Did you know?

Here are some interesting facts about consumer behavior today:

How does the consumer spend time?

The average adult spends 45 minutes a week viewing magazines and 25 minutes flipping newspapers.

People spend one hour playing video games and 14 hours on the internet per week.

2 hours and 54 minutes every day listening to radio and that goes to 5 hours during the weekend.

The average American has the tv on for 8 hours and 11 minutes every day. This doesn't mean he is paying attention to the tv. The average person watches tv for 4 hours and 30 minutes, this according to Nielsen. Another interesting fact is that 19 of people would rather hear good news than bad news.

David Verklin in his book "Watch this, listen up, click here" estates that in 2008 media should consume more than 11 hours of our day, and that is not the time we spend multitasking. He also says that in 2008 , engagement (involvement) will be the metric that will matter to marketers and not so much numbers of "eyeballs".

The main change we see now is that we spend our time in a more diverse way since we have more media options. We are also more overwhelmed with all the information we get. On average we get exposed to 3,000 ads a day. Even though some would like not to see ads at all, the interruption is what really bugs people.

According to EMarketer, Older Americans are the most affluent segment of the US population. Internet usage by baby boomers-and over-60s-is projected to continue rising well into the future. These trends create an irresistible opportunity for marketers.

Over the next five years, the number of US baby boomers who use the Internet at least once a month will grow by more than 5 million, rising from 58.2 million in 2006 to 63.7 million in 2011. Over-60s will also be a large and growing segment of the US Internet culture, growing from 17.7 million Internet users in 2006 to 25.3 million by 2011.

Why should you care? Because if you understand people's behavior and how they use media, you're more likely to succeed in your marketing efforts and not waste money.