There was a time when we watched whatever was available on gadgets that were bulky, consumed more energy, and were lacking both user experience and quality. However, for the first time in recent history an entire generation has grown up watching what they like on their own terms. This new generation is defined by their easy access to internet, social sites, and mobiles. This is also the generation that consumes content whenever and wherever they feel like it. It is no wonder that this generation is called as Generation C where the letter C means connected. This subset of the population thrives on 4 Cs:
Creation: This generation does not merely watch content on screens of mobiles and other hand held devices, but actively creates and uploads content.
Connection: This generation is connected to the internet via smartphones, tablets, PCs, Laptops and other gadgets. Switching between devices with effortless ease is the hallmark of this generation.
Curation: Amongst this generation are expert curators that care about finding content that is relevant to them.
Community: This new generation defines what is popular on YouTube and shares videos with family and friends.
It would be wrong to categorize this generation as one that does not have purchasing power. On the contrary, this generation accounts for $500 billion worth of spending each year in the United States. What makes this generation special is that they are hard to reach as they are light TV viewers, choosing to view content on different screens across several devices.
This is an important market and in the next few weeks we will share insights and trends that will help us reach this audience via YouTube. Let us see how this generation watches YouTube:
Multi-screen necessary in reaching Generation C
Over 76% of people from the age group of 18 to 34 own smartphones. The amount of time they spend watching YouTube has gone up by 74% over the last year. This generation caught up with number of viewers watching YouTube on PCs in the year 2012. More than 67% of Generation C watches videos on two or more devices compared to 53% of the general population.
How do they watch YouTube on smartphones?
Generation C watches YouTube throughout the day. However, peak viewership mirrors PC user’s pattern, which is highest during prime time hours.
41 percent watch YouTube while waiting for something or someone. Close to 18 percent watch YouTube while commuting to and fro from school or work. 15 percent watch YouTube during commercial breaks on TV.
Generation C actively searches for videos on smartphones, almost 47 percent. Close to 10 percent watch videos shared by friends and family, while 18 percent watch videos shared on social networks.
What does all this mean for marketers?
As mentioned above Generation C accounts for $500 billion spending power. Marketers can reach this captive audience whenever they watch YouTube via TrueView video ads. You can create one advertisement and it will run on several screens, irrespective of its size.
Google also introduced Once Channel design for brand channels that allows users to have seamless experience with marketer’s brand on all sorts of devices.
Watch this space as we will continue to bring news about how you can target Generation C.