Are PCs Still the Most Important Digital Screen?
Through a special arrangement, presented here for discussion is an excerpt of a current article from the Joel Rubinson on Marketing Research Consulting blog.
We all see the articles that seem to support Steve Jobs’ contention that we are in the post-PC era. We read about computer sales being overtaken by sales of mobile devices. We hear how the smartphone is the most important device in our lives.
However, the computer (desktops and laptops) is still alpha dog among digital screens.
First, there are the impressions numbers. Computers still are the primary device for accessing the internet both in terms of reach and minutes. The latest report from comScore shows that computers account for over half of internet minutes with smartphones in second place, accounting for about 30 percent of time.
But now from AOL, we see research that proves that even among three screen owners, the computer-based digital content experience is generally preferred to the experience on other screens. I was the consultant on this study, working with my on-going research partner InsightsNow, Inc.
So how did we determine that the computer is the screen that still offers the most satisfying digital experience? Knowing that many users will access the same site from multiple screens and believing that publishers seek to maximize intent to revisit their site regularly on any and all screens, we viewed this as a coalitional game where the screens were viewed as players in the game. We used something called Shapley values from game theory in which you estimate these values by creating an experiment that tests all combinations of screens for viewing chosen content and calculating the lift that a particular screen gives in intent to revisit. While there are other important elements to the design, this is the central idea.
Greg Stucky, chief research officer at InsightsNow said, "Given all the articles on the importance of mobile in the trade press, and all the excitement about mobile in social networks and at industry conferences, we didn’t expect such a clear and conclusive win for computers."
My own take is that this research ties out nicely to what relative CPMs are suggesting since, in general, computer display advertising commands considerably higher pricing than smartphone advertising.
Now, just because computers are generally the most important screen, that doesn’t mean publishers only have to worry about the computer-based content experience. The intent to revisit was 50 percent higher when content was viewed on all three screens vs. on only one screen. Also, the relative value of each screen did vary by type of content and by demographic. For example, as you might imagine, younger users more highly valued smartphones vs. older users.
Regardless of the relative value of each screen for a given marketer or publisher, it certainly doesn’t seem that the computer will be joining the museum of obsolete devices anytime soon.
Discussion Questions
Is the value of the computer as a marketing tool being undervalued? Have smartphones been overhyped as a tool to reach consumers? Do you expect the smartphone to inevitably become the most important screen to reach consumers?
We are entering an age of unprecedented choice for the consumer. It is not a Post-PC era so much as a PC+ other device(s). Consumers tend to choose small screens to “connect” and “consume” content. When they “create” the go to choice is a PC.
The key point in Joel Robinson’s article is: “The intent to revisit was 50 percent higher when content was viewed on all three screens.”
Today’s consumers are connected anytime and everywhere. They expect a seamless experience across time and devices.
Marketers have no choice. They must reach all devices, especially for Millennials who live with their smartphones. And when thinking globally, for much of the world a smart phone is the computer and only portal.
The PC, or good old computer is going to remain a vital tool for the good old customer/shopper for many years to come. This statement is based on the reality that many of the baby boomers and beyond are just not ready for the mobile craze.
PCs are and can do much more than a mobile phone and I myself still consider them more secure and nicer for people with fat fingers (me).
Tom…(on a laptop)….
It appears that there is very little people under 35 cannot do with their smartphones – almost as if there is very little differentiation between their smartphones, computers and iPads. However, since most people are rarely without their phones, I don’t think it is possible to overemphasize the importance of marketing via smartphones, regardless of targeted age.
People like big screens, except when they have to carry them.
The truth is that in an era where people can be seen carrying (a) a laptop for work; (b) the latest hip-slick-and-cool mobile; (c) an iPod; and (d) (for reasons clearly beyond my understanding) occasionally a tablet, we have yet to pass through the era of technological fetishism into a time of digital pragmatism.
I think the answers to all these questions will be resolved if and/or when the majority of people feel more comfortable with a digital ecosystem (right now Android, Apple or Microsoft) and less focused on the devices they use to access that system.
Redundant functionality simply makes no sense. But, whatever the final winner, big screens will always be better to view, especially for long periods of time, than small ones.
Our overemphasis on the device itself continues to be a problem – one that may be generationally resolved.
I think that computing in general is waiting for some kind of user interface breakthrough. Touch on a mobile device was one such breakthrough, one that transformed the phone experience. But I don’t think it’s enough. So we rely on the UIs we know best and that work best with the screen size we’re dealing with.
But as soon as someone perfects that next-gen UI – touch, voice, gesture, mind-to-machine, whatever – I think that all of these kinds of questions about which device to focus on and which will ultimately be the most important screen will just go out the window.
Maybe that’s a little sci-fi and optimistic of me, but I see my 12-year-old son interact with his devices and I can’t help but think, typing, like handwriting, may someday become a lost art. And when that happens, everything we know about how consumers use devices will be up in the air all over again.
Depends upon what the consumers want to do and how they work around. If the user is primarily mobile and using tools to catch up, then smartphones and tablets may be a primary tool. However, if the person does have some stationary time and is doing creative work, then a big screen is mandatory. Smartphones will continue to increase in importance, but will probably not replace a desktop computer.
I don’t think smartphones are over-hyped as a tool. What maybe isn’t being considered is whether or not they’re the “end” tool.
They are indeed a tool to “reach” consumers. However, they may not be the best tool for where the purchase is made…yet.
For most that have all three (including myself) – smartphone, tablet, and laptop – the smartphone is likely the tool that is reached for, first. Thus it is the first point of engagement. So, is it the most important tool to “reach” the consumer? Yes. Is it the current best “end” tool where a final purchase is made? No. That is where the laptop, and to a certain extent, the tablet have the advantage. The advantage is all to the screen capability on the other two devices.
Will that be the case in five years? I would have to say no one knows. The smartphone itself is just a bit older than five years at this point. It has morphed into something even beyond imagination in that short time. Who really knows what five years hence might look like?
The answer to that may live in a 17 year old’s head working in a basement somewhere.
The laptop will continue to be the primary force in the electronic age for many years. The smartphone is a strong tool; but for a working surface it can not replace the laptop.
As Tom so well put it, this also is sent from my laptop.
The key is to take a look at who is accessing which screens. I believe you’ll find most businesses have a computer at every desk – not a smart phone. Even if an employee has a smartphone, and they most likely do, they won’t be accessing a lot of their day-to-day activity that they do at their desk on their smartphone.
However, individuals are using the smartphones more and more for personal use. They can do so much of what they used to do with their computer on their hand-held devices.
I can see home PCs going the same route as the land line at home. Many people have swapped out their traditional hard-wired phone for their wireless smartphone. Many people will swap out their computer for a smartphone, iPad, etc.
Phones are always used for a quick tool, and offer great options for the airlines and retail stores with newer platforms. The PC is still king for me and my generation, as the large screen to do our work and play is way better than the mobile phones.
Young folks are addicted to their phones, and reaching them for goods and services on mobile devices is critical to get their business.
Both devices are needed, and how we develop our marketing must reach users of both in the easiest way possible.
At SOME point we will be in a post-PC era, but that day isn’t here yet. There are still numerous problems with mobile screens: in-and-out connectivity, screen size, slow downloading, tiny touch-screen buttons, etc. Beyond this, most people are spending more time sitting down (work, home, school), making larger, stationary screens easier to interface with – especially for pre-shopping research.
Yes, the post-PC era is coming…but we have some work to do.
Form factor matters. The growth of tablet usage is explosive. Tablets travel with you easier than PCs and are more convenient to use than smartphones. Phones keep getting bigger screens, while tablets are getting smaller. A couple years from now, the “perfect” screen size may, in fact become a standard size the world over, just like paper business cards have.
PC is still an important screen because the keyboard and mouse with monitor and you can able to manage multiple windows. I use the phone and tablet as an immediate gratification for content consumption and short transactions like 1-Click on Amazon, or reservation at Open Table or Airline check in. Any complex research based or content creation/collaboration activities will still be desktop based.
For now, I am going to have to stick with the computer and here’s why. The vast majority of jobs involve the use of a computer and if the job is where you spend most of your time, it just makes sense that this is also the place for marketing opportunity.
Yes, many employers do provide their employees with said computers. Many employers also block certain types of access. But the truth is, many of them have also found that by giving their employees a little more access, like allowing work from home or on their own devices, can make them more productive and happy.
This of course can and will change over time, so the bottom line is that the most important screen will be the one that consumes the largest amount of consumers’ time when they are in a position to consume.
Thanks everyone for your valuable comments. In a prior study I consulted on for AOL, we confirmed that about 70% of mobile use is not even mobile, so mostly the choice of screen is about which screen someone prefers will mostly relate to moments that they are at home.
Yes. There is definitely too much hype about smartphones. Until we see a definitive shift in pure digital access of all types of data, for a very low cost, in a rugged, ubiquitous type of smartphone, then we have a long way to go to catch the PC phenomena.