Research: Most Americans start day with email- not search or social networks

A conscientious (or worried) 3 percent make their company's site or intranet their first online destination of the day. Five percent go first to a news site and 3 percent go to some other destination.

ExactTarget, which specializes in e-mail and digital marketing, conducted the survey in April among members age 15 and older of an online panel.

The survey's 15-17-year-olds were the only age cohort in which fewer than 9 in 10 respondents said they get at least one permission-based e-mail per day (68 percent put themselves in that category).

True to stereotype, young adults were especially likely to say they've become fans of at least one brand or company via Facebook.

Fifty-four percent of the 18-24s and 47 percent of the 25-34s said they've done this, vs. 36 percent of the 35-44s, 32 percent of the 45-54s, 20 percent of the 55-64s and 11 percent of the 65-plusers. So did 32 percent of the 15-17-year-olds.

The shape of the trend line was similar -- albeit with far smaller numbers -- when it comes to respondents who said they follow at least one company or brand via Twitter.

Reporting this activity were 3 percent of the 15-17s, 9 percent of the 18-24s, 8 percent of the 25-34s, 6 percent of the 35-44s, 4 percent of the 45-54s, 1 percent of the 55-64s and 0 percent of the 65-plusers.

In its research for the study (which included focus groups as well as the polling), ExactTarget identified a pattern of differences in the way people relate online to companies, depending on which online destination they go to first.

Those who start their online day by checking e-mail "tend to be more task-oriented online than people who start their day on Facebook or Twitter," says the report. In-line with that general tendency, the e-mail-firsters "are more likely to approach online interactions with the goal of finding deals, promotions or new product information."

By contrast, those who start their online day with Facebook "are more likely to have socially oriented motivations when interacting online."

As such, adds the report, they "feel Facebook is more appropriate for entertainment and showing support for brands" as opposed to transacting business with them in that venue. Then again, one of the focus-group participants is quoted in the report as saying, "Right now, I think Facebook is the best place to find deals. A lot of companies are giving away freebies just to get you to become a fan."

Source: www.exacttarget.com/

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