Chart of the Week

Consumers who are constantly connected online are far from disconnected with offline media. Rather, they’re multi-connected users, tuning in for an average of 14h 17m every day across all types of media we track. When it comes to offline entertainment, they spend 51 minutes longer than the average online adult every day engaging with linear TV, games consoles, broadcast radio and print media combined.

WHY DOES IT MATTER?

2h 11m spent watching TV accounts for 15% of these users’ overall media time per day (online and traditional combined). It’s a testament that linear forms of entertainment like TV still retain a central role in these consumers’ lives, even when they’re highly engaged online. They’re also more likely to discover brands via TV ads than social media ads, but brands need to remember that these are aspirational consumers with an online reputation to maintain. Products that help enhance their image are what makes these consumers tick.

It’s not news that brands and marketers have succeeded in making themselves visible and accessible to consumers on social media - social media is a key part of the consumer purchase journey. In 2019, 38% say they typically discover brands via ads on social media and 1 in 4 through recommendations there. As a point of comparison, 35% still discover brands through TV ads. And when consumers purposefully search for information or inspiration, 42% mainly use social networks for their research.

With this in mind, social media still has its shortfalls; the shopping experience isn’t seamless, with consumers mostly having to be redirected to retailer websites to complete purchases. Becoming an online marketplace with this added checkout feature will give Instagram’s users the frictionless shopping experience consumers have come to expect. Social commerce is certainly on its way to being the next wave of modern retail, the challenge is achieving mass adoption and addressing security concerns.