How Consumers Use Technology and Its Impact

Unit 1: Evolution of Digital Marketing
Assignment 2
Name: Angelique Thomas | Student number: 76480454

Assignmentbrief:
Following on from your previous assignment, you are developing a
reputation as being knowledgeable in digital marketing. Now, the
international interactive media festival South by Southwest (SXSW) are
interested in having you speak at their next conference. They have asked
you to prepare a presentation document and short video pitch to give
them an indication of your knowledge of how audiences use technology
and its impact on their lives.

Introduction
How consumers use technologyand
its impact on their lives.
Technology has changed the lives of consumers and reshaped
how consumers make choices. Technological innovations are
changing how goods and services are made, sold and
consumed.
We have seen changes in technology that we could never have
imagined. In this slideshow I am going to show the various
areas that consumers use technology and the impact that this
technology has had on our lives as consumers and businesses.
Fig 1. bmmagazine.co.uk (2019)
The different types of
technology [online image]

Access to Internet
The internet has come along way since dial-up connection 20 years ago. Dial-up would take up to a minute to connect
and only produce speeds of 56kbt/s which is a far cry from the speeds we have today of 22mbps. Not only do we have
faster speeds, but we also access the internet wirelessly now. (Sarah Wain, 2019)
When COVID-19 Pandemic hit, internet usage soared as consumers were forced to moved their worlds online. Various
lockdowns and stay at home orders forced millions of consumers to turn to technology for communication, entertainment,
and work, causing an unprecedented spike in internet usage. (Joseph Johnson, 2021)
2,08
2,33 2,48
3,01
3,42
3,77
4,02
4,39 4,54 4,66
0
1
2
3
4
5
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Number of users in Billions
Fig 2. Oberlo (2021) Number of Internet Users Worldwide [Online Chart]

Africa Americas Arab States Asia & Pacific
Commonweath of
Independent States
Europe
2005 2 36 8 9 10 46
2010 10 49 26 23 34 67
2017 21,8 65,9 43,7 43,9 67,7 79,6
2019 28,2 77,2 51,6 48,4 72,2 82,5
2
36
8 9 10
46
10
49
26
23
34
67
21,8
65,9
43,7 43,9
67,7
79,6
28,2
77,2
51,6
48,4
72,2
82,5
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Fig 3. Wikipedia (2019) % Internet users by region [Online Table]

Digital Devices Used By Audiences
A study by Ofcom in 2021 showed us that the smartphone is the most-used device for accessing the internet
for all age groups apart of those aged 65 and up ( Ofcom, 2021)
16+ 16-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65+
Smartphone 85% 87% 91% 93% 92% 85% 59%
Computer 74% 68% 66% 71% 78% 77% 87%
Tablet 51% 37% 48% 56% 55% 54% 56%
Smart TV 41% 42% 46% 50% 43% 34% 26%
Game Console 21% 43% 30% 26% 17% 5% 1%
Smart Speaker 20% 23% 22% 24% 25% 16% 11%
Wearable Tech 12% 12% 17% 16% 13% 8% 4%
Only use devices other than a computer to go online 26% 32% 34% 29% 22% 23% 13%
Only uses a smartphone to go online 10% 12% 15% 13% 8% 8% 2%
Fig 4. Ofcom (2021) Devices used to go online, among those who go online, by age [Online Table]

Ofcom reported in 2018 that most
people now say they need and expect a
constant internet connection, wherever
they go. If you look at the comparison
between 2008 and 2018, digital devices
that can be used to access the internet
have risen significantly. (Ofcom, 2018)
Fig 5. Ofcom (2018) ‘A decade of digital dependency’ [image]

How Customers Search For Information
In 2015, search engines were the most popular way for
consumers to find local businesses.
(Marketing Sherpa, 2015)
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
In 2020, Amazon surpassed search engines
when it comes to consumers searching for
products online. (Marketing Charts, 2020)
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Fig 6. Marketing Sherpa (2015) ‘Local Marketing Chart: How do
customers search for products and services?’ [online chart]
Fig 7. Marketing Charts (2020) ‘Where Shoppers Say They Start
Their Product Hunt: Amazon > Search’ [online chart]

How consumers use search engines:
I want GO
Where is Paris?
Dog park near me
I want KNOW
How tall is the
Shard?
How do you play
poker?
I want DO
Chocolate cake
recipe
60-min ab workout
I want BUY
Coffee shop near me
Nearest grocery
store
Fig 8. Google’s year in search (2016) ‘Top trending searches across key micro-moment types’ [online image]

What Consumers Buy Online
1,32
1,46
1,52
1,66
1,79
1,92
2,05
2,14
0
0,5
1
1,5
2
2,5
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Digital buyers in billions
Fig 9. Statitsa (2021) Number of digital buyers worldwide from 2014 to 2021[Online Chart]

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
OTC Medicine
Groceries
Household Supplies
Personal Care Products
Alcohol
Furniture & Appliances
Take-aways
Fitness / Wellness
Vitamins & Supplements
Non-food child products
Snacks
Jewelry
Apparel
Skincare & Make-up
Accessories
Footwear
Tobacco
Books / Magazines / newspaper
Electronics
Entertainment at home
23
25
25
26
19
46
38
39
40
40
28
54
60
47
56
52
25
64
66
80
10
10
10
10
7
14
11
11
11
10
6
10
11
9
9
8
4
7
6
3
% of respondentspurchasingonline
Before COVID-19 Expected Growth after COVID-19
Fig 10. McKinsey & Company (2020) Consumers’ use of online channels before and expected use after COVID-19 [Online Chart]

Online Video Consumption
Netflix
Amazon Prime
YouTube
Hulu
HBO Go
HBO Now
Other
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
79
55
53
40
13
11
11
Fig 11. Finances Online (2021) Most popular video streaming services in the US[Online Chart]

Terry Stancheva, 2021. Noteworthy Video Consumption Statistics 2021 edition [online]
93% of businesses
gain new customers
as a direct result of
posting branded
video content to
social media
platforms
The global video
streaming market
was valued at
$42.60 billion in
2019
People spend an
average of 6 hours
and 48 minutes
watching online
videos

Consumer Trends
30% growth opportunity for 5G by
2030 (Ericsson, 2020)
Humanity can prevent the climate
crisis with technological innovation
methods (Sky News, 2021)
Voice search is used by 41% of adults
once per day (DBS Interactive, 2021)
AI is transforming the way we do
work and live our lives. (Datamation,
2021)
Consumers social media usage is on
the rise (Josh Brown, 2021)
More countries will start to integrate
cryptocurrency into financial
systems in 2022 (City AM, 2021)

“The advance of technology is
based on making it fit in so that
you don't really even notice it, so
it's part of everyday life.”
Bill Gates, Co-founder of Microsoft.

Summary
In summary, we can clearly see from the slides that technology has had a massive impact on the lives of consumers, it has
transformed almost every aspect of our daily lives, including work, entertainment, shopping and even our relationships.
The massive change we have seen in technology over the last decade, really leaves us excited for what the next decade will bring.
Already, consumer trends such as AI, 5G, voice control and digital currency show us that our world is moving at a rapid speed and
the possibilities that technology will bring for humanity are remarkable.
Digital devices are evolving everyday and have gone from being a luxury item to now being an essential item that forms part of our
daily lives. Most of us only know how to function with our digital devices, from work, to socializing to checking the weather and news,
our devices are an important part of our daily lives and many of us would find it very difficult to live without them.
While we mostly focus on all the wonderful and exciting things that technology brings to our lives, there is also some unwanted
effects of this technology. For example, with the rise in social media comes a rise in mental health problems such as anxiety,
depression and loneliness with users feeling inadequacy about their appearance and their lives. As our world becomes more
connected by technology, we can start to feel a disconnect in some aspects of our lives.
While the spike in consumers buying online due to the COVID-19 pandemic has been enriching for businesses who sell products and
services online, it has had a negative impact on many other businesses, for example, UBER has seen a massive drop in sales due to
COVID-19 as consumers are now working from home and lockdowns have made consumers stay in doors.
With the rapid speed in which technology changes, it is crucial that businesses keep up with the latest innovations. Staying up to
date with technology can have a positive impact on all aspects of business and subsequently, should businesses fall behind on the
latest consumer trends and technology, this could seriously hurt their business and they could lose valuable customers. Changes in
social media, ecommerce, consumer shopping behavior and consumers search for information can all impact a business and
therefore businesses need to adjust and develop their marketing mix to adapt to the current market.

Reference
Fig 1. Business Matters (2019) The different types of technology [online image] in bmmagazine.co.uk. Available at https://bmmagazine.co.uk/business/the-
different-types-of-technology/ [Accessed 15 November 2021]
Sarah Wain (2019) ‘How Technology Has Changed In The Last 20 Years’ in mymemory.co.uk [online] Available at https://www.mymemory.co.uk/blog/how-
technology-has-changed-in-the-last-20-years/ [Accessed 06 December 2021]
Joseph Johnson (2021) ‘Coronavirus: impact on online usage in the U.S. - Statistics & Facts’ in statista.com [online] Availableat
https://www.statista.com/topics/6241/coronavirus-impact-on-online-usage-in-the-us/#dossierKeyfigures [Accessed 06 December 2021]
Fig 2. Oberlo (2021) ‘Number of Internet Users Worldwide’ [Online Chart] in oberlo.com. Available at https://www.oberlo.com/statistics/how-many-people-use-
internet [Accessed 15 November 2021]
Fig 3. Wikipedia (2019) ‘Internet users by region’ [Online Chart] in en.wikipedia.org. Available at
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_number_of_Internet_users [Accessed 06 December 2021]
Ofcom (2021) ‘Online Nation 2021 report’ in ofcom.org.uk [online] Available at https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0013/220414/online-nation-2021-
report.pdf [Accessed 06 December 2021]
Fig 4. Ofcom (2021) Devices used to go online, among those who go online, by age [Online Table] in ofcom.org.uk [online] Available at
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0013/220414/online-nation-2021-report.pdf [Accessed 06 December 2021]
Fig 5. Ofcom (2018) ‘A decade of digital dependency’ [image] in ofcom.org.uk [online] Available at https://www.ofcom.org.uk/about-ofcom/latest/features-
and-news/decade-of-digital-dependency [Accessed 06 December 2021]
Ofcom (2018) ‘A decade of digital dependency’ [online] in ofcom.org.uk [online] Available at https://www.ofcom.org.uk/about-ofcom/latest/features-and-
news/decade-of-digital-dependency [Accessed 06 December 2021]
Fig 6. Marketing Sherpa (2015) ‘Local Marketing Chart: How do customers search for products and services?’ [online chart] in marketingsherpa.com. Available
at https://www.marketingsherpa.com/article/chart/how-customers-search [Accessed 06 December 2021]
Marketing Sherpa (2015) ‘Local Marketing Chart: How do customers search for products and services?’ [online chart] in marketingsherpa.com. Available at
https://www.marketingsherpa.com/article/chart/how-customers-search [Accessed 06 December 2021]

Reference
Marketing Charts (2020) ‘Where Shoppers Say They Start Their Product Hunt: Amazon > Search’ [online chart] in marketingcharts.com. Available at
https://www.marketingcharts.com/industries/retail-and-e-commerce-113138 [Accessed 06 December 2021]
Fig 7. Marketing Charts (2020) ‘Where Shoppers Say They Start Their Product Hunt: Amazon > Search’ [online chart] in marketingcharts.com. Available at
https://www.marketingcharts.com/industries/retail-and-e-commerce-113138 [Accessed 06 December 2021]
Fig 8. Google’s year in search (2016) ‘Top trending searches across key micro-moment types’ [online image] in snowdropsolutions.co.uk. Available at
https://snowdropsolutions.co.uk/google-year-in-search [Accessed 06 December 2021]
Fig 9. Statista (2021) Number of digital buyers worldwide from 2014 to 2021[Online Chart] in statista.com. Available at
https://www.statista.com/statistics/251666/number-of-digital-buyers-worldwide/ [Accessed 06 December 2021]
Fig 10. McKinsey & Company (2020) Consumers' use of online channels before and expected use after COVID-19 [Online Chart] in mckinsey.com [online]
Available at https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/marketing-and-sales/our-insights/the-greatconsumer-shift-ten-charts-that-show-how-us-
shopping-behavior-is-changing [Accessed 17 November 2021]
Fig 11. Finances Online (2021) ‘Most popular video streaming services in the US’ [Online Chart] in financesonline.com. Available at
https://financesonline.com/streaming-statistics/ [Accessed 7 December 2021]
Terry Stancheva (2021) ‘Noteworthy Video Consumption Statistics 2021 edition’ [online] in techjury.net. Available at https://techjury.net/blog/video-
consumption-statistics/#gref [Accessed 7 December 2021]
Ericsson (2020) ‘What are the biggest 5G consumer opportunities?’ [online] in ericsson.com. Available at https://www.ericsson.com/en/5g/5g-for-consumers
[Accessed 7 December 2021]
Sky News (2021) ‘Climate change: Seven technology solutions that could help solve crisis’ [online] in news.sky.com. Available at
https://news.sky.com/story/climate-change-seven-technology-solutions-that-could-help-solve-crisis-12056397 [Accessed 7 December 2021]

Reference
DBS Interactive (2021) ‘Voice Search Statistics and Emerging Trends’ [online] in dbswebsite.com. Available at https://www.dbswebsite.com/blog/trends-in-
voice-search/ [Accessed 7 December 2021]
Datamation (2021) ‘Key Artificial Intelligence (AI) Trends 2021’ in datamation.com. Available at https://www.datamation.com/artificial-intelligence/artificial-
intelligence-trends/ [Accessed 7 December 2021]
Josh Brown (2021) 'Social Media Marketing Trends To Look Out For In 2022' in eclincher.com. Available at https://eclincher.com/social-media-marketing-
trends-2022/ [Accessed 7 December 2021]
City AM (2021) 'Five big cryptocurrency trends to watch out for in 2022' in cityam.com. Available at https://www.cityam.com/five-big-cryptocurrency-trends-
to-watch-out-for-in-2022 [Accessed 7 December 2021]

How Consumers Use Technology and Its Impact

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