from 3.67Mbps to
18.75Mbps. (Statista, 2020)
The demand for faster and
more reliable connection
continuously pushes internet
providers to provide better
packages and pricing to
consumers.
The advancements in mobile
data speeds with 5G launching
this year has also had
significant impacts in how
consumers access the internet

9. Impact of internet Speeds
The increase of internet speeds have
allowed multiple users in households
access the internet simultaneously for
different needs like streaming music
and video content, gaming, watching
TV, scrolling through social media etc
This year the Covid-19 pandemic has
forced people to work from home
and study online thus increasing the
need for fast and reliable internet
speeds.
Image 7: Finance Yahoo. )2020) Two people
working from home during Covid-19 [Online]
Image 8: Seattle Gov. (2020) Internet use
within households [Online]

10. Internet Speeds
Faster speeds allow businesses employees to be more productive.
Faster communication and faster connection to systems in turn will improve
customers experiences while using apps and websites and also in store retail
experiences making payments and use of other digital technology
Image 9: Cox BLUE. (nd) Use if internet in businesses [Online]

11. Devices used to access the internet
 While laptops and desktops continue to be a significant device used to access the internet, mobile
phones are now being used more with their use now well over fifty percent, up 222% between 2013 &
2019. Mobile use passed Desktop use back in 2016 with desktop declining for some time previous to
that. (Broadband Search, 2020)
 Tablets, smart TV’s , smart speakers and gaming devices are some other devices used to access the
internet
Image 10: we are social. (2020).
Share of web traffic by device.
[Online]

12. Devices used to access the internet
Internet of Things (IoT) is a collection of
machines/devices which are connected
to each other through the internet.
By 2030 statistics show there could be more
than 50b IoT connected devices worldwide,
up from 22b in 2018 (Statica, 2020)
Because of the improvements in connection
in both mobile data and fixed broadband
consumers have more scope to use smart
home appliances and home security, smart
fitness devices etc in their daily lives.
Image 11: Just Creative Blog. Internet of Things (2018) [Online]
Benefits: time saving, efficiency,
money saving, added control.
Threats: Cyber attacks, hacking, GDPRBenefits: time saving, efficiency, money
saving, added control.

13. How do consumers search the internet
Consumers now have more
channels available to them to get
access to the information they
need
There are more than 30 search
engines available to consumers.
Google has 98% of the SE
marketshare. (statcounter, 2019)
Searching for
reviews from
other consumers
and influencers
on social media
Using voice assistants like Siri,
Alexa and Google through
mobiles & smart speakers
In order to compare pricing consumers search
comparison websites for the best deals
Discussion boards are
used to search for
information & answers
on specific questions
Image 12
Image 13
Image 14
Image 15
Image
16

14. How do consumers search the internet
Consumers are in tune with their needs and wants more than ever, and so, how
consumers are searching these channels is changing
 Searches with “near me” is up 40% showing that consumers want more
convenience (up 40% YoY)
 Searches with the word “best” is also up showing consumers are looking for
reassurance (up 400% YoY)
 Looking for “promo codes” shows consumers are looking for value (up 100% YoY)
 Questions like “ things to do” are being used more with people looking for ideas
(up 45% YoY)
 People are following trends and searching terms like “how to floss dance” (up
180% YoY)
Source: Think with Google (2020)

15. What do consumers buy online
Spending habits of consumers have dramatically changed this year.
Due to Covid-19 the amount spent shopping online worldwide is expected to get to 4
trillion (optinmonster, 2020)
Spending more on
Entertainment &
Media
Cleaning
products
Vitamins &
Supplements
Hair colour
Coffee
Restaurant
deliveries
Cosmetics
Sun care
Transportation
Holidays
Spending less on
Image 17 : Gail Gore (2020) Consumer spending habits. Source: HuffPost & JP Morgan (2020)

16. What do consumers buy online
Image 18: Statista.(2020). Most popular goods purchased in GB in 2020 [Online]
• In this Statista study (2020) the top
goods to purchase online is clothes
and sports goods
• Almost a third purchased from
restaurants for delivery
• Travel and holiday accommodation
don’t feature
• Cleaning products are at 18%
• Various tech products – electronics,
gaming, software and hardware
and telecoms are below the 30%
mark

17. What do consumers buy online
The ease of online shopping had impacted consumers in various positive ways
• Greater convenience and time saving
• Options to search for cheaper or better value options
• Option to read online reviews before buying
• Variety of goods
• Options to purchase from over seas
• Free shipping on many items make it an easy choice
• And in particular to avoid over crowed shops
due to Covid-19
But in some instances there are negative impacts
• Shipping time
• Returns costs and hassle e.g. clothes that don’t fit online security
• Less consumers buying locally from SMEs
• More people buying online have added to the reason for the closure of some high
street stores and department stores
Image 19 : Independant (2019) Consumer spending
Online [Online]

18. Video consumption online
Image 20: Statista, (2020). Weekly time with online video worldwide 2020 [Online]
The most popular
activity online
worldwide is
consuming video
online and this recent
survey shows that
over 27% of people
online watch more
than 10 hours of video
per week. (Statictica,
2020)
This is up from 9.8% in
2016 and 17% in 2017.
(Netimperitive, 2017)

19. Video consumption online
With the increase of video
consumption online its clear
that video marketing is
becoming one of the best forms
of marketing. Consumers are
now demanding new and
innovative ways to consume
video and marketers are using
this to their advantage.
Some of the types of videos
used by companies would be
explainer videos, vlogs,
interviews, presentations,
tutorials, product reviews and
demos, testimonials and ads.
(Oberlo, 2020)
Image 21: Oberlo, (2020). Intersting statistic on Video consumption relating to marketers [Online]

20. Video consumption online
Image 22. Promo Blog (2019). Some Online Video statistics and trends [Online]

21. Trends
Over the past 5 years technologies and how consumers and marketers use them have
changed immensely. Here are some of the key trends:
Devices
• Mobile v Desktop – with mobile technology
changing with the launch of 4G and this
year 5G mobile usage to access the internet
is over fifty percent -up 122% between
2013 & 2019. (Broadband Search, 2020)
• Accessing the internet via smartphone is
only going to increase especially in the
developing world where affordability of
many devices is less
• The use of smart home and fitness devices
– between 2016 and 2019 the number of
wearable devices has more than doubled
going from 325m to 722m (Statista, 2020)
• Since 2015 the sales of Smart TVs sales have
increased by 15% (Statista, 2020)
• The use of chatbots and AI including
voice assistants is growing especially in
the customer service fields with 80% of
customers in a study saying they feel
good about chatbot conversations. The
market is said to be worth $1.34b by
2024 (Ring Central, 2019)
Image 23. Business News Daily (2017). Chatbot graphic.

22. Trends
Search Channels
• Social media penetration rate has
passed the 50% mark. In 2015 it was
at 29%. (Social Media Today, 2015)
• Google is maintaining its market
dominance as most popular search
engine
Access
• In the 5 years since 2015 global access to
the internet has gone from 45% of the
population to 62% (Internet World Stats,
2020)
• People are spending more time online via
mobile/desktop with 123 minutes being
spent online in 2015 and projections for
2021 being a total of 192 minutes
(Statista, 2020).
Video consumption
• Since 2016 video consumption has
risen by 59% with viewers spending 6
hours 48 mins watching videos. (Tech
Jury, 2020)
• Streaming services have grown in
popularity. Netflix is still the most
popular in the US had had a 4 fold
growth internationally since 2015.
(Business of Apps, 2020)
Image 24. Search engine Ireland (2015). Trends graphic.

23. Summary
In these connected times as the global internet penetration rate continues to grow connecting
over 4.92 billion users we need to be mindful of the impact of the progressing technologies has
on the lives of consumers.
Moving from a time when we were only connecting via desktops on a fixed line to now where we
have mobile phones surpassing desktop and laptop use where speeds are getting faster and with
WiFi being more reliable and accessible at home and in public consumers are being supplied with
all they need for more convenient ways to live their lives.
Across every sector consumers can access products and services on line from doctors to dating
and reading books to getting the most up to date news in an instant. We also have wide ranges of
connected appliances in our homes and keep a track of our fitness with wearables like smart
watches. Consumers are turning more to streaming services for in home entertainment with
Netflix and YouTube being the most popular apps.
We are also keeping in contact with family and friends more often through messaging, facetime
and social networks.

24. Summary
Voice assistants and chatbots also have become popular and use is growing with businesses using
the technology for customer service activities because of their economic benefits. There really is no
getting away from modern technology.
By design the devices we use and the apps and social networks we have access to from a young age
are there to keep the customers attention – even keeping consumers obsessed and addicted.
In these recent times with the global pandemic - for businesses and consumers for employers and
employees the technologies available has transformed how people are living and interacting with
each other. We have seen increases in online shopping because of the intermittent closure of
traditional bricks and mortar stores. Small local store have had to innovate and move online and
offer click and collect and delivery services. Where possible employees have been set up to work
from home.
So with technologies always innovating and becoming more easily accessible consumers will
continue to spend more of their time online in work and personal lives and penetration rates
globally will continue to rise

25. Thank You

26. References
Images
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