Beyond The Net
Businesses need more Internet, less TV exposure
By Janine Warner
After all the layoffs and stock losses of the past year, it's easy to think that business is best done offline these days -- unless you stop looking at failed business plans and start paying attention to the sheer number of people using the Internet and the impact it is having on nearly every aspect of people's lives.
''Surveying the Digital Future,'' a study released this month by UCLA reports that more than 71 percent of Americans have gone online and people are spending more hours on the Internet every day.
This is the third year for the UCLA Internet report, a comprehensive project funded by a host of big businesses to study how information technology is shaping and changing society. Researchers surveyed 2,000 households -- both Internet-connected and those that aren't -- and interviewed a spokesperson at each home who was at least 12 years old.
Consistent with the first two reports, this year's findings show that people who use the Internet watch less television than people who don't, spending an average of 11.1 hours per week online (up from 9.8 hours per week in 2001). That group watches 5.4 fewer hours of television than their counterparts without Internet access.
Lesson one for business owners: If you're buying television advertising, consider using part of your budget for online advertising instead. Online ads are increasingly cost effective, especially compared to television rates. For example, the price of one 30-second Super Bowl ad is probably more than it would cost to buy online ads for a month on every football website that exists, including all of the major media sites.
The Internet is not just for teenagers anymore, either. According to the study, Internet access spans every age group. Sure, 12- to 18-year-olds still have the highest rate with 97 percent of respondents in that age range reporting access to the Internet at home or at school. But don't overlook adults. You may be surprised to learn that in the 56- to 60-year-old category, some 64 percent now report having access to the Internet, and in the 46 to 55 range, 72 percent use the Internet.
Lesson two: You can reach people of all ages in this brave new world and you can target your messages even more specifically to the demographic you want to reach.
The UCLA report found that people use the Internet primarily as a source of information, not entertainment. However, users are going online to learn where to be entertained after they leave their computers. A growing number of people now search movie listings for show times, read movie reviews, and find out about other entertainment in the real world, even though only 25 percent report that the Internet itself is a source of entertainment.
Lesson three: Consider using the Internet to attract visitors to your events, restaurants, clubs and other leisure activities, even if you don't broadcast the actual events over the Internet.
The study also found that you should expect more people to buy products and services over the Internet in the near future. Some 71 percent of respondents in 2002 said they will probably make more purchases online in the future (compared with 66 percent in 2001, and 54 percent in 2000).
Lesson four: Give the Internet another year or two and you should see a lot more Internet shopping. Nearly half of all Internet buyers waited more than two years after going online before making their first purchase, and one third waited more than three years.
In the meantime, consider using the Internet as a tool to drive users into your brick-and-mortar business by providing maps, store hours and incentives to visit your business. Also consider selling products online to catch early e-commerce users and stake your claim in the virtual marketplace.
You'll find the full report, which features lots more data, at www.ccp.ucla.edu. In the meantime, I'll leave you with the finding that seems to be the most consistent in all of the online studies I've seen. Most people spend most of their time online reading and responding to e-mail or chatting with other people. The bad news is that means we'll probably see a lot more e-mail spam in the future. The good news is that more than half of the users in 2002 report that using the Internet has helped them increase the number of people they stay in touch with.
That reminds me. I think I owe my mother an e-mail message.
First publication, The Miami Herald, Mon, Feb. 10, 2003
