DIGITAL WOMEN TO OVERTAKE MEN ONLINE BY 2007
Growth in women using the internet indicates they will be online more than men within the next year
London, 17 March 2006 – According to a new report announced today by the European Interactive Advertising Association (EIAA), European women will be spending more time online than their male counterparts within the next year.
Traditionally it has been men that have embraced the internet, spending an average of 11 hours a week online in 2005 compared to women who spent around 9 hours a week. However, in the last three years the number of hours spent online by female internet users has grown by 63%, while for men it has grown 54%. If current trends continue it will be women spending the most time online in 2007.
According to the EIAA Digital Women 2006 Report, which forms part of the ongoing Mediascope Europe Study, looking into how people allocate their time across media in Europe and how consumers use the internet, the internet is now Europe’s fastest growing media amongst women. While women’s use of the internet has grown 63%* since 2003, the amount they watch television has grown only 12%* and the amount they read magazines has actually fallen by 4.5%* in the last year.
Michael Kleindl comments: “The way women now engage with different media is evolving and advertisers need to recognise the way in which this audience is interacting with the internet in their day-to-day lives. Whether it’s sharing opinions through blogging, saving time on the weekly shop with e-commerce or communicating more efficiently by instant messaging, the internet is becoming increasingly integrated into the woman of today’s lifestyle.
“Today’s consumers no longer conform to the old stereotypes, they are more sophisticated and demanding. The internet offers advertisers a huge opportunity to get to know their customers better and to engage and interact with them, ultimately building deeper relationships.”
The women driving this growth and spending the most time online are the 16-24 year olds, the young professionals and the women with children. Young professionals using the internet, for example, has more than doubled (+116%) since 2003, while women with children use the internet 14% more than the average European woman. With their busy lifestyles, young professionals and mums are clearly benefiting from the convenience that the internet offers, which has proven popular with all female internet users:
· 80% felt they could “get what they want quickly and save time” on the internet, compared to:
o 22% newspapers
o 18% television
o 17% radio
· 67% agreed they could “have what they want, when they want it”, compared to:
o 28% television
o 27% newspapers
o 25% magazines
· 61% believed the internet helped them “stay ahead of the game”, compared to:
o 44% television
o 41% newspapers
o 30% radio
Women are also becoming increasingly sophisticated in their understanding and use of the internet and the related technology. Today, 60% use broadband to go online compared to only 17% three years ago, and the fastest growing sites that they are visiting are auction, shopping and banking or finance sites.
Michael continues: “The increasing popularity of broadband is clearly having an impact on who is using the internet and how they are using it. Three years ago 48% of European women couldn’t tell you whether they had a broadband connection or not. Today, that figure has dropped to 5% and they are using its speed and convenience to help in many different facets of their lives.”
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The study involved 7,000 random telephone interviews with 1,000 respondents in the UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy and the Nordics and 500 respondents in Belgium and the Netherlands. Interviews were conducted between September and October 2005.
About the EIAA
The European Interactive Advertising Association ( www.eiaa.net) is a unique pan- European trade organisation for sellers of interactive media. The primary objectives of the EIAA are to champion and to improve the understanding of the value of online advertising as a medium, to grow the European interactive advertising market by proving its effectiveness, thus increasing its share of total advertising investment. Its members are currently AD Europe, AdLINK Internet Media AG, AOL Europe, MSN International, Tiscali, Yahoo! Europe, LYCOS Europe and T-Online International. It is chaired by Michael Kleindl, Managing Partner of Valkiria Network. For further information, please contact:
Alison Fennah Adam Dean/Gemma Yates
Executive Director Red Consultancy
EIAA Tel: 020 7025 6500
* refers to average hours spent per week
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