Web Usage Guessing Game — SEM Synergy Extras

Today’s episode of SEM Synergy, our weekly Internet marketing podcast / industry lovefest, was a blast. As usual.

Quick highlights? Guest Steve Plunkett illustrates Foursquare gripes care of Hooters. Jessica makes her show debut. And Susan predicts the whole Internet thing is a passing fad. [SEO is dead! Newspapers are the way of the future! —Susan] Care to tune in?

Oh. You’re not easily seduced by non sequitur teasers and orange hot pants? Wow. Tough crowd, but you’re right. I owe you more than that. I owe you some nitty gritty. It’s time to get a dirty in Web data.

Web Usage Shifts

Bruce, Susan and I started the show discussing Web usage trends. Internet users are now spending around 22 percent of their online time on social networks. Online video viewing has reached an all-time high. And time spent online is rising and falling, depending on what metric you’re looking at.

Regarding the last point, I’ve pulled together some data from Nielsen Company on the average Internet usage in the U.S. for January, February, March, April and May of 2010.

Examining the Evidence

Here are charts I created to visualize the data. (Note: If you compare the Nielsen reports linked to above to the data on the chart, you may find inconsistencies. There were occasions where the figure reported for a month was different in the following month’s “previous month” column. In these cases, I opted to use the following month’s “previous month” data with the logic that numbers may have been refined as more data is made available.)

So basically, people are firing up a Web browser a little more than they did at the beginning of the year; the number of different sites a user visits in a month seems to be fluctuating; the number of individual pages a user visits in a month is dropping, and so is the overall amount of time spent online.

Now take a look at those last two graphs. I’m no scientist, but is there some kind of correlation between the fewer numbers pages visited and the lessening amount of time spent online? This brings up a chicken-or-the-egg problem: are people A) spending less time online because they’re visiting fewer pages, or B) visiting fewer pages because they’re spending less time online? To narrow down these options, I considered the first and second graphs. People are hopping online more often now than in January. At the same time, the number of different sites they’re visiting is all over the board. With these additional pieces of info, I’m leaning toward hypothesis A. People are going online more, visiting more or less the same number of sites, and yet they’re not visiting as many pages, leading to a decrease in overall time spent. So why the fewer number of pages visited?

Theories Off the Top of My Head

Less Searching: There’s no question that Internet users are becoming increasingly savvy. So it stands to reason that they may be doing fewer searches as they’re better at finding what they’re looking for. This could be because:

• Their queries start out more targeted so they do fewer refining searches.
• They’re better at recognizing the most relevant result in the SERP.
• They’re less likely to use the search bar as navigation.
• Search engines are continuing to improve the relevance of results with blended search and personalization.

On the other side of the coin, as sites become more optimized and evolved, the number of searches performed may decline. This could be because:

• The results displayed in SERPs may be more likely to satisfy a searcher’s need.
• The answer is displayed in the SERP itself, either called out by the engine or in a result page’s description.
• Fewer searches are required thanks to Sitelinks.
• Social media is answering questions before a search is needed.

Mobile Surfing: I’m not experienced in Web analytics, but does time spent in a mobile app get counted in Web usage data? Like, when I’m using the LA Times shiny new iPhone app, is that time being counted by the folks at Nielsen? If I’m reading my news feed on Facebook’s app, can Compete.com see that?

Furthermore, when I’m using a Twitter app on my smartphone, I’m following links and bouncing around to lots of different domains, but I’m not digging into the site or viewing multiple site pages. Actually, my behavior on my phone looks a whole lot like those four graphs above. Overall, I’m going online more than ever because the Internet is in my pocket. However, my sessions are shorter and my visits to sites are bouncier — I’m just visiting one page, usually through a link on Facebook or Twitter, and then leaving.

Of course, no one really knows what’s at the bottom of the Web usage mystery, so why not make a game of it? It’ll be like Clue! I’ll start. I suspect adult Internet users visiting links from Twitter with mobile phones. Your turn!

Related Articles

• Opportunities for Brands in Social Games
• Worldlogger Improves Their Social Media Monitoring Platform (Discount Included)
• MyWeboo – Your Social Web Storage for Files and Bookmarks
• ESPN Joining Social Gaming Party
• Social Media Marketing Tips for Facebook — SEM Synergy Extras

Getting Perspective: Why the Opinion Revolution Works for You

Can I just take a moment to lament the decline of traditional media?

Oh, this again?

Just hear me out. I’m a blogger. It’s my prerogative to opine and get all emo on you — which is exactly my point.

Bruce recently gave the content creation department a glimpse of his predictions for the near future of Web content. It’s all moving toward opinion. Traditional news organizations of the last decade will be extinct in the next decade, replaced by heavy editorial and subjective analysis.

Excuse Me While I Cry About It

A reader has an abundance of choices for news reporting online. Raw fact can be found almost anywhere, and yet news readers are likely to choose large, established media organizations for this sort of information — though even then, they’re not safe to rest on laurels of fair and balanced reporting. For proof, check out CBS evening news anchor Katie Couric’s Twitter update about a political power couple’s separation:

I bet the obvious bias and emotion of that sentiment had Pulitzer rolling in his grave. And yet the truth is, an organization — especially the smaller ones with fewer resources to devote to breaking news — can’t do “just the facts” because opinion is what differentiates an offering and endears an audience. In order to survive, news organizations better have something original to say.

Problem is, the Olbermanns and Limbaughs of the world operate in an echo chamber, giving viewers and readers a self-fulfilling prophecy that does little in the way of enlightenment or education. Few and far between are a consumer’s choices for balanced analysis from any single offering.

And while remnants of old school, factual reporting still hang on, it’s being pushed aside to make room for challengers to fiery entertainment-news hybrids that dominate primetime timeslots. Just look at Campbell Brown’s decision to step aside so that CNN could have a chance to compete.

For a unique perspective of how news organizations intent on keeping “fair and balanced” alive are responding to the shift, tune in to SEM Synergy tomorrow on WebmasterRadio.FM. I interview Kate Gardiner, director of social media for PBS NewsHour, about upholding the mission of the fourth estate while engaging and interacting in the new media world.

Why This Works for Business

So now that I’ve had a chance to indulge in my futile pout, I’ll take refuge in the fact that at least there’s a lesson we marketers can take from this. We’re in a pretty good position considering it’s long been our objective to help our businesses and clients differentiate themselves from the competition through experience and insight. In terms of marketing material, we’ve traditionally provided a two-pronged content experience.

On the one hand, a business must offer objective facts on the industry or product and the needs an offering fills. By providing factual information to the savvy researcher interested in a product or service to meet their needs, a business can create a sense of trust and comfort in knowing the options available to them.

At the same time, a business must stand out among these options. Demonstrating a unique feature — be it of the product or service itself or of the organization that provides it — can provide an edge in the market. A strong sense of opinion can translate into perceptions of leadership, experience and authority. After showing an understanding of a consumer’s needs and laying out the facts of the solution, offer an analysis of the competition, explain how years of experience have fine-tuned the service, reveal why your offering goes beyond all other options through knowledge, quality, value or service.

Offer a strong perspective. Balance your opinion with fact so you’re viewed as fair and trustworthy. Use your blog and social media channels to broadcast your unique offerings, start conversations and position yourself as a thought-leader. Providing opinion is nothing new for marketers and business, so prop yourself up and prepare for the editorial content revolution.

Related Articles

• Show Off Your Social Networks with Yiid
• The Case for Converging Your Personal/Professional Networks
• Rich folks tend to have diverse social networks
• We want your help for a location-based social networking cage match!
• 5 Reasons You Should Invest Your Time in Networking