Guess what teens' least favorite communication technology is?
SteveI may as well rename this blog 'All the ways I hate Email' since that is what I am going on and on about lately.
Well, I ask your indulgence one more time and I swear I will get off of this soapbox for a while because I am sure you are sick of it, and also because no matter how much I moan about email, it isn't going anywhere soon.
Unless it might be.
Take a look at the chart below from some recent research from Pew on teens' (also known as your future candidates, employees, customers), preferred mediums for communicating with their friends. Drink in the dta on this fine Monday morning and then some FREE commentary from me after the chart.
A quick look at the data reveals a few interesting pieces of information:
1. The obvious: Text or SMS messaging is still the 'killer app' for teens, with 55% of those surveyed reporting they use SMS every day to connect with friends. Despite the proliferation of 'messaging' apps like SnapChat and WhatsApp, the lowly SMS message still dominates teens' daily use. The lesson here for the rest of us: Interoperability often can trump features when people make decisions about technology. SMS just works, no matter what kind of a phone one has, no matter the version of the operating system, and more importantly, comes 'enabled' and ready to use on every device - no special app downloads and 'friending' required.
2. In-person is not dead, at least not totally. If you combine 'In-person' along with talking on the phone, then you can see that these 'real life' interaction methods have not been completely replaced by electronic an impersonal communication modes. There are a few possible reasons for this - it could be information overload with teens' likely feeling somewhat overwhelmed with all the communication choices and formats available to them. Or it could be that teens' are actually, you know, somewhat normal people, and enjoy the in-person interactions with friends just like you do too. I guess the main takeaway is to not undersestimate the value and importance of the in-person interaction, even when it is so, so much easier just to send an email.
3. And since I just had to bring it up, we see teens' least preferred method of communication with friends is email. At only 6% claiming to use it daily, it trails all other forms of communication, including really niche methods like video game chatting. There is no indication from any source I have seen that suggests this trend and preference will reverse any time soon, resulting in essentially a generation of future workers and customers that simply rank email at the bottom of their preferred methods of interaction. We (people who make decisions about workplace technology and are charged with reaching and influencing this audience), have to start taking these changes more seriously, or risk not being able to effectively engage the next generation of folks.
What do you think? Are you considering making any changes to your communication tech mix?
When was the last time you emailed someone under 20?
Did they respond?
Have a great week!
Reader Comments (3)
Here's why I dislike these kinds of stats -
1. Because I don't use something doesn't = I don't like it. Teenagers don't NEED email. My kids didn't use email until they got to college because they didn't need email. Now they do. Now they use it.
2. My least favorite way of communicating is email - does that make me a teenage? Nope - unfortunately.
Create a good alternative that works people will use it. I don't see this as an age issue - it's a tech issue.
I think we need to be careful with the implementation or suggestion of changes based on these statistics. I'm 40+ and I rarely communicate with my friends via email. Texting, phone, or in person - or even social medial like facebook and twitter....email is more for business in my life and with my social/work circles.
Paul - email is terrible, not because of the technology, but because of how it has come to be used in most workplaces. People that don't have to use Email never will choose to use it for anything other than signing up for retail mailing lists.
Trevor - how does that change when you look at work communication? My bet is you have to use a technology you loathe a lot more than you would like to.