I presented this in July 2011 in Denver.

1. Noel-Levitz
National Conference
“What‟s up with Canada, eh?”
Sean Williams
Associate Consultant, Noel-Levitz
July 28, 2011

2. Flow for the hour
• Setting the stage
• Canadian and US comparisons
• Compilation of research findings
– Teens
– Millennials
– Comparison
• Summary

3. Who is this guy?
• I’m the token Canadian at Noel-Levitz
• I’ve been in marketing for almost 20 years
• Done the ‘big’ agency thing (i.e. Leo Burnett, Dentsu,
etc.) and worked for companies in marketing/sales roles
(i.e. Nikon and Molson)
• Set up ‘marketing consultancy’ business in early 2007
• Past and current work within a variety of industries (i.e.
CPG, CE, financial, retails, telco, etc.)
• HE is a big focus within portfolio
– Worked for StFX University
– Consulted with another HE consulting company for 2 years
• Working for Noel-Levitz (WSS) since Oct. ’10

4. What I‟m hoping to achieve this morning
1. Give the Canadian perspective
2. Highlight behaviours of two important
demographic segments
3. Offer insights for future recruitment and
retention efforts

5. This is not a review of one study
• This is a compilation of information and research from a
variety of sources – it doesn’t always match
• Findings may indeed state the obvious
• Thanks to...
– IMI International
– Media Badger
– Campus Intercept
– comScore
– eMarketer
– CMRC
– Ipsos Reid
– Many others

6. Who are we talking about today?

7. Are Canadians different from
Americans?

8. One thing is for sure, we both love...

9. Canadian usage just keeps going up

10. Canadian‟s like to converse, share, view

11. American‟s too

12. Facebook is both our favourite
• Over 16.5 million people are on facebook
• US has almost 153 million users
• Within the Canadian group, almost 1.4 million
(8.3%) are between 14 to 17
• 4.1 million in the 18 to 24 age bracket (25.1%)
• In the US, 14-17 year olds make up 9.9% of total
users while 18-24 year olds make up 24.6%
2011 Checkfacebook.com

13. Biggest group are 18-24 yr olds

14. We consume a lot of video

15. Canadians like video
• 71% of Canadian Internet users visit YouTube
every month
– Only 55% of American online users hit the video site
every month
• The age group in Canada that uses YouTube the
most is between 18 and 24
– They spend an average of 360 minutes viewing
videos every month
• It’s not just YouTube
• CBC, CTV and Global have all seen growth in
their online content viewing
2011 comScore

16. We tweet, but not our youth
• 13.7% of Canadians use Twitter each month as
opposed to 11.3% of Americans
• However, tweeting is done by the older
demographics (30+)
• From a younger perspective, only 8% of teens
tweet
2010 comScore & IMI

17. And when it comes to 18 to 24 yr olds
• Americans averaged 28 hours per week on the
Internet, compared to 27 hours by Canadians
• 81% of Canadians are on Facebook compared to
only 57% in the U.S.
• Americans are more into MySpace with 54%
having registered
• This is compared to 23% in Canada
• Americans send and receive an average of 129.6
text messages per week
• Canadian average 78.7 messages per week
Oct. 2009 Ipsos Reid

18. Lets talk about Canadian Teens

19. They love their games

20. Recent online activity and participation
2010/11 IMI ConsumerTrack
study (600 –1,400 sample)

21. They‟re willing to share

22. What social networks they know and use
2010/11 IMI ConsumerTrack
study (600 –1,400 sample)

23. What they use their phones for
2010/11 IMI ConsumerTrack
study (600 –1,400 sample)

24. Lets talk Canadian Millennials
(however they‟re defined)

25. Recent online activity
2010/11 IMI ConsumerTrack
study (600 –1,400 sample)

26. They live on social networks

27. What social networks they know and use
2010/11 IMI ConsumerTrack
study (600 –1,400 sample)

28. Social networks is their news source
Apr. 2011 CMRC

29. It‟s reliable and empowering
• Younger Canadians (33 per cent) are more likely
to trust information from social networks than
older Canadians
• They use social networks, sharing and
collaboration to empower them to make decisions
• This takes them well beyond their peer network
to glean information, opinions and knowledge
2010 CMRC and Edelman

30. They do their research
2010 Edelmen

31. They‟re an actionable bunch
• 81% have joined a brand-sponsored online
community with nearly half (46%) having joined
more than three
• 41% share positive brand experiences online
• For the brands they love, 64% have
recommended their products to friends and
family
• 40% have friended/followed that brand on their
social network
Oct. 2010 Edelman

32. They watch a lot of video online

33. What they use their mobile phones for
2011 Ipsos Reid

34. What else are they doing?

35. What media „engages‟ them
2010
52.5
27.7
5.3 5.5
3.5 2.2
Television Radio Newspaper Magazines Internet Out of home
Q: Which ONE media source carries advertising that you believe to be the most engaging?
Source: BBM Analytics May 2010

36. And now for the „student‟ perspective
Feb. 2011 CampusIntercept

37. What do „students‟ respond to
Feb. 2011 CampusIntercept

38. How do they match up against
each other?

39. Social media usage by age
Q4 2010 ComScore data

40. Monthly activity with video

41. How they match up with mobile devices
Q. Do you currently own a cell phone?
Q. Is your cell phone a smart phone such as a Blackberry or
iPhone?
2010/11 IMI ConsumerTrack
study (600 –1,400 sample)

42. What‟s different in mobile phone usage?
2010/11 IMI ConsumerTrack
study (600 –1,400 sample)

43. Now what?

44. You probably knew much of this
THEY’RE
WIRED

45. Let me state the obvious
• They’re connected all the time
• Social networks are more than just their social
networks
• Video, video, video
• Mobile devices are an ever increasing life line
– Gaming, browsing, video, social media, emails... and
of yeah, talking
• Email isn’t dead, just check their mobile devices
• They still interact with traditional media (at least
the Millennials do)

46. My last words
• There is learning here that should help guide
both recruitment and retention efforts
• Ask yourself the following questions:
– Do I need to further understand things in my
market(s) and on my campus?
– Am I using the right tools to engage potential and
current students?
– How do these tools fit within the broader marketing
and communication strategies?
– Do I need help?
• There are best practices to learn from and other
tools to help implement

47. Thank you
info@williamsmarketing.ca
@swmgroup
linkedin.com/in/seanwillliams