DATABRITAIN

DAY

2016 How digital natives and digital migrants use the internet to work, live, and play.

Work

Live

Play

Introduction

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How do day-to-day Britonsleverage the internet to live, work and entertain themselves?

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Digital Natives & Digital MigrantsCoined in 2001, the term “digital native” refers to

people who grew up with the internet—often likened

to the millennial age group. Meanwhile “digital migrant” refers to those who have had to learn the

language of technology to adapt to a digitally

connected world.

Taking a closer look at the differences between digital

natives (18 – 34 years old) and digital migrants (35+

years) we find very rich distinctions in how they use

the internet to achieve their goals.

In this report we share exclusive consumer insights

from Hitwise, a division of Connexity—pulled during

the first quarter of 2016*—to uncover how digital

natives and digital migrants use the internet to work, live and play.

Introduction

The most successful brands dedicate themselves

to understanding their audience at a deeper level.

But how can they accomplish this when consumers

interact with brands—and one other—in more and

more complex ways?

The internet has ushered in an era of accelerated

connection. Although the tools for measuring

consumer behaviour are more sophisticated, our

interactions with technology are increasingly elaborate

and span an array of devices and networks. On top

of that, people who grew up in a digital world use

technology in entirely different ways to those who

were introduced to the internet later in their lives.

How do Brits really use the internet in their day-to-day

lives? And how can brands learn from this behaviour

to better connect with their audience?

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For DIGITAL NATIVES the internet is personal, social and experience-driven

Digital natives are using the internet to gain instant skills for the digital world,

such as computer programming, online advertising and graphic design.

Digital natives are more active in the sharing economy and are very

comfortable sharing their home or funding their favourite causes.

Digital natives value experiences over products, and use the internet to seek

out local activities such as restaurants, concerts and art galleries.

Work

Live

Play

For DIGITAL MIGRANTS the internet is practical, entrepreneurial and a planning tool

Digital migrants are more likely to use the internet to support entrepreneurial

pursuits, such as starting a business or becoming self-employed.

Although digital migrants are less likely to participate in the sharing economy

overall, they are highly engaged in collaborative investing and lending.

Digital natives use the web as a practical tool to support and plan offline

hobbies such as cooking, travel or home and garden.

Work

Live

Play

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Instant Skills The digital age has turned the world of work on its head. To maintain a successful career, people of all ages must be adaptable and prepared to “upskill” to remain relevant. This poses a challenge for all generations: younger workers must break into a competitive, globalised economy whilst older professionals need to adjust to an ever-changing digital landscape. Both groups are taking advantage of (and adapting to) technology to support their careers in unique ways.

Like many people in the connected world, people in the UK regularly turn to the internet to ask questions, enhance their abilities and accomplish their goals.

Hitwise found that more than 4.1 million Brits searched “how to” queries in the first 3 months of 2016 and 1.3 million visited an online learning site like FutureLearn, Coursera or Udemy in that period.

This trend is particularly strong amongst digital natives (18 - 34 year olds), who represent over half of all visits to online learning sites, despite only accounting for one-third of the UK population.

Although all Brits are using the web to develop skills and achieve career goals, there’s a clear distinction between what digital natives and digital migrants are seeking to accomplish.

WORK

Work and Web1

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Over

Brits searched “how

to” queries in the first quarter of

2016.

4.1 m

Digital Natives are...

are using the internet to develop modern skill sets and build relevant careers in the digital age.

Digital Natives

more likely than digital migrants to visit sites about web development

47%

more likely to visit sites about graphics

21%

12% more likely to visit sites about internet advertising

30% more likely to search for “how to use social media for business”

more likely to search for“how to use Photoshop”

Natives are

more likely than migrants to search for “code” or “coding” when finding

online courses.

3.9 times

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26%

are conducting more entrepreneurial searches and using the internet to support their path towards self-employment.

Digital Migrants

Digital Migrants are...

more likely to search for “how to sell on eBay / Amazon / Gumtree”

64%

more likely to search for “how to write a book”

17%

more likely to search for “how to be self-employed”

more likely to search for “how to write a business plan”

Digital migrants are

more likely to search

for business courses.

62 %

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135%

109%

more likely to search for “how to start to blog”

10%

Digital natives are adaptable and want to develop relevant skills for a digital world. They also want to use these skills to work for businesses with positive social impact or cause-based organisations. When hiring younger talent, highlight your core values and any positive impact your organisation has had on the community; consider providing knowledge-sharing or other opportunities for digital natives to develop professional skills in-house.

Although digital migrants struggle to take full advantage of technology in the workplace according to PwC, they are using the internet to pursue their own business endeavors. When you think of entrepreneurs, you shouldn’t immediately rule out digital migrants; they show a strong drive to work for themselves, sell products online and start their own ventures.

Both digital migrants and digital natives are using online education to advance their careers; digital natives are more likely to seek out coding tutorials and use skill-sharing networks like Udemy, while digital migrants are more likely to focus on improving their business skills.

What can brands learn?

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From humble beginnings, the sharing economy has emerged as a worldwide movement that continues to shape the global economy. The sharing economy is defined by a peer-to-peer exchange of values such as facilities, money, goods and information.

TheSharing Economy

LIVE2 Sizing Up the Sharing Economy

Today there are around 865 sharing economy companies in the world, according to JustPark research. The UK accounts for 1 in 10 of the world’s sharing economy brands, and 72 of those companies reside in London alone.

Not only is the UK a commercial mecca for the sharing industry, British consumers are actively engaging in collaborative consumption. Nesta research estimates that 25% of the UK adult population are sharing online in some way.

The sharing economy has affected many major industries including transportation, travel and retail. We are going to examine two sectors—space sharing and financial sharing—as case studies of how digital natives and digital migrants are engaging with collaborative consumption. Is the sharing economy only relevant to digital natives, who were already raised connecting with their peers online? Maybe not.

Hitwise found sharing economy websites got over the visits in the first quarter of 2016 compared to the same time last year.

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3x

The space sharing economy refers to people who share or rent spaces such as homes, rooms or offices, to support travelers or people who need a space temporarily. During the first three months of 2016, more than 1.35 million Brits visited a leading space sharing site.

7%

28%

36%

4%

25%

airbnb.co.uk

couchsurfing.com

lovehomeswap.com

vrumi.com

flat-club.com

Deep Dive: Space Sharing

Digital natives (aged 18 – 34) are 60% more likely than average Brits to use space sharing sites, particularly casual room sharing networks like Couchsurfing. Older natives represent the space-sharing sweet spot; Brits aged 25 – 34 are twice as likely to visit space sharing sites than any other demographic.

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Digital migrants (aged 35+) represent the majority of visits to Airbnb and Love Home Swap, although younger Brits dominate space sharing as a whole. Digital migrants represent a larger percentage of the population than natives (therefore take up a significant amount of online traffic), but it’s still worth noting they are drawn to home-sharing sites that support a higher-end vacation experience.

Who Over-Indexes for Which Sites?

Since 2014, visits to space sharing sites have skyrocketed

by 1,718%,

led largely by Airbnb.

How to read this chart - Example: Digital natives are 36% more likely to visit Couchsurfing.com.

The financial sharing economy allows people to fund, share and distribute money to invest in a chosen venture, cause or project. In the first quarter of 2016 there were over 27 million visits to top financial sharing sites, suggesting a cultural shift towards a more collaborative financial ecosystem.

Financial Sharing

Digital natives represent the lion’s share of traffic to financial sharing sites — particularly crowdfunding networks like Kickstarter or Indiegogo, which allow individual to fund a specific cause. This trend reflects the cultural values of millennials, who have less money to give but are willing to fund the projects they believe in.

The number of visits to top financial

sharing sites in the UK

has doubled

over the last three years.

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32%

186%

12%

93%

34%

175%

45%

10%

34%

295%

Kickstarter

Fundingcircle

IndieGogo

Zopa

Crowdfunder

Rate Setter

CrowdCube

Assetz Capital

Seedrs

Rebuilding Society

How to read this chart - Example: Digital natives are 32% more likely to visit Kickstarter.com.

Who Over-Indexes for Which Sites?

Digital migrants are less likely to engage with crowdfunding, but are more likely to visit investment sites that offer loans to small ventures; they represent nearly double the share of visits to Funding Circle and almost triple to Rebuilding Society. This suggests that digital migrants are open to exploring collaborative investment options beyond traditional banking.

The UK sharing economy is growing at an exponential rate. It is imperative for brands to consider how to support and participate in collaborative consumption, rather than compete against it.

Although digital natives are more likely to engage with the sharing economy as a whole, digital migrants are highly engaged with specific sharing sites particularly those around borrowing and lending money. They also have relatively greater buying power, thus represent a huge potential market for sharing economy growth. Digital natives use the sharing economy to express their values by funding projects they care about, or by offering a weary traveler a couch for the night. In contrast, digital migrants use the sharing economy for practical and commercial purposes to get a business loan or rent a vacation home. Their motivations to use the internet are fundamentally different: to connect and express themselves vs. a practical planning tool.

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What can brands learn?1

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The interplay between online and offline has profoundly affected how Brits do business. It has also greatly affected how people enjoy themselves.

Although digital natives are well-known for spending hours on social media and streaming videos, they don’t only entertain themselves online.

Today’s rise in the experience economy means a sharp increase in demand for experiences that provide stories, memories and photos, which are particularly valuable to digital natives. According to a study conducted by the Drum in partnership with Bauer media, 71% of Brits under 35 agree to the statement: “I’d rather tell people about something I’ve done than something I’ve got.”

Meanwhile, digital migrants also leverage the web to plan their offline play, though they treat the internet more as a practical tool to support their existing hobbies. Whether it’s finding online recipes, discovering their next vacation cottage or buying gardening supplies, natives use the web to research and plan their favourite offline pastimes, rather than to seeking out novel experiences.

Online Research, Offline Play

PLAY3

more likely than digital migrants to search for

things to do in a UK city^

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2.1 times

Digital natives are

Digital natives drive the “experience economy” by finding and participating in local events, attending art shows or dining out.

Natives: Experience-Driven Play

more likely than digital migrants to search for things to do in a UK city^

2.1xLocal Activities

more likely to search for top 10 things to do in a UK city

1.8x

Dining & Bar

more likely to search for pop up restaurants or pop up shops

2.7x more likely to search for pubs near me

1.7x more likely to search for best brunch or Sunday roast

2.1x

more likely to search for best galleries, best museums or best exhibits

2.7x Art & Music

more likely to search for ticketing sites for concerts or events

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21%

^ UK cities include London, Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds

more likely to visit home and garden shopping sites

33% Around the House

more likely to read home and garden lifestyle content

30%

Cooking

Digital migrants are 37% more likely to search for cooking classes and 59% more likely to search for cocktail making

They are more likely to find recipes and tips on food channel websites such as the The Food Network

more likely to visit travel sites

26% Travel Planning

more likely to search for camp and 52% more likely to visit UKcampsite.co.uk

37%

more likely to visit Cottages.com 46% more likely to visit Skyes Cottages

56%

more likely to visit OwnersDirect and 28% more likely to visit LoveHomeSwap

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33%

In contrast, digital migrants use the internet for “practical play” meaning they prepare, research and develop skills to support the hobbies they enjoy.

Migrants: A Practical Approach to Play

Although research by Ofcom shows the average amount of time spent online has doubled in the last 10 years, consumers of all ages are still regularly using the web to support offline experiences and entertainment. Brands must ensure their marketing efforts and services seamlessly support consumers who use the internet to plan their offline “play.”

Digital natives spend a lot of time online, but they are also strongly motivated to venture offline for what they perceive as meaningful “experiences”—whether they are cultural, culinary or simply unusual. Experiences are the new currency, and have more social value than products.

Digital migrants may never be “native” to the web, but their penetration rates are extremely high, according to the Office of National Statistics. Digital migrants regularly use the web to support offline hobbies, develop skills they enjoy and plan for their next trip; brands should provide practical, convenient and simple planning tools to support their goals.

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What can brands learn?1

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For more information visit us at:

www.connexity.com/hitwise

*Data was collected during January 4th - April 2nd of 2016