5 things you ought to know about internet usage in Cyprus

If you are considering new ways to promote your business, the internet is a channel you should pay close attention to if you are not already using it. In this article we analyse five important statistical facts about social media usage of Cypriot residences, the age of internet users in Cyprus, the number of computer devices in Cyprus households, the number of people that have internet access and the most popular online activities.

This information will help you better understand internet usage in Cyprus and the opportunities that arise from this channel. All data is collected from the Statistical Services of Cyprus website using data from 2013.

#1 Social Media Usage of Cypriot Residents

Social media continues to grow rapidly globally, providing users a great way to engage and connect with their friends, colleagues, families and their favourite brands. Cyprus is not an exception to this trend. According to research carried out by governmental statistics services in Cyprus, 66.7% of the people who use the Internet are connected with social media networks such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Trip Advisor, Instagram etc. More specifically, 428 555 people used social media to connect with others.

The importance of this extended use of social media for a business is that it has become a necessity to maintain a professional presence on relevant social networks, projecting the right brand image and messages to your customers as well as people that are interested in your product or service. For example, it is almost unthinkable if you are a hotel or restaurant not to have a presence on Trip Advisor, a social media platform that claims to present “objective reviews, traveler photographs and travel advise from real travelers” which to a great degree is used by tourists.

#2 Ages of Internet Users in Cyprus

Knowing the age of the internet user, and being able to target advertising campaigns according to age, is probably the strongest attribute of internet marketing.

The number of internet users in Cyprus aged 16-24 is 104 848, followed by the age group of 25-54 which is is the largest segment with 377 488 users. The internet users of the age group of 55-74 are 159 495. Internet users in Cyprus with the highest use are those between the ages of 16-24 (94.7%). Students use the internet to an extremely high degree with 99.0% of them accessing it. Furthermore, it is noted that men use the internet more frequently than women with 63.3% and 60.3% respectively.

Advertising platforms such as Facebook Ads and Google AdWords give advertisers extremely useful demographic targeting tools for the Cyprus market. Facebook has extremely detailed demographic information on users and Google is not far behind.

#3 Computers at households in Cyprus

The percentage of households with access to a computer increase continuously year by year. In fact, 70.3% of the households in Cyprus had access to a computer, either desktop, portable or handheld, according to the government agency dealing with statistics in Cyprus during the year of 2013. In numbers, 489 325 individuals have access to the such devices. In particular, 27.3% of households had access to a desktop, 62.0% to a portable computer, 18.7% to a tablet computer and 7.1% to a netbook.

#4 Internet access at home

Not only are computer devices increasing but also internet access in households is increasing in Cyprus year by year. In 2013, the Internet was accessed at least once in 64.7% of the households compared to 31.7% in 2005 which means that 641 831 individuals use the internet. There is a significant increase in broadband connections and a simultaneous decrease in narrow-band connections (Modem, ISDN) over the years. It is also worth noting that around 551,762 people use their mobile devices to access the internet away from home or the office.

With the increased usage of mobile devices comes increased access to their users via screens on smart phones and tablets. It is now possible to specifically target mobile devices with both Facebook Ads and Google AdWords.

5# Popular Activities

In regards to what users are doing when they are connected to the internet, research results showed that the most popular activity is searching for information about goods or services and sending/receiving emails with 85.7% and 74.7%, respectively. It should be noted that 19.8 % of internet users made online orders for goods and services in the first three months of 2013. More than half of them ordered clothes and sports goods (53,4%) and 49.8% ordered travel arrangements (tickets, hotel, car hire etc).

It is important to understand that search engines such as Google and Bing allow advertisements on search results pages. If you think about it, this is probably the most effective use of advertising as you can reach potential customers looking for information or getting ready to make a purchase for a product or service. Furthermore email efforts, when targeted to potential consumers that have opted in and want to receive your newsletters with product/services news or offers, can be extremely rewarding ones.

Conclusion

The rapid growth of social media usage of Cypriot residents, as well as the ability to segment by age or gender of user, present a huge marketing opportunity allowing the efficient targeting of desired audiences for specific marketing campaigns. In addition, the very fact that the usage of both computer devices and internet is increasing, the option to marketers to create and implement complete digital strategic marketing plans rather than just banners on the internet. Finally, the fact that the most popular activity for Cypriots online is searching for services and products, opens an exciting opportunity to utilizing Search Engine Marketing and Search Engine Optimization to promote products and services.

If you need more information on how to take advantage of the opportunities the internet offers for marketing purposes do not hesitate to call Socialway at 70002665 or contact us by email for a no obligations meeting to discuss your needs.