With kids multitasking on TV, online and on digital devices, companies need
to rethink their marketing strategies, according to a new social networking
study from Grunwald Associates
BETHESDA, Md., March 10 /PRNewswire/ -- TV, once the dominant kids
media, no longer gets their undivided attention, according to a study on
social networking by Grunwald Associates LLC, an independent research firm
that specializes in new media market intelligence. Sixty-four percent of
kids go online while watching television, and nearly half of U.S. teens (49
percent) report that they do so frequently -- anywhere from three times a
week to several times a day. Multitasking on the Internet, on cell phones
and MP3 players, and on other new media suggests that companies must
respond with much more creative, multimedia marketing campaigns for their
messages to penetrate.
The study reveals that 73 percent of TV-online multitasking kids are
engaged in "active multitasking," defined by Grunwald Associates as content
in one medium influencing concurrent behavior in another. This trend
represents a 33 percent increase in active multitasking since 2002. While
kids are using more media, their attention primarily and overwhelmingly is
focused on their online activities.
According to the study:
-- 50 percent of nine- to 17-year-olds visit Web sites they see on TV even
as they continue to watch;
-- 45 percent of teens have sent instant messages or e-mail to others they
knew were watching the same TV show; and
-- One-third (33 percent) of nine- to 17-year-olds say they have
participated in online polls, entered contests, played online games or
other online activities that television programs have directed them to
while they are watching.
At the same time, it is clear that online activities are the primary
focus of TV-online multitaskers -- and an increasing determinant of what
they choose to watch:
-- 47 percent of kids say they focus their attention primarily online\
while multitasking between TV and the Internet;
-- 42 percent of kids say they focus on TV and online activities equally;
-- Only 11 percent of kids say that TV holds their primary attention while
multitasking; and
-- Nearly one in five (17 percent) say they have chosen what to watch on
TV based on what they are doing online, up from 10 percent in 2002.
"Active multitasking and social networking present a tremendous
opportunity to inform, engage and empower kids more deeply than ever
before," said Peter Grunwald, founder and president of Grunwald Associates
and a leading authority on kids' media use. "At the same time, it's
important for commercial efforts to be credible and respect kids'
intelligence -- and the content they produce. Kids are using social
networking tools to create personal content and share their opinions with
great speed, passion and influence."
Kids and Social Media
The study also examines how kids are using online and handheld social
networking tools -- and how frequently. The study presents the data in
numerous psychographic and demographic sets, including data gathered from
parents and school district administrators.
The study illustrates that kids are more than passive consumers of
media. Twenty-seven percent of all nine- to 17-year-old kids are practiced
online producers-maintaining blogs, pages or other online spaces of their
own and uploading content such as articles, audio, video, polls, quizzes
and site ideas that they have created to publicly available Web sites, at
least three times a week.
In addition, more than one in four of all students surveyed (27
percent) are heavy users of social networking sites and services. These
heavy users are not just shaping Internet content but also influencing the
online activities of their peers. Of these heavy users:
-- More than six in ten (66 percent) recruit their peers to visit their
favorite sites,
-- Almost half (48 percent) promote new sites and features online to their
peers, and
-- Nearly four in ten (37 percent) recommend products to their peers and
keep up with the latest brands.
"The findings of this study strongly suggest that companies should use
multiple platforms-TV, online, social networking, handhelds and other
interactive media to create a synergistic communications effort and a
compelling, highly interactive experience for kids," concludes Grunwald.
About the Study
The Kids' Social Networking Study is comprised of three parallel
surveys conducted in the United States: an online survey of 1,277 nine- to
17-year- olds, an online survey of 1,039 parents and telephone interviews
with 250 school district leaders who make decisions on Internet policy.
Visit Grunwald Associates at http://www.grunwald.com for information on
how to license the detailed market research report based on this study and
for information on Grunwald's customized data analysis, industry-specific
analysis and consulting services.
About Grunwald Associates LLC
Grunwald Associates is an independent research and consulting firm that
has been providing new media market intelligence since 1993. Grunwald
Associates is well known and highly respected for industry surveys,
including Children, Families and the Internet and the current Kids' Social
Networking Study, which have established benchmarks for media habits and
attitudes in American households.
Media contact:
Eileen Pacheco
781-556-1026
301-263-9192
pr@grunwald.com
SOURCE Grunwald Associates
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Related links:
http://www.grunwald.com/
CONTACT:
Eileen Pacheco of Grunwald Associates,
+1-781-556-1026, +1-301- 263-9192, pr@grunwald.com
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