È probabile che il mondo non sia mai stato così dipendente dalla connettività come nell'ultimo anno. Con gran parte del mondo che trascorre più tempo a casa, la tecnologia è diventata l'ancora di salvezza per tutto ciò che riguarda il commercio, gli incontri sociali e l'intrattenimento più recente. Molto è stato scritto su queste aree, ma se si considera che la connettività consente a milioni di americani di lavorare da casa e a innumerevoli bambini di tutto il Paese di accedere a una scuola virtuale, si può dire che il virtuale è il nuovo IRL.
That has inspired many Americans to think about where they want to live. Especially if a physical office location is no longer a consideration, the idea of relocation becomes a real option, particularly for those seeking to escape the density of heavily populated urban areas. Many consumers sought temporary solace away from big cities early on, but the prolonged duration of the COVID-19 pandemic has metro-dwellers thinking about more permanent moves, especially as many work-from-home and remote schooling arrangements remain intact.
The prospect of moving could have long-lasting implications for the distribution of the U.S. population. According to recent Oliver Wyman research, one in five urban dwellers is planning to move or considering a move because of the pandemic. And we’re already starting to see the shift. In looking at Nielsen’s year-over-year U.S. household data, we can see increases in an array of smaller-sized designated market areas (DMAs). Many of the increases represent changes of less than 2%, but a handful have been more significant, with the Charlottesville, Va., DMA registering a 16.6% increase in households between the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 universe estimate periods.
Questa tendenza è importante per i marchi e gli inserzionisti che vogliono rimanere in contatto con i consumatori mentre le loro abitudini e i loro habitat cambiano.
Importantly, many of the country’s lesser-populated DMAs present a valuable opportunity given how digitally engaged their residents are. Whether they’re in cities in Texas, South Carolina, Indiana, Florida or Colorado, consumers in these markets are spending more time connected online. In Abilene, Texas, for example, which is just over 200 miles away from Austin, household use of fiber optics connectivity had increased 165% according to the survey data from Nielsen Scarborough. That connectivity has facilitated a 36% increase in usage of five to nine hours online per week, as well as nearly a 20% increase in usage of 20 hours or more online. In some DMAs, such as Myrtle Beach, S.C., and Wichita Falls, Texas, we’re seeing decreases in internet usage across shorter periods of time and increases in usage across longer periods of time.
Oltre a dedicare sempre più tempo all'utilizzo di Internet, i consumatori di molte aree meno popolate stanno seguendo la tendenza nazionale a orientarsi verso il crescente regno dello streaming e dei video on demand. Nel secondo trimestre del 2020, i consumatori statunitensi trascorrevano in media 1 ora e 14 minuti al giorno con i loro dispositivi connessi a Internet, rispetto ai soli 50 minuti di un anno fa. Gran parte di questo tempo è dedicato alla visione di contenuti in streaming che, secondo le misurazioni di Nielsen TV, nel dicembre 2020 rappresentavano il 23% del tempo televisivo totale nelle case abilitate allo streaming. E mentre le cinque grandi piattaforme di streaming video on demand (SVOD) (Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, Hulu e YouTube) hanno rappresentato il 53% dei minuti di streaming ogni settimana, la miriade di fornitori nella categoria "altro" ora raccoglie il restante 47%.
Multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs; traditional cable companies that augment traditional delivery with a streaming app) and virtual MVPDs are newer to the streaming landscape, but accounted for 36% of the “other” category as of July 2020. They’re also gaining in popularity across many of the country’s lesser-populated DMAs, including Abilene, Burlington and Evansville. In Abilene, for example, Nielsen Scarborough survey data shows that consumers’ past 30-day usage of Sling TV (a subscription-based vMVPD) was almost 235% higher than during the previous survey period. Consumers in the Burlington, Vt.-Plattsburgh, N.Y. DMA report an increase of nearly 102%. Comparatively, consumers in Abilene and Burlington report increased or flat usage of the more traditional SVOD services, but the reported increases were notably lower than those reported for vMVPD usage.
Importantly, despite the growing streaming options available to consumers (including free ad-supported offerings), many are focused on premium offerings. For example, according to Nielsen Scarborough data, consumers in Evansville report more than a 5% decrease in using an internet-connected device or app to watch free TV programs. In Myrtle Beach, consumers report a decrease of 26%. In combination with increased stated usage around paid video options, it’s clear that consumers in these DMAs are gravitating toward what interests them rather than what’s free. This speaks volumes about the value of quality content—even as the market is seeing an array of free, ad-supported options come to market. And when you consider that adults 18 and older were spending an average of almost 11-and-a-half hours with media each day as of June 2020, knowing which platforms and programs they’re engaging with—and the markets where they’re engaging—couldn’t be more important.
