Voice of Thai consumers from INTAGE (Thailand) Co., Ltd. is INTAGE Thailand s regular publishing to our valued clients to inspire them with insightful information about the current issues or topics of interest in the market place. Are the Fifties-Up Online or Offline Users? At present, we are facing a tremendous change in our population structure. The ratio of the elders (50 years old or more), so called the Fifties-Up, has become the biggest of all age ranges in several countries, such as Italy, Singapore, Germany, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. It is also undeniable that our country, Thailand, is also stepping in to such similar population trend. The figures from the National Economic and Social Development Board(NESDB) in 2013 reveals that the ratio of the elders in Thailand has been increasing year by year. It forecasts that in 2020, the number of people aged over 50 years old will be higher than 22 million, or about 34% of the total population of 65 million. Thai Population in 2013 and 2020, by age range Year 2013 (Million People) Year 2020 (Million People) 0-9 10-19 20-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60-69 70 and higher Page 1
In addition, data from the same source also shows that, in the near future, the population structure of Thailand will also develop in the same way as other countries, from a pagoda shape; that is, having the working group or those in the middle of the chart as the biggest, to a jar shape; that is, having the elders or those in the top of the chart getting bigger like the mouth of a jar. Whereas the population of the younger ones will get smaller, transforming the wide foundation of a pagoda in to a narrower base of a jar. Thai Population Structure in 2013, 2020, and 2030, by Age Range Age: Unit: million people As a result of this change in population structure, there is no surprise to learn that, during these recent few years, marketers in several countries have shifted their interest to the 50+ consumers. they put more resources and efforts in studying and marketing this group more seriously than before. That is because the Fifties-Up is going to be, or perhaps has already been the biggest consumer group in some countries. However, the switch of attention to the older ones may not be only for the fact that this group is or is going to be the biggest consumer group, but also for the undeniable truth that these elder people are the ones who have purchasing power or have higher competence to buy when compared to other groups. People over 50 years old, if still working, tend to be those in the big, stable positions in the companies. On the other hand, those who are retired mostly hold no burden of their children who have already grown up. They can, as a consequence, make any purchase up to their own will. Page 2
In addition, there is another reason to why the Fifties-Up can attract such attention from marketers. People in this group see themselves as Baby Boomer, or Gen B. Despite their older age, they have rather modern lifestyle, open to new things, and are ready to change -- the characteristic of which is totally different from the elders in former generations. One example of the above statement is their usage of internet via smart phones or tablets. According to the National Statistics Office of Thailand, the number of elders accounted for only 4% of the total internet users in 2007, but apparently raised up to 6% in 2012. INTAGE (Thailand) Co., Ltd. has conducted a quantitative survey via online and mobile among 67 male and female residents of Bangkok, aged 50 years old and older, who regularly use smart phones or tablets. The aim was to study their internet usage behaviour; the result of which can be summarized as below. Out of 67 respondents, 47 responded that they are frequent users of smart phones; while 48 are frequent users of tablets. In other words, There are 39 respondents (58%) who frequently use either smart phones or tablets alone; whereas the remaining 28 (42%) are those who frequently use both tools. The study reveals that, the elders who regularly use smart phones think that the advantage of using smart phones is its convenience in communicating with family members and friends, as well as in searching for information or news in a quicker manner. On the other hand, those regularly use both smart phones and tablets reveal both advantages and disadvantages of each device. A smart phone is good as it is small and light, thus easy to carry around conveniently. The bad point is its screen which is too small for some text and picture. On the contrary, a tablet is advantageous for having a big screen allowing them to see text and picture clearly. Due to its size and weight, naturally, it is inconvenient to carry them Page 3
around. The consumers in this group, therefore, need to use both devices, whereby they carry their smart phones with them out-of-home; while keep tablets at home or office for work, watching movies or drama clips, and for reading when more detail is required. The study also shows that the different usage of smart phones and tablets poses an effect on what application they use. For those who regularly use smart phones, their most popular applications are Line (98%), followed by Facebook and YouTube, respectively. The frequency of use is mostly high with Line at 7-9 times a day (36%), and over 10 times a day (27%). Whereas in the group of regular tablet users, the most popular applications are YouTube (77%), seconded by search engines (68%) Smartphone users Most popular applications Tablet users LINE 98% Facebook 80% YouTube 76% Search engines e.g. Google, Yahoo, Bling 74% Branded websites 28% Online TV / movies 28% Online games 24% Online newspaper/ magazines 24% Web board 22% e.g. Pantip, Sanook Instagram 11% Twitter 7% Others 11% YouTube 77% Search engines e.g. Google, Yahoo, Bling 68% LINE 66% Facebook Online TV/movies 49% Branded websites 43% Online games 38% Online newspaper/ magazines 32% Web board 30% e.g. Pantip, Sanook Instagram 9% Twitter 2% Others 13% Page 4
To dig further, we compared the above result with the result of a former research, also conducted by INTAGE Thailand 2 months earlier, regarding online applications general consumers (25-45 years old, 100 respondents) frequently use. We found that the overall usage of online applications are pretty much the same between the working generation and the elders; that is, the top 3 most popular applications go to Line, Facebook, and YouTube. Most popular applications among users aged 25-45 years old Source: INTAGE Academy's "Who are Today's Leaders in Social Media" In addition to the three top hit applications, other popular applications among the Fifties-Up include search engines, online TV/movie, and branded websites. Smart phone Tablet from children/ grand children 24% from friends 38% from children/ grand children 45% from friends 26% For the elders who use both smart phones and tablets, they started using Line and Facebook from recommendations from their children/grand-children, followed by recommendations from friends. from children/ grand children 36% from friends 33% from children/ grand children 56% from friends 19% But for other applications, on the other hand, they tend to start by self-study. This also shows that this elder group tend to be quite open, and are ready to learn new things every now and then. Page 5
Reasons สาเหต ท เร มใช แอพพล เคช นต างๆ to Start Using Applications from children/grand children from friends from siblings/cousins Heard from others, then try to use Start by self-study Part of work Smart phone Search Web boards engines e.g. Online Branded e.g. Pantip, Google, Online Newspaper/ Online TV/ Websites Sanook Yahoo, Bing Games Magazines Movies YouTube LINE Facebook Tablets from children/grand children from friends from siblings/cousins Heard from others, then try to use Start by self-study Part of work Search Web boards engines e.g. Online Branded e.g. Pantip, Google, Online Newspaper/ Online TV/ Websites Sanook Yahoo, Bing Games Magazines Movies YouTube LINE Facebook Important factors in application usage Application that is easy to use (45%) The most important factors the elders consider when choosing to use an application is Easy to use (45%), followed by Making life easier (43%), and Recommended by others (35%), respectively. Application that is useful and makes may life more comfortable (43%) Application that is recommended by others (35%) Application that is most popular (21%) Others (4%) No answer (1%) Page 6
With regards to the experience when purchasing products and services online, we found out from the study that approximately 70% of the Fifties-up have purchased products or services via internet. The remaining 30% who have never made any purchase said that they did not do so because they did not trust online payment and the reliability of websites. They were afraid of being deceived. Products / Services Ever Bought Online Air tickets 22% Accommodations / hotels 17% Line stickers 15% Applications 11% Movie / concert tickets 8% Clothes/accessories 6% Furniture 2% Electrical appliances 4% Personal products 2% Deals and promotions 3% Food and dried food 1% Food delivery 4% Etc. 3% Cosmetics 3% However, among those 70% with online purchase experience, their main purposes are to buy air tickets (22%), followed by accommodation and hotels (17%), and Line stickers (15%). We can see that, on the contrary, online purchase of household goods or dried products are not yet popular among this group. When we asked for their intention to buy online in the future, about 20% insisted that they have no interest to do online shopping in the future giving the same reasons above. Page 7
Products / Services they would definitely buy in the future When we asked those who had online shopping experience for the products or services they would definitely buy in the future, most chose air tickets (57%), accommodation/hotels (46%), and movie/concert tickets (33%). Air tickets 57% Accommodations / hotels 46% Movie / concert tickets 33% Line stickers 31% Applications / 26% Deals and promotions Food delivery 20% Cosmetics 11% Clothes/accessories 17% Household products 7% Electrical appliances 15% Food and dried food 4% Furniture 11% Etc. 6% Personal products 11% Products/services they will definitely not buy online in the future Fresh food 68% Food and dried food 51% Cosmetics 45% Personal products 43% However, even among the group that definitely intend to shop online, there are also some products that they think they will not buy in the future. The top 3 includes fresh food (68%), dried food (51%) and cosmetics (45%) Household products 42% Clothes/accessories 40% Line stickers 19% Furniture 38% Applications 15% Electrical appliances 38% Accommodations / hotels 11% Food delivery 23% Air tickets 9% Deals and promotions 21% Etc. 2% Movie/concert tickets 21% Page 8
In conclusion, the elders have started to use internet via smart phones or tablets more than before; and most of them use it for online chat, watching VDO clips or movies, and information search, rather than for online shopping. Although there are some elders that have experienced buying things via internet, online shopping is still new and unfamiliar among this group. They still doubt the trustfulness of online payment process as well as the websites themselves. It is therefore not surprising to know that their main online purchase experience is mainly for services such as air tickets, accommodation and hotels, rather than consumer products like clothing or food. As a result, owners of products apart from air ticket and accommodation, who wish to expand their online business to the elders, will need to pay much attention to their product browsing system, purchasing process, easy payment, as well as the trustworthy of the brand or website. Marketing to the elder group is still new in the Thai market, especially online marketing. Nonetheless, one can see this as a new opportunity for those who want to expand their business to the new consumer groups. In the future, not only these elders will be increased in number, they are also those who have purchasing power and high loyalty to the brands they use. Brands that can create trust among the group tend to be stuck in their mind forever. is INTAGE (Thailand) s regular publishing to our valued clients to inspire them with insightful information about the current issues or topics of interest in the market place. For previous issues of http://www.th.intage.com please write to: contact@th.intage.com Page 9