The face of entertainment news is changing, with consumers demanding up to date content that suits their busy lifestyles. 80% of people use their mobile phones to browse the Internet, revealed a recent survey conducted by Channel24. Consumers are no longer willing to wait for their weekly or monthly magazine or TV program to catch up on celebs, movies, music and other entertainment news, they want it when it suits them, and they want it on their mobile phone, in their pocket.
A whopping two in three of the site's readers watch video content online and 60% of them specifically chose Channel24 for their video viewing. With over 1 million Unique Browsers on Channel24's website every month, as measured by Effective Measure, that translates to a lot of consumers following the growing video consumption trend in SA. We know that YouTube has taken off, with Acceleration reporting over 30 million YouTube video views a day in South Africa. Cisco reported in 2010 that video traffic had finally surpassed all other internet traffic worldwide, and it seems like SA is closely following on this trend.
"The fact that 80% of our respondents use their mobile phones to browse the web is a very profound look at where the future of the Internet lies," says Glenda Courtis, Channel24 Channel Manager at The SpaceStation. "Our users are definitely of the mobile generation that demand good quality, multi-media content where and when they need it. And clearly Channel24 provides this with at least 65% of the readers choosing the platform for their entertainment news"
For advertisers, the research study revealed some encouraging results. 68% of the respondents said they would click on an online advert if the product advertised was relevant to them. Many respond well to tailored messaging, with 42% clicking on ads to take advantage of special offers and 47% choosing to click on an ad to enter a competition.
These stats are a snippet of the information that has come out of a recent survey of Channel24 users. The survey researched 2000 respondents who had specifically logged onto the website. It is worth noting that 63% of the readers were under the age of 40, while 56% were male and 44% were female.
Who are they and what do they like to do?
Other interesting information that the research revealed was that 60% of Channel24 users earn more than R25 000 p/m and 75% of them have a tertiary education. 59% of the readers enjoy the movies, 57% enjoyed spending time in nature, 53% enjoy shopping and 58% enjoy reading a good book.
What do they spend their money on?
When asked what they prefer to spend their money on, the majority (32%) said it was 'time with others'. Respondents were asked to break down how they spend money on entertainment and 38% selected 'music and movies', 23% said 'home entertainment' and 13% said 'clubs, concerts and bars'.
In terms of online purchases: 53% bought shows and sports tickets online; 51% bought travel tickets; 51% bought books; 44% bought DVDs, videos and music; 42% made hotel reservations; 28% bought software and 24% bought flowers and gifts. South Africans have become very comfortable in recent years transacting online, and a growing number are happy to transact on their mobile phone or tablet devices. According to the DMMA, 60% of all South Africans online have made an online purchase in the last year, and the Channel24 audience closely resembles the overall online population.
Says Gustav Goosen, Acting CEO of The SpaceStation, the digital media sales agency who manage the Channel24 platform: "This survey gave us a very powerful snapshot of who the Channel24 reader is. They are young, successful and educated. And most importantly they like to be entertained and are willing to engage with online advertising if it is relevant to them. The stats on mobile use were particularly interesting and I certainly believe they are a very responsive audience to engaging, strategic and relevant mobile advertising."
