Ipsos Digital Tools Consumer Online Survey

Washington, DC, September 22, 2020

Use of digital tools increased during the pandemic as people adjusted to the realities of COVID-19, buying necessities online and connecting with local businesses through social media and online messaging, according to a survey commissioned by Facebook.

The Digital Tools Consumer Survey was conducted for Facebook, Inc. (“Facebook”) by Ipsos in July 2020 among more than 11,000 people age 18-plus in 13 countries, to assess how their utilization of digital technologies and social media has adapted to support continued engagement with businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. The data was analyzed in a report by Deloitte, Digital Tools in Crisis and Recovery: Consumer Report.

Across the 13 countries surveyed, key findings from select countries include:

• Communications turned more digital: many people spent more time using online messaging (51% in Brazil; 27% in France; 61% in Indonesia; 48% in Sri Lanka; 23% in the US) and on social media platforms (48% in Brazil; 34% in France; 66% in Indonesia; 53% in Sri Lanka; 41% in the US);
• For many people, their spending online to purchase goods and services increased (49% in Brazil; 35% in France; 56% in Indonesia; 46% in Sri Lanka; 49% in the US);
• Many people also said they had used some form of social media or online messaging more to communicate with businesses (55% in Brazil; 25% in France; 66% in Indonesia; 68% in Sri Lanka; 31% in the US);
• People’s choice of businesses has also been impacted: noticeable shares of people said they stopped buying from an existing business and started buying from at least one new business (56% in Brazil; 25% in France; 46% in Indonesia; 50% in Sri Lanka; 20% in the US);
• Among people who switched to buying from new businesses, majorities said they have started purchasing from new local small businesses (58% in Brazil; 64% in France; 56% in Indonesia; 69% in Sri Lanka; 52% in the US);
• The businesses people reached out to locally included businesses led by underrepresented groups: substantial proportions in some countries said they have started purchasing from women-owned or operated businesses (21% in Brazil; 9% in France; 51% in Indonesia; 29% in Sri Lanka; 17% in the US);
• In the future, after the pandemic is over, many people reported that they expect to spend more at local small businesses (34% in Brazil; 27% in France; 32% in Indonesia; 36% in Sri Lanka; 25% in the US)

Methodology

The online study was conducted using opt-in-panels from July 7 through July 29, 2020, among 11,036 adult internet users in 13 countries.  

Europe/North America: France (n=501), Italy (n=500), Spain (n=501), the UK (n=502), the US (n=5,002)

Asia-Pacific: Australia (n=502), India (n=500), Indonesia (n=505), New Zealand (n=503), Philippines (n=510), Sri Lanka (n=510)

Latin America: Brazil (n=500), Mexico (n=500)

 The study was conducted in 9 languages:

Samples were selected among opt-in panels in each country, with targets set for gender, age, and education.  The data were weighted within each country to align age, gender, education, and region to population benchmarks. The benchmark targets came from population statistics such as the Federal Census, Eurostat, and other reliable sources. Additionally, the other weight was computed for analyzing and reporting combined results across all countries.  In the US, the country-level weight is scaled down to yield a weighted count of 500.  In other countries, the global weight is the same as the country weight.  This weight allows each country to contribute equally to the combined results across all countries.  

About Facebook

Founded in 2004, Facebook's mission is to give people the power to build community and bring the world closer together. People use Facebook's apps and technologies to connect with friends and family, find communities and grow businesses.

About Ipsos

Ipsos is the world’s third largest Insights and Analytics company, present in 90 markets and employing more than 18,000 people. Our passionately curious research professionals, analysts and scientists have built unique multi-specialist capabilities that provide true understanding and powerful insights into the actions, opinions and motivations of citizens, consumers, patients, customers and employees. We serve more than 5,000 clients across the world with 75 business solutions. ISIN code FR0000073298, Reuters ISOS.PA, Bloomberg IPS:FP www.ipsos.com.