Email is going strong

There were some interesting email statistics the other day from a study done by AOL and Opinion Research Corporation. It shows how pervasively email has integrated itself into our lives. Sometimes email seems like such old technology. I guess that is because everything happens so fast on Internet Time. However, it is still remains a powerful way to reach people as these statistics show.

According to the study, the average American spends about an hour a day on email. About 77% of Americans have more than one email address.

Other statistics:

41% of Americans check email first thing in the morning
18% check email right after dinner
14% check email when they get home from work
14% check email before they go to bed
40% of email users have checked their email in the middle of the night

We also seem addicted to email with 26% of people saying they can’t go more than 2 or 3 days without checking it. Plus, we access it everywhere:

In bed (23%)
In class (12%)
In a business meeting (8%)
At a Wi-Fi hotspot (6%)
At the beach or pool (6%)
In the bathroom (4%)
While driving (4%)
In church (1%)

The survey found that 61% of email users employed outside the home check their personal email at work, with three times a day the average. In addition, about 60% of all email users check their email while on vacation.

It would be interesting to see more statistics like this on business email usage. Keep in mind, email is by far the easiest way for marketers to reach people at work…at least if you have a desk job. You can’t do that very well with TV. Some people listen to radio at work, but email is everywhere. And it is a “channel” where you actively look for relevant content several times a day (or hour)!