Who Is Really Distracted by Smartphones?
Most people believe that teenagers are addicted to their phones. We are also inclined to think that our generation is the more “realistic” in using new technology.
But hold your horses. Just like all target audiences, you need to do some research and truly understand your audience before you rely on clichés and stereotypes. Research actually shows that it is adults who are addicted to their phones and maybe even more so than teenagers.
How about this little fact from Nielsen: During mealtimes more than 52% of Boomers (50-64) use technology during meals, compared to 45% of Gen X (35-49), 40% of Millennials (21-34) and 38% of Gen Z (15-20). Most surprising is that 42% of the Silent Generation (65+) use technology during meals, which is higher than Gen X and Millennials.
Up to 60% of adults check their email on vacation; 50% check email over the weekend. Add in time spent at work on Facebook and other social media and you start to see a trend.
This is not a finger-pointing blog, it is a target audience blog. Understanding your target audience takes more than simple assumptions about behavior. Because at dinner, grandpa and grandma may be checking their phones more often than the teens. That’s marketing gold and a bit distracting to think about.
Mark Mathis
Mark wrote his first direct-mail fundraising letter in 1981 for the University of Iowa Center for Advancement. The effort raised a few million dollars in undiscovered wills and legacy gifts. From that day forward Mark discovered a love of the big idea that moves the needle.
After 12 years at KWWL, Mark became a business owner as a co-founder of ME&V — rebranded as AMPERAGE in 2015. After 25 years of leading creative teams in video production, graphic design, PR, writing and web development, Mark transitioned out of ownership in 2021. Today he serves in an employee role as special projects consultant.
He is creatively ambidextrous — son of an artist and engineer — and famous for distilling complex ideas down to a few words and a few visuals. Mark is a writer. When he found that many nonprofits struggled with complex branding puzzles, he wrote the book, “NonProfit-NonMarketing .” He also wrote a novel called “Reenactment.”
Mark is an active blogger OneMinuteMarketer® with nearly 1,000 readers each week on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter. One of his most popular YouTube videos is on “How to Look Good on Zoom.”
One of Mark’s fondest business memories was being named to INC 500 two times and attending the INC 500 conference with other winners. Mark is considered by some a Civil War expert (and that explains his novel). Mark also served as an adjunct professor in the business and in the communications departments at Wartburg College.
Mark is a graduate of the University of Iowa and is currently vice president of the University of Iowa Journalism and Mass Communications Advisory Board.
Mark is married to state Sen. Liz Mathis, and the two love to travel, even when it means being trapped by a volcano in the Czech Republic for three weeks.