The Use and Impact of Technology in the Lives of Consumers

Introduction:

The internet has revolutionised the modern world. It has changed the way we find information, shop for goods, and interact with one another. Everyday 640 000 more people access the internet for the first time (Roser, Ritchie, Ortiiz-Ospina, 2015). Covid 19 accelerated the adoption of ecommerce and consumers have begun to expect personalised services and targeted marketing based on their values and needs. As a result, marketing professionals need to embrace technological advances such as AI and video and develop new and innovative ways to reach customers.

Access to the Internet:

In 1991 around 2.6 million people had access to the internet (Kemp, 2022). At that time it was mostly used for sharing information within a company or group. In 2022, over 5 billion people now have access to the internet (Kemp, 2022). The internet is now used for everything from shopping and currency mining, to gaming and communications.

But access is not equal:

Access to the internet and the opportunities for education, trade, and connectivity can be seen as one of the world's greatest equalisers. However, there is significant gender and wealth inequality when it comes to access to the internet (Kvochko, 2019). When considering to whom we are marketing particular products, we should consider who is online, how they are searching and on which devices they are accessing information.

Digital Devices Used By Audiences:

The mobile phone is now the most popular way of accessing the internet. Developing countries have skipped laptop and computer access (Kemp, 2021), and with the rise in 5G communications, it is expected that this sector will continue to grow. In more developed countries, consumers are hyper connected and internet access is moving beyond screens. There has been a sharp rise in use of technology such as voice activated assistants, smart homes and wearables. Therefore they are more empowered and expected instant and personalised services across numerous devices (Broadbandsearch.com, 2022).

What do consumers buy online?

Nearly 6 in 10 internet users aged 16 to 64 buy something online every week (Kemp 2021). As we have seen more people now make purchases via mobile devices than via desktop and laptop computers. The most popular purchases are products and services, but increasingly consumers buy groceries online. This has prompted traditionally product and service companies to begin investing in food stores. One example is Amazon’s recent purchase of Wholefoods. Whilst this increases convenience for shoppers, it increases monopoly on the market place and small independent shops will not be able to keep up with the lower prices offered by larger online companies.

How do consumers search for information?

Pre-internet, consumers would have visited a shop or expert when they encountered a particular need or problem. Now, most consumers go online. 83% of people will use a Google search to find information (Statistica, 2022). Interestingly in 2020 40% of consumers used social media to search for products.Reaching stage three in the journey, they compare, looking for cheaper/better/more reliable options. At this stage they may search for reviews or recommendations from friends or influencers. They then collate this information and make a decision and review their purchase. As a marketer we need to be present at all stages of the journey. As technology has advanced, it has become easier to target consumers at particular stages of this journey through the use of cookies.

As technology developed and more people accessed the internet, companies began to use cookies to enable them to track the customer journey, and therefore provide more relevant adverts, web pages, and online experiences for the consumer (Kaspersky, 2022). Whilst there is an increased desire for personalisation by consumers, cookies come at the cost of privacy and crime. At the end of 2022 the use of cookies will no longer be legal. As marketers without cookies we will need to make big adjustments. Without cookies we lose the information that helps us target our marketplace. Therefore Instead of traditional outbound marketing techniques we need to move to new inbound techniques.

The rise of video consumption:

And this is where video comes in. Video accounts for over half of all internet traffic and over 40% of consumers say they have purchased products they discovered on YouTube (Sarika, 2022). In 2020, 96% of consumers increased their online video consumption, and 9 out of 10 viewers said that they wanted to see more videos from brands and businesses (Sarika, 2022). Our challenge is to create videos that are engaging to our target audience. Videos that they find organically and that showcase our products.

Looking to the future and summary:

The increasing hyper connectivity of consumers across multiple devices will call for new thinking for marketers. As access to technology and the internet in the developing world increases, we should expect to see greater competition on a more globalised marketplace. Companies must campaign with a local focus, targeting specific consumers based on their values and needs. They will need creative content creators, but also experts in technology to work in harmony.

Check out my presentation on Slideshare : https://www.slideshare.net/CharlotteJoynes/the-use-and-impact-of-technology-in-the-lives-of-consumers

Or check out my YouTube Channel to find out more: https://youtu.be/GWDCbUvLIWM

References:

Author Unknown (2022) “Key Internet Statistics to Know in 2022” https://www.broadbandsearch.net/blog/internet-statistics [Accessed 3/08/2022]

Author Unknown (2022) “What are Cookies?” https://www.kaspersky.com/resource-center/definitions/cookies [Accessed 3/10/2022]

Kemp, Simon (2022) “Digital 2022: A Global Overview” https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2022-global-overview-report [Accessed 3/10/2022]

Kvochko Elena (2019) “Access to Internet Grows, But Equality Still Lags Behind” https://www.forbes.com/sites/elenakvochko/2019/12/01/access-to-internet-grows-but-equality-still-lags-behind/?sh=1261b0187bad [Accessed 02/08/2022]

Max Roser, Hannah Ritchie and Esteban Ortiz-Ospina (2015) "Internet". Published online at OurWorldInData.org. [Accessed 3/10/2022]

Sarika (2022) “135 Video Marketing Statistics You Can’t Ignore in 2022” https://invideo.io/blog/video-marketing-statistics/ [Accessed 03/10/2022]

Statistika Research Department (2022) “Online search usage - Statistics & Facts” https://www.statista.com/topics/1710/search-engine-usage/ [Accessed 03/08/2022]

Bibliography:

Adams Kate (2022) “We know the digital trends for 2022. But how can businesses act upon them? https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/intl/en-154/future-of-marketing/digital-transformation/act-on-digital-trends-2022/ [Accessed 3/08/2022]