Most of us understand the general picture - the internet is an integral part of our daily lives and a one-stop resource for information, planning, organization and, often times, making a living. But it isn't until we actually see the internet marketing statistics that we realize just how powerful the worldwide web is, and how it is shaping our future.
Here are just a few numbers (from ComScore) based on internet users who are 15 years old and up. . .
Where are the internet users?
In 1996, two-thirds of the world?s Internet population was in the United States. Today, Asia Pacific is the largest region (41%) while all of North America reresents only 17% of the worldwide internet audience. China and India are growing at the quickest rate with Central Europe and Russia not far behind. All of Europe holds 28% of the pie.
How does the world use the web?
The Conversational Media category (social networks and blogs) of internet marketing statistics is still a high-growth category, attracting an astounding 3 out of 4 web users and growing at a rate of 7.1% since last year. Games (10.9 % growth) and entertainment (6.7) are also in the top three growth categories.
However, the struggling economy has caused a steep decline in visitation to Retail, Automotive, Banking and Travel sites and a sharp increase in sites dealing with unemployment. A whopping 46% of all respondents saying that the economic condition is their biggest worry. 2008 saw a dramatic increase in people conducting financial and economic-related searches on the Web. The number of people searching on terms related to unemployment and bankruptcy more than doubled throughout 2008.
Social Networking Sites and Video:
Facebook overtook MySpace (growing by 127%) this year.
At the end of 2008, it was reported that 146 million Americans (a 6% increase from the previous year) viewed 12.7 billion online videos (34% more than the previous year). Online video viewing now accounts for 12.5% of Americans? total time spent on the Internet, up from 8.5% in November 2007.
YouTube, with 40% market share in November 2008, continues to be a significant driver in the U.S. online video market, accounting for approximately two-thirds of the growth in online video views during 2008.
Hulu, the joint video venture of NBC Universal and News Corp in 2008,grew its audience by 139% in the last six months of the year.
Advertising effectiveness:
Despite a decrease in clicks from 2008 to 2009, display advertising has shown to have a significant, positive impact on consumer behavior. It increases visitation to the advertiser?s website, increases uses of brand name search, increases the likelihood of buying the advertised brand online and increases the likelihood of buying at the advertiser?s retail store.
E-commerce:
Online spending growth rates peaked in April 2008 at 15% and then steadily declined through the remainder of the year. However, online spending recovered slightly, with sales in January 2009 increasing 2% versus the previous year.
Understanding Internet marketing statistics allows you to develop an effective and up-to-date internet marketing strategy. Make sure you go where the people are, or, even better, get there before they do! |