Survey Monitor April 2001 | Articles

Ethnic groups turning to Internet

Access Worldwide Communications, Inc., a Los Altos, Calif., marketing and market research company, has released the final results of an online research study that was conducted to understand Internet access and usage among multicultural markets in the U.S. Access Worldwide’s Cultural Access Group completed the research study in partnership with Survey.corn and a range of ethnic Web sites that target African-American and Hispanic audiences.

Though at lower levels than the general market, Internet access by multicultural audiences has doubled during the previous two years. The study measured online attitudes and practices among African-Americans, Hispanics and the general market. Research indicates that ethnic and cultural factors play a prominent role in determining the unique needs, usage and attitudes of multicultural users.

Among the many findings, the study revealed the following trends:

Online African-Americans and Hispanics are using the Internet to explore information and content for different purposes than the general market. African-Americans focus their Internet activities more on career advancement and professional development, family/relationship themes, education, entertainment and exploring hobbies and interests. Online Hispanics overwhelmingly use the Internet as a major source of news content, particularly international news. Unlike the general market, both groups are less likely to seek financial or technological information online.
The more longevity and experience that ethnic users have with the Internet, the more likely they will engage in e-commerce activities. The level of online experience is a determining factor whether online African-Americans and Hispanlcs will use the Internet to eventually purchase products. More than 40 percent of online African-Americans with three or more years of experience have purchased products from the Internet, compared to only 19 percent of online African-Americans with less thanthree years of experience. Similarly, 42 percent of online Hispanics with three or more years of experience have purchased products from the Internet, compared to 26 percent of online Hispanics with less than three years of experience.
Despite increasing usage, continuing skepticism characterizes the attitudes of many ethnic Internet users, particularly among online African-Americans. Among all goups, online African-Americans are the least likely market to believe that the Internet removes racial barriers and creates new social opportunities. African-American and Hispanic respondents were nearly three times and five times as likely, respectively, than the general market to mention negative perceptions of the Internet.
Online African-Americans and Hispanics are very concerned about the influence of the Internet on their children and families. In contrast to 37 percent Of the general market, 55 percent of online African-Americans and 89 percent of online Hispanics have children at home. Forty percent of the African-American and Hispanic respondents were dissatisfied with the Internet content for children. Half of African-American respondents even felt that the Internet should be censored, twice the level of Hispanics and the general market.

The study was conducted online and included approximately 3,500 responses from Internet users recruited from ethnic Web sites and Survey.com’s consumer panel. Respondents had the option of completing the survey in either English or Spanish.

Is business casual too casual?

More than one-third (34.2 percent) of executives polled think that business casual dress has gone too casual, according to a survey by Management Recruiters International, Inc. (MRI), Cleveland.

“More than two years ago we conducted a survey of hiring executives about the future of casual dress in the American workplace. Forty percent thought that the suit and tie would eventually vanish from the workplace,” says Allen Salikof, president and CEO of MRI. “But perhaps the pendulum has swung too far. Attire such as open-toed shoes, tank tops and shorts, or sweat suits should be considered too casual for today’s workplace. Yet, more people are dressing in this manner at both start-up entities and Fortune 100 companies alike.

“While no one is suggesting that the three-piece suit make a comeback in Corporate America, employers and employees alike need to find a happy medium in dress style that affords comfort and flexibility and compliments today’s more informal work style, while keeping within the boundaries of taste,” says Salikof says.

A greater percentage of companies within the real estate industry (59.9 percent) and the financial services sector (47.3 percent) said that casual dress in the workplace had become too casual. Nearly four out of 10 executives representing companies with more than 1,000 employees echoed those sentiments.

Regionally, there were also differences. Companies in the North Central (38.5 percent), Mid Atlantic (34.7 percent) and South Atlantic (34.2 percent) regions also were more likely to report that dress had become too casual.

“Companies in the West [29.4 percent], Southwest [29.3 percent] and South Central [24.7 percent] regions were least likely to agree,” says Salikof. “These regions of the country tend to dress more casually in general and warmer temperatures may also play a role in more lax dress code policies at work.

“Casual dress has become a workplace benefit, and prospective employees do take into consideration when exploring a new job opportunity. Employers recognize the value of added comfort throughout the workday, but they need to set the tone or create a policy to govern this benefit just as they would other benefits being offered to their employees. There is just too much room for interpretation on an issue like this.”

Hispanics adopt computer technology at robust pace

Redwood Shores, Calif.-based Cheskin Research has released the second wave of its research on Hispanics and digital technology. The study expands on the initial research of April 2000 that examined the attitudes, behaviors, and usage and ownership patterns ofU.S. Hispanics with regard to computers and the Internet. Findings in the study indicate a significant increase in household computer penetration, and a slight decrease in online purchasing and purchase intent.

A nationally representative sample of over 2,200 Hispanic respondents participated in telephone interviews that addressed both households and adults. Key household measures included the presence of computers and computer users, technology penetration and adoption, intent and barriers to purchase and usage. Key individual measures included, but were not limited to, computer brand awareness, future purchase intent and brand consideration, Internet usage and activities, usage of Internet services (i.e., ISPs, browsers, search engines, and key Web sites), language preferences, and e-commerce attitudes, behaviors, and intent.

Five key findings emerged from the research:

Technology adoption is increasing rapidly. Computer penetration among Hispanic households has increased from 42.3 percent in Q1 2000 to nearly 47 percent in Q4. The rate of growth of Hispanic household technology penetration over the last two years is 80 percent compared with 21 percent for the overall market.
Lack of information is still one of the key reasons for not having a computer in the home, although this trend is diminishing significantly. Perceived expense is seen as the greatest barrier to computer ownership.
Opportunity exists for computer brands to own the market. Computer brand awareness has changed little in the past eight months and over 70 percent of current non-owners have no brand in mind for future purchase, indicating that manufacturers still have a significant Opportunity to own the Hispanic market.
Hispanic users continue to prefer mainstream portals. Yahoo! has increased its lead as the primary portal for U.S. Hispanics who are using Yahoo! in English. There is still an opportunity for Spanish-language portals as increasingly more Spanishdominant consumers are entering the online world.
Internet trust among Hispanics has decreased significantly over the past eight months. This growing lack of trust may be fueled by the prevalence of media coverage of payment and fulfillment problems.

The second wave of the study also provided insights into Internet access speed and mobility. Wireless Internet access appears to be substantive. Of U.S. Hispanic adults who mentioned having access to the lnternet, 16 percent said they have wireless access and almost a third indicate having high-speed or broadband access at home. This indicates that about 6.5 percent of U.S. Hispanic households have broadband access.

Teens surf the Net but shop the mall

Today’s active teens may love to surf the Net, but when it comes to clothing their bodies for school and sports, they head to traditional department or other brick-and-mortar stores, according to a national survey of 1,000 13-to-19-year-olds conducted for the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association’s (SGMA) Super Show.

This loyalty to physical stores is especially interesting because the survey was conducted on the Internet. Wilton, Conn., research firm Greenfield Online teamed up with Target Management, also of Wilton, to field research about the sports participation and sports-related behaviors of teens, as well as their brand preferences and buying behaviors in regards to footwear, clothing, and equipment.

When they want to buy something, teens leave parents at home and hit the stores themselves, despite the fact that most respondents said their parents ultimately paid for their purchases.

The survey found teens shop most often for active wear and athletic apparel at the following: department stores, 38 percent; specialty stores, 14 percent; full-line sporting goods stores, 14 percent; discount stores, 12 percent; athletic footwear stores, 7 percent; catalogs, 3 percent; online sites, 2 percent.

Nike, Adidas, Speedo, Hanes, Reebok, and the Gap were leading brands of-active wear and athletic apparel worn by the teens for participating in sports. Swimming, bowling and billiards/pool were the top three sports identified by teens as sports in which they have participated in the past year. Only seven of the top 35 sports - basketball, soccer, volleyball, touch football, baseball, tackle football, and softball - require team participation.

The survey was conducted over the Internet between Dec. 7, 2000 and Jan. 2, 2001 among 1,000 13- to 19- year olds who were drawn fromGreenfield Online’s research panel. The findings were weighted to represent the U.S. census in terms of gender.

Minorities give high marks to new car buying experience

Automotive Retailing Today asked The Gallup Organization to measure how satisfied consumers are with the new vehicle purchase/leasing experience - and asked Wirthlin Worldwide to determine if there are different perceptions by minority purchasers. Both studies indicate that a strong majority of all consumers gives high marks to the process.

Automotive Retailing Today is a coalition that includes all major automobile manufacturers and dealer organizations. Its goal is to promote a better understanding of the industry and build stronger customer relationships.

Gallup conducted a survey of consumers, dealers and the news media about their car buying experiences. Separately, Wirthlin Worldwide conducted a similar survey solely focused on the car buying experiences of minorities.

When asked specifically about how they liked their dealership, 94 percent of non-minority consumers overall were satisfied, of which 75 percent were very or extremely satisfied according to the Gallup research. The Wirthlin research confirmed that 88 percent of minority consumers were satisfied (66 percent very or extremely satisfied) with their dealership.

The Wirthlin survey found that one in every five (19.6 percent)Americans has recently bought or purchased a new vehicle. More than 11 percent of the new car purchasers are minorities. Additionally, minorities purchase a new vehicle more frequently than non-minorities, an average of every
23.1 months versus 45.6 months respectively.

Both surveys found that Intemet use in the vehicle buying experience has increased dramatically since 1998. Gallup found that 43 percent of nonminorities who recently purchased a vehicle conducted research online to help guide their decision, compared to 27 percent who did so for their last vehicle purchase. Still, 90 percent (63 percent very or extremely useful) said the visit to the dealership was a useful source of information in the purchase experience.

Among minorities polled by Wirthlin, 36 percent reported that the Intemet influenced their latest decision, up from 24 percent for their last purchase. Asian-Americans used the Internet the most (62 percent), followed by Hispanic-Americans (39 percent) and African-Americans (27 percent).

According to Gallup, information most sought on the Interact by all consumers included price (88 percent), options and color (86 percent), and comparisons among different makes and models (68 percent). Only 8 percent used the Internet to agree on vehicle price, 3 percent to fill out the necessary paperwork, and 2 percent to arrange pick-up or delivery.

In addition to the Internet, consumers of all ethnicities now use a variety of other information sources to influence their purchase decision, and there are only minor differences in preferences between minorities and non-minorities. "Minorities are a bit more likely to rate word of mouth, consumer guides, and government safety ratings higher on their list. Non-minorities tend to give slightly more emphasis to visiting a dealership," says John Peterson, chairman of Automotive Retailing Today.

When asked to rate the various information sources on reliability, the same pattem holds true. Minority consumers tend to rate all sources slightly higher than non-minorities, except "visit to a dealership," which nonminorities rate slightly higher.

Other key findings from both studies included:

Women were somewhat more positive with the overall purchasing/leasing experience (3.43 mean for women vs. 3.30 for men). OveralA satisfaction with their dealership was also higher for women (4.0 mean vs. 3.84 mean). (Gallup) (The numerical scale for the positive mean is: 5 = extremely positive, 4 = very positive, 3 = somewhat positive, 2 = somewhat negative, 1 = very negative. The scale for the satisfaction mean is the same.)
Members of the news media (54 percent) believe that consumers had negative experiences, in sharp contrast to what both minority and nonminority consumers reported. (Gallup)
There is little disagreement among minorities and non-minorities that the the country is getting better (39 percent and 36 percent respectively). (Wirthlin, Gallup)
5.3 percent of all new vehicle buyers/leasers are Afican-Americans; 9.9 percent of African-Americans buy/lease new vehicles. (Wirthlin)
3.8 percent of all new vehicle buyers/leasers are Hispanic-Americans; 9.5 percent of Hispanic-Americans buy/lease new vehicles. (Wirthlin)

Data for the Gallup survey was collectedJune 28, 2000 to July 28, 2000 by random telephone interviews of 1,003 people who purchased or leased a new vehicle within the previous 18 months. R.L. Polk & Co. supplied the sample based on vehicle identification numbers registered within the past 18 months. In addition, 100 reporters/media representatives and 403 dealership owners were asked the same questions for comparison purposes. The individual groups have the following margin of error levels: consumer +/-3.1 percent; dealer +/-4.9 percent; and news media +/-9.8 percent.

Wirthlin Worldwide’s results are based on 2000 telephone interviews conducted between October 6 to November 1, 2000, and have a sample error of +/-2.2 percent. In addition, Wirthlin results focus on 292 interviews with minorities who had purchased or leased a new vehicle within the last 18 months. A sample of 292 has an error level of +1-5.7 percent. The ethnic sub-samples have the following error levels: African- Americans +/-8.8 percent; Hispanic-Americans +/-11.3 percent; and Asian-Americans +/-13.9 percent.

Agencies confirm streaming media viability

Advertising agencies say streaming media is a viable advertising medium and that streaming media ads are effective corporate and product branding tools, according to the "Advertising Agency Streaming Media Awareness Study" conducted by MeasureCast Inc., a Portland, Ore., audience measurement fLrm, and The Yankee Group, a Boston research firm.

One hundred advertising agency executives were interviewed for the study. Fifty of them worked for traditional ad agencies (including media buying services) with online media capabilities, and 50 were with online, or interactive, agencies.

Some highlights:

Six out of 10 respondents (61 percent) have recommended streaming media advertising to clients in the past 12 months.
65 percent of the respondents are likely to recommend streaming media advertising to clients in the next 12 months.
Nearly half of all respondents (47 percent) say clients who have not previously invested in streaming media advertising will allocate dollars to streaming ads during the next 12 months.
More than half of the respondents (56 percent) who previously purchased streaming media ads expect to spend more on streaming media advertising in the next 12 months.
Nearly seven out of 10 respondents (69 percent) agree that audience demographic data is crucial to making ad purchase decisions.
More than half of the respondents (54 percent), say clients’ perceptions that streaming media ads are too expensive keep them from purchasing those ads.

The objective of the MeasureCast/Yankee Group study was to identify ad agencies’ level of awareness and their perception of streaming media, to understand the online media buying decision process, and to reveal trends in the streaming media marketplace. The survey also targeted agencies with experience managing clients that have some accounts purchasing online advertising, and that make recommendations to clients on placing interactive media.