A report by Core shows that Irish consumers are overwhelmingly online with 95 per cent of those surveyed saying they owned a smartphone, 92 per cent have access to broadband/wifi and 85 per cent have access to a laptop or MacBook. One key learning from Connected 2019 for Irish brands is that businesses must prioritise getting the basics right.
Entitled the Connected Behaviour Map, the study analyses Irish consumers’ digital habits in line with three criteria – technology access, 54 behaviours and activities and attitudes on growth. Activities range from shopping online, listening to live radio and connecting with loved ones, to finding directions, searching for a home or researching holidays.
One in three of the 1,000 interviewees said that many Irish websites are really difficult to navigate and only 74 per cent say it is easy to contact a company online. Almost the same percentage would pay to turn off all online advertising – however, 56 per cent insist that online advertising can be useful to find something new on the market.
The report shows that 48 per cent say they do not have a problem with ads on websites or mobile apps, as long as the ads do not cause a distraction. The stats reinforce that brands that focus on the experience they provide customers, create relevant messages, delivering them in a helpful and non-intrusive way are set to benefit most in the future.
When it comes to daily behaviours, there are changing habits emerging, with 80 per cent shopping for groceries on a monthly basis, with 41 per cent of them using tech/digital to do so; 82 per cent pay bills on a monthly basis, with 84 per cent of those doing so online; 94 per cent of those who research medical symptoms do so online.
About 15 per cent of households have a voice device such as Amazon Alexa (10 per cent), Google Home (eight per cent) and Microsoft Cortana (five per cent). The report points out that 2019 looks like it could be the year for businesses to start optimising for voice assistants – as valuable insights could be mined for use in marketing campaigns.
The survey’s findings reinforce that digital wins when consumers know what they want, with 79 per cent reporting that if they know what they are looking for, they search for it online and almost two thirds (65 per cent) say they have discovered a brand online that they would not have otherwise found. The research was carried out in November 2018.
Perhaps unsurprisingly for Ireland, 94 per cent of those who check the weather regularly do so online. Although only 12 per cent of the surveyed respondents reported they were looking for a date, 83 per cent of those who did use digital platforms to do so. The report’s findings were presented at an industry breakfast seminar in Core’s offices.
Pictured above is Emer Lawn, Mediaworks, presenting findings from the Core Behaviour Map
