Hispanic Gen Xers have highest rate of tablet usage

Recent studies indicate that US Hispanics possess more smartphones and tablets than the rest of the general population. With this, it is evident that they are popular users of mobile technology. Amid the US Hispanic demographic, it is the Gen Xers who lead in the realm of daily tablet usage.

Research, produced by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and reported by eMarketer, displays that approximately 64% of the US Hispanic population between the ages of 35 and 49 use a tablet daily followed by 57% of 50 to 59-year-olds. The PwC survey concluded that 53% of Hispanic mobile users own a tablet. In comparison, 51% of non-Hispanics own the device.

In terms of the demographic shift regarding Hispanic millennial consumers, only 36% of Hispanics between the ages of 18 and 24 used a tablet every day. The older age groups have a surprisingly higher usage rate of around 50%, which supports the statement that Hispanic Gen Xers lead in daily tablet usage amongst both Hispanic and Non-Hispanic groups.

Local search among smartphone users

Consumers, continually on the move, are typically using search engines to gather local information. In fact, a recent poll by Google shows that four in five of those seeking information use a search engine on a smartphone, computer or tablet.

Research demonstrates that the majority of users of smartphones typically seek out business hours, directions to a local store, local store address, and availability of a product. Although these smartphone users were more likely to search for local information at home as opposed to on-the-go, the difference in numbers was only slight. Fifty-three percent of those in the study searched while at home, and the other 47% were out and about.

In terms of actually following through from the search stage to a final sale, eMarketer reports that 18% of local searches via a smartphone led to a purchase, while only 7% of nonlocal searches led to a purchase.

When determining the effect these results will have on advertisers, the research company BIA/Kelsey estimates that US local media advertisement spending will be raised by 8.4% in 2014, from $50.2 billion in 2013 to $54.4 billion in 2014.

The demographic breakdown of Instagram users

Marketers are forever trying to get a handle on user demographics for social media. Whether it’s Facebook, snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, MySpace, etc., advertisers want to know where its target audience spends free time. According to eMarketer, Instagram’s main audience is millennials and Gen Xers.

Research shows that Instagram had about 35 million people access the website once a month in the US alone in 2013. It’s projected that 2014 will see about 40.5 million people per month access the site. Approximately 25% of all smartphone users, on a monthly basis, will participate on Instagram.

As far as age ranges go, approximately 67% of US Instagram users will be between the ages of 18 – 44 in 2014. Last year, that number was slightly higher at 69%.

Experts do mention that a demographic shift is developing in regards to gender. As the site began to gain in popularity, a majority of users were female. In fact, estimates for 2012 users were that two-thirds of users were women. While still the majority, it is estimated that by 2016 males will have 45% membership with females at 55%.

TV platform where more ads are seen

If given the opportunity to watch television on Video-On-Demand, on a DVR, or live, on which method would you tend to watch more TV commercials? If you ask Nielsen, you will find that Video-On-Demand viewers tend to watch more commercials.

MediaPost reports that TV viewers who watch a 30 minute program actually see different amounts depending on the TV platform used.

·        Video-On-Demand: An average of 28 minutes of programming and commercials are viewed by the audience.

·        DVR: An average of 23 minutes is viewed.

·        Live TV: Only about 20 minutes of the program and commercials are viewed.

These averages are not surprising if you apply it to your own TV usage habits. If you watch live television, is it possible that you get up during commercial breaks to do something else? If you have a DVR, is it possible that you fast forward through the commercials or parts of the program you are not interested in watching? Or, do you ever rewind the DVR footage to watch a commercial that caught your attention? If you use Video-On-Demand, you may notice that the fast forward function is not enabled and commercials will run. However, the commercial break may not be as long as live TV.

At any rate, while there are multiple methods in which to watch TV, it still can be said that an audience can be exposed to commercials.

How coupons performed in 2013

Over the last six years or so, United States consumers have been more aggressively seeking a “good deal” when making a purchase. Coupons, in print and digital form, are one way to do that. Recent research has showed that coupon redemption is slowly decreasing from previous years.

According to MediaPost, various studies produced by NCH Marketing and Valassis have reported the following facts:

·        Coupons produced and distributed by marketers increased by about 3.3% last year. The total distribution is estimated at 315 billion coupons.

·        Total coupon redemption has decreased by about 3.4% to 2.8 billion.

·        The most common reason why consumers said he/she did not use coupons in 2013 was that coupons for products that he/she wanted to buy could not be found. That was the biggest response with 49%.

·        With 28.7% of respondents agreeing, the second most common was that the coupons expired before the consumer could use it.

·        In 2012, the time in which to redeem coupons was an estimated 9.3 weeks. In 2013, that dropped to 8.6 weeks.

·        Free standing inserts (FSI’s) typically account for 91.2% of coupons distributed and about 50.8% of all redeemed coupons. However, FSI’s in general still have low redemption rates.

·        While digital coupons did see growth in use in 2013, it still only accounts for less than 1% of all coupon distribution.

The takeaway for marketers is coupons are still valid for consumers. However, accessibility and time restraints do play a factor in use.

Screenvision to launch "Front & Center"

A part of the movie-going experience is watching the preshow entertainment. According to MediaPost, Screenvision is changing it up for audiences and will launch “Front & Center.”

Screenvision is one of the leading national cinema advertising networks. The new preshow “Front & Center” will run 20 minutes prior to the feature presentation. In the 20 minutes, there will be three entertainment blocks that will include advertising opportunities like custom branded segments, sponsorships, interstitials, trivia, custom promos, and music. In addition, there will be opportunities for interactivity with movie patrons through partners like Shazam.

The preshow recently launched with a few partners like FX’s “The Americans,” NBC’s “Crisis,” “Believe”, etc. The intention is to create a better platform to promote entertainment programming and unique advertising opportunities.

New study shows the ratio of viewer focus when in front of multiple screens

Be honest, do you ever watch television and work on a laptop, use your smartphone, or are on your tablet at the same time? Truthfully, you are not alone. eMarketer reported on a November 2013 survey conducted by TiVo. Good news for the television industry, even though there is competition with viewers’ eyes when they are multi-screening, viewers tend to focus the most on TV.

Results from the study: Devices operated simultaneously while watching television according to US TV viewers.

Smartphone:

-         24% “almost always” use the smartphone while watching TV

-         61% have “ever” used the smartphone while watching TV

Tablet:

-         19% “almost always”

-         37% “ever”

Laptop/netbook:

-         11% “almost always”

-         49% “ever”

Desktop computer:

-         6% “almost always”

-         18% “ever”

Portable game system:

-         1% “almost always”

-         6% “ever”

The study also showed that approximately 27% of surveyors used a second device to “search the internet for information” while watching television. The next highest ranking reason was to “use social media sites to read what people are saying” at 7%. Clearly, looking for information was the biggest reason.