survey

Survey Says… Need More People!

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Last week I conducted a survey to better understand the impact of digital advertising on today’s society. I was looking for insight on the following topics:

  • How demographics (age, income, education) play a role, if any
  • The credibility of digital ads, as perceived by the consumer
  • How digital ads affect consumer buying habits, if any
  • Digital browsing habits of consumers
  • Digital advertising’s role in determining ROI

In a six day span, I only received 19 responses. Due to a low number of survey responses, it is important to keep in mind that these results may have a high margin of error. Georgia’s Snowpocolypse could have something to do with the low number of surveys. Perhaps I would have received more participation if the survey was about Georgia DOT, Governor Perdue, Douglas County School System’s stranded school buses, or snow. Lord knows it had something to do with everything and everyone in my area going crazy for the past week! I guess 20 hours sitting in traffic and sleeping in your car on the interstate will do that to you though…

Basic Survey Participant Demographics:

  • Gender: 15 Females (79%) and 4 Males (21%)
  • Age Range: 21-29 (52%), 30-39 (16%), 40-49 (27%), 50-59 (5%)
  • Education Level: Some High School (5%), High School Diploma (10%), Some College (26%), Bachelor’s Degree (42%), Graduate Degree or Above (16%)
  • Income Level: Under $15,000 (5%), $15,000 to $34,999 (21%), $35,000 to $54,000 (16%), $55,000 to $74,999 (32%), $75,000 to $100,000 (16%), Above $100,000 (10%)

As you can see, the majority of participants are between the ages of 21 and 29, with a Bachelor’s degree and an average household income between $15,000 and $75,000. Looking back, I should have asked more specific demographic questions, including household size. It is very hard to determine if income plays a role in digital media impact when I don’t know if the reported income was just for the individual or for a family.

According to the survey, the only two forms of advertisements that participants completely trust are company websites and T.V. commercials. Interestingly enough, some participants also completely distrusted T.V. commercials. When it came to digital advertising, the majority of participants either trusted or had neutral connotations towards the ad. Overall, the most trusted form of digital advertising was a company website. I noticed, however, that I accidently included company website in both the “types of advertisement” and “types of digital advertisement” questions. At least the answers were consistent.

73% of participants trust company websites the most. I find this interesting because a company website is just one big advertisement for the company. There are actually greater legal guidelines and rules for digital advertising than there are for websites. It appears that perception is what actually matters most. 69% of participants stated that they pay more attention to digital ads than print ads and every participant accessed a digital medium (social media, websites, YouTube, search engines, and emails) at least 5 times a week. 95% of participants have purchased a product after seeing a digital advertisement, 32% of this group have purchased a product more than 5 times.

When asked if digital advertising affected their buying habits, one participant commented “Yes. Digital ads expose me to new and exciting products. They also have the power to change my perception of the business or product”. One participant noted that he/she found out about the UF degree program through a Facebook ad. I, also, found out about the UF degree program through a social media ad. A well placed social media ad can be very effective.

Overall, the survey results suggest that digital advertising is more trusted and effective than traditional forms of advertising for this specific demographic. I think my survey would return greater results if I had included more specific media usage questions along with questions aimed at determining the reason behind the effectiveness of specific digital ads. I would also like to have a larger pool of participants and more time to gather information.

How do you think I could have improved my study? I would love to hear your feedback and experiences!

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