Canadian Internet Usage Redefined

It’s interesting how quickly the world is changing. A few years ago, phrases commonly used for Canada and internet adoption would be along the lines of conservative. There was a lot of research published regarding how Canadians are rather conservative online for anything but researching and browsing online.

As of 2010, Canada is the country that spends the most time on the internet with a booming 43.5 hours in Q4 of 2010! Not only do we socialize online, but we also spend a lot of time with other media such as watching video or streaming audio online. Nearly 25% of our total online activity is interacting with social media.

Businesses have caught on and they know we like this online world! They are increasingly expanding their brands through various platforms in the virtual world. Companies, especially media organizations or large retail brands are increasingly becoming content focused rather than channel or platform silo-ed. Mega brands post the same content or versions thereof on their social media sites, their websites, their billboards, mobile apps, and so on making for an integrated footprint. These organizations are really getting users to spread their brand and through their comments, their re-tweets, their Facebook shares and likes.

It’s about engaging the consumer and getting them to be their spokesperson.

55% of Canadians are on Facebook and it’s now everyone – young and old – who is online! The internet cloud is still morphing and it will be curious to see what the long term impact will be on the way we do business, on the way companies interact with consumers, and on the way consumers make decisions.