TORONTO – A new Telus and Angus Reid survey released today shows Canadian women are increasingly relying on their e-mail and Facebook for planning social activities and managing their busy households.
Like the little black dress, e-communication is a must have basic that won’t likely be going out of style any time soon.
According to the January, 2008 survey, 43% of Canadians polled said that they organize their evening social plans by e-mail. Furthermore, women are more likely than men to take advantage of e-mail to organize their social plans (46%), tell their loved ones that they are thinking of them (36%) or inviting friends over (21%).
"E-mail is this year’s must-have accessory for Canadian women on-the-go," said Tammy Scott, vice-president, marketing communications at Telus. "Women specifically are quick to embrace the tools that help them manage their busy lives. From organizing children’s after school activities through to doctor’s appointments and social events, it’s no wonder that e-mail has become such an essential part of their lifestyle."
"Accessible features like e-mail, text messaging and Facebook are definitely changing the way we interact as a society and contributing to a richer work-life balance for today’s busy families,” added Michael Rodenburgh, vice-president, Angus Reid Strategies.
The survey also found that men indicated a higher preference for in-person communication to:
* Let people know that they are back on the market: 33% vs. 27% women;
* Apologize to someone: 73% vs. 65% women;
* Thank a host for a great party: 41% vs. 35% women.
Women indicated a higher preference for e-mail communications to:
* Ask someone on a first date: 11% vs. 3% men;
* Organize social plans: 46% vs. 40% men;
* Invite friends over: 41% vs. 14% men.
While face-to-face, telephone and e-mail are the preferred form of communications for Canadians, Facebook is a very popular communication tool among young adults, mainly used to:
* Let friends and contacts know that they are back on the market (50% for the 18-24 age group and 40% for the 25-34 age group);
* Organize social plans (28% for the 18-24 age group and 11% for the 25-34 age group);
* Tell their circle of friends that they are engaged (19% for the 18-24 age group and 14% for the 25-34 age group).
Text message is the tool of choice for young Canadians to:
* Tell a colleague about something embarrassing (31% for the 18-24 age group and 24% for the 25-34 age group);
* Let your partner know that you are out of milk (27% for both the 18-24 and 25-34 age group).
While Facebook is a popular form of social communication for young Canadians, text messaging is preferred for the more ‘personal, one-to-one’ kind of communication. As such,
* Albertans said Facebook is their preferred way to let friends and contacts know that they are back on the market (47%);
* Manitobans and Saskatchewanians said that they prefer to use text messaging when telling a colleague something embarrassing (e.g. zipper is undone, bra is showing) (30%) and to let their spouse know that they are out of milk (34%);
* Ontarians prefer to email (19%) their boss when covering up the fact that they are calling in sick …from the beach;
* Québécois prefer the more personal forms of communications when letting friends and family know that they are back on the market (46% in-person) or expressing their joy when getting engaged (59% in-person).
