A few weeks ago, MediaPost wrote about a new “University of Media” study, conducted by Mindshare’s Business Planning group in partnership with Alloy Media + Marketing and Brainjuicer.
The study found that an average US college student has exactly 87 email contacts, 146 cell phone contacts, and 438 friends on social networks.
The study aimed at finding out the consumer behavior and media exposure among college students aged between 18 and 24.
It threw light on the interesting fact that, while college going boys have more email and cell phone contacts, it is their female counterparts who boast of a much greater number of social network friends.
An average college going woman in the US has more online friends who she connects with more often and also in greater depth.
The study also pointed out the crucial role played by three digital channels – the television, the World Wide Web and cell phones in students’ lives.
92% of college kids who have participated in this survey, have watched at least one full TV program on the computer during the past year. 83% of college students have watched the shows on the websites associated with the program while 63% and 54% of college goers have watched their favorite TV program on sites like Hulu or Joost and video sharing sites like YouTube respectively.
Using social networking sites to “friend” your favorite brand
The study can prove to be beneficial for different brands and marketers, as college students can be “used” as a potential brand promotion tool.
These young adults are using social networking sites for making friends but also to follow their favorite brands and connect with them. Out of every 10 college students, four have reported to be communicating with their favorite brands quite frequently. In fact, the use of social networking sites is so widespread among this group that one can easily imagine how rapidly news, ideas, and opinions spread in the online community. Businesses and online marketers can surely take a note of this point.
The young adults studying in college make maximum use of digital channels, especially the Internet, to communicate with the rest of the world that includes their family, friends and not to forget, their favorite brands.
Another fact that has been uncovered in this study is that text messaging is the most popular method of communication in this group.
Read the post on MediaPost here.
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