We often come across studies and assorted research statistics that are useful, if only because there is a quick lesson to be learned. We thought we would use this month's edition of BRIGHT
ideas to share a few.
We'll start by checking in with Andrew Leung, a computer science researcher at the University of California. His work involved analyzing a large "data/content environment" (what mere mortals might call websites) over a three-month period. Here's what he found:
- More than 90 percent of the pages were never visited.
- Of those pages that were, 65 percent were opened only once.
- Most of the rest were opened five or fewer times.
- About a dozen pages were opened 100,000 times or more.
Lesson learned: Get rid of extraneous material. Make your website content relevant, useful and easy to find.
Now over to Jupiter Research where we find that 30 percent of adults rely on recommendations from friends before making a large purchase.
Lesson learned: No matter what other marketing efforts you employ, make sure those who do business with you are happy. And then tell others they are happy.
So, what's new in the world of surveys? For more than 40 years, telephone surveying has been the preferred methodology for marketers trying to get a handle on customers' opinions. It looks like that is changing.
Now, a Decima survey tells us that given the choice, only 48 percent of Canadians--connected or not--would still prefer participating in a survey over the telephone while 38 percent prefer an online survey.
The growing popularity of the online approach is even more apparent among the almost 80 percent of Canadians who have access to the Internet. Among that group, about 44 percent of Canadians prefer online interviews, while 42 percent say they would prefer participating over the telephone.
Lesson learned: Clearly, there has been a shift in how consumers want to communicate. Accommodate their preferences and you will get a clearer picture of how they are feeling about you and your products and services.
Here's another one. According to
Profiles Of The U.S. Entertainment Consumer, a publication of EPM Communications, families are "embracing video-on-demand services because they reduce the stress of juggling schedules and getting homework and chores done before TV shows start."
Lesson learned: Time is increasingly important to families. If your products and services help people save time, make sure that fact is part of your marketing message.
And finally... According to Quilts, Inc., 17 percent of U.S. households have at least one person who quilts.
Lesson learned: None. We just thought it was interesting.
