Most online activities (71%) are conducted while people are doing other things. Internet access is interwoven with working, eating, watching TV, listening to music or chatting to friends.
Asked to record where they were each time they accessed the internet, the “Context Matters” research by Microsoft Advertising identified differing online behaviours by situation (ie whether they were at home or work, and day of week, ie whether weekday or weekend).
Generally, younger audiences are more likely to multi-task, while the research also illustrates how multi-tasking differs by online occasion. Information is least likely to be multi-tasked with TV, partly driven by it being stronger in the morning and work-related activity. Other occasions, such as communication, entertainment and transaction are more likely to be multi-tasked with TV.
Multi-tasking of online by occasion
|
Occasion
|
Total
Multi-Tasking
|
Online
and TV
|
Online
and Music
|
|
Communication
|
71%
|
23%
|
20%
|
|
Information
|
73%
|
15%
|
18%
|
|
Entertainment
|
66%
|
22%
|
21%
|
|
Surfing
|
67%
|
18%
|
23%
|
|
Transaction
|
74%
|
25%
|
21%
|
|
Creation
|
77%
|
23%
|
21%
|
Respondents were asked: “Please note what else you were doing while online”. Respondents chose from a pre-coded list.
“I use the internet from the moment I wake up until I go to bed. Even when I’m working. During commercials, while I’m watching TV. When I’m hanging out with friends. I kind of dread the day when I’ll have a portable internet device that will allow me to be online ALL the time.”
Female, Brazil
Implications for advertisers
The fact that online behaviour is largely happening in the context of real life, and the accompanying distractions, highlights the importance of thinking multi-channel when planning online brand communications. Recognising people’s offline activity within online communications might also provide a way of capturing audience attention and response.
