Bridging the Gap: Sustaining online engagement

July 4th 2012

Julia RulfOfcom

Ofcom and the CCP• The CCP was established under the Communications Act

2003 as the independent, policy advisory body on consumer interests in telecommunications, broadcasting and spectrum markets.

• The Panel advises Ofcom, Government, the EU and others on how to achieve a communications marketplace in which the communications interests of consumers and citizens are protected and promoted

• The Panel is independent of Ofcom. Ofcom has an agreed Memorandum of Understanding with the Consumer Panel. This includes a commitment to shared undertaking of research where appropriate

• The Panel has a budget to commission its own research.

Bridging the Gap: Sustaining online engagement

July 4th 2012

Julia RulfOfcom

Ofcom and the CCP• The CCP was established under the Communications Act

2003 as the independent, policy advisory body on consumer interests in telecommunications, broadcasting and spectrum markets.

• The Panel advises Ofcom, Government, the EU and others on how to achieve a communications marketplace in which the communications interests of consumers and citizens are protected and promoted

• The Panel is independent of Ofcom. Ofcom has an agreed Memorandum of Understanding with the Consumer Panel. This includes a commitment to shared undertaking of research where appropriate

• The Panel has a budget to commission its own research.

The challenge

In the Panel’s view: the challenge to increase participation is

underestimated; meeting the challenge is underfunded; and people who remain unable to access online

services will suffer increasing detriment.

22% of the UK adult population – eleven million people –

still do not use the internet at home.

The Framework?

Who did we speak to?

Consumers who are less digitally engaged – lapsed, proxy, narrow and new users - 48

Stakeholders and frontline staff in training delivery roles - 44

People who are currently not online living in an area of extreme deprivation - 14

What did we want to understand?

What works to get and keep people online?

How can people get the most out of being online?

What works best in encouraging people’s breadth of participation?

What factors lie behind low levels of digital participation?

What barriers to digital participation exist among people who are offline in an area of extreme deprivation?

The two biggest barriers

The status quo: the ‘gravitational’ hold of the offline world

Fear of technology and its complexity

Pull of the status quo

offline world is seen as easier, faster, familiar, more accessible and user-friendly

strong adherence and loyalty to traditional methods

fear of offline exclusion

Choice determined by availability

The status Quo“You know, by the time

you’ve got the computer turned on and up and

running, I could have done it all on the phone in half the

time”

(Narrow user, female, 22)

“It’s easier and quicker to do things the normal way. I

like to see and touch things, especially before I buy them. The internet’s

good for information. . . but that’s about all”

(Narrow user, female, 62)

“I like going down to the post office. It gets me out and about and meeting people. I don’t want to stay indoors and stare at a

computer screen”

(Lapsed user, female, 77)

Fear of technology and its complexity

• Complexity of technology and language offline/online divide.

• Current technology (particularly PC-based) is seen to be difficult and too complex

• The image, not just language of technology is offputting – for others, for younger people, for people who are ‘better

educated’

Worries about pressing the ‘wrong’ button or typing in any form of personal information inhibits engagement

Fear of technology and its complexity

“It is so easy to get lost. You spend ages on it and end up with nothing by pressing one wrong button”

(Lapsed user, male, 54)

“I’ve only just learned which button to press to put a

capital letter at the beginning of a sentence. I found that out a couple of weeks ago”

(New user, female, 69)

”It’s for a younger generation. They’ve

grown up with it. It’s too late for me”

(Male, Proxy user, 67)

“I’m never going to put my personal details in.

Once you’ve’ done that, it’s all out there and you can never get it back”

(Male, Lapsed user, 54)

Other important barriers

Lack of confidence Lack of ongoing support Low affordability and priority

Social isolation Poor family dynamics Presence of a dominant proxy Lack of time Low awareness of community-based sources of

help Misconception with regard to community-based

sources of help

Drivers Tenacity / determination

Ready access to informal, ongoing, one-to-one support

Benefits of being online

Relevance to interests

Fear of being left behind

Peer pressure

The consumer types in detail

• Lapsed users– These people have used the internet but have stopped

• Proxy users– These people are not able or willing to access the

internet themselves. Instead, they are reliant on someone else to go online for them – a proxy.

• Narrow users– Narrow users of the internet are those who have not

progressed beyond ‘narrow/basic’ usage.

• Developing users– These people have overcome many of the barriers to

participation.

• Video

Lapsed Users :Issues and Opportunities

Issues• Multiple barriers and weak drivers• Poor/weak introduction to the internet• Many now very unlikely to go back online• Lack of support

Opportunities• Need for better signposting to formal, community

based sources of help• Incidental exposure

Proxy Users:Issues and OpportunitiesIssues• The power of the proxy limits the opportunity for

the proxy user to learn • Tendency not to personally identify with using the

internet• With someone else available it’s easier to ‘let go’.• Limited belief about the benefits of the internet.

Opportunities• Need for better, more immediate access to outside

support.• Possible opportunity to target the people who go

online as proxies, rather than the non-users themselves.

Narrow Users:Issues and Opportunities

Issues• Participation remains very limited, either by

choice, or because of their lack of skill.• Technological complexity is a particularly strong

barrier

Opportunities• Many narrow users need help to use the internet

more efficiently, so that they can see the technology as an enabler.

• There is also a need to address the misconceptions surrounding outside help.

Developing Users:Issues and OpportunitiesIssues• What works well is a combination of sustained,

ongoing support, a predisposition to want to learn, and a conviction of the importance of being online.

• Many respond well to the offer of outside help but, like other people, have misconceptions about the suitability of such help.

Opportunities• Address misconceptions of outside help• Developing users can act as strong, positive role

models.

Offline in an area of extreme deprivation - Glasgow strong polarisation between those who

would consider going online and those who would not.

Key barriers:

Attractions of offlineLack of supportLow affordabilityVery few had considered using any formal

sources of support

Opportunities:Areas for strategic focus Strengthen coordination

Work under a single, recognisable badge

Raise people’s awareness of resources and address misconceptions about community-based centres and libraries

Widen the scope to developing and sustaining engagement

Mirror offline attractions in the online offer

Encourage user-friendly forms of technology

Introduce stronger evaluation and accountability

Opportunities: On the ground delivery The need for a focus on informal, incidental learning

Making better use of existing offline resources

Creating informal partnerships and collaboration

Joining up resources more formally

Addressing misconceptions about libraries and community centres

The importance of the role of Corporate Social Responsibility

The support that can be offered by Digital Champions

The recommendations

Thank you