Over 95% of Tampa Bay adults have access to the internet, according to Nielsen. Almost 65% of these consumers spend more than five hours a week connected.

Nielsen reports that Tampa Bay consumers go online to stay connected to friends and family; research products and services; learn the latest news, and obtain directions to where they are going and know what the weather will be when they get there.  

Here are some of the many reasons why Tampa Bay internet users go online each month

• Social Media: 75%
• Online Banking: 53%
• Weather: 51%
• Maps/Directions: 46%
• Product Reviews: 39%
• Current Events: 31%
• Restaurant Reviews: 30%
• Sports Scores/News: 26%
• Job Search: 16%
• Real Estate: 12%

And, of course, there is shopping.  Over the past three months, according to Nielsen, 76.7% of Tampa Bay consumers shopped online for every imaginable product and service including, cars, golf clubs, office supplies, wedding rings, mattresses, tires, medicine, shoes, socks, and eyeglasses.

To reach local consumers while they are online, Tampa area businesses will spend $706 million for digital advertising in 2020, according to Borrell Associates.  Here is how the money is being spent:

Tampa Bay shoppers are expected to spend a record $8.1 billion online in 2020, based on the most recent projections from eMarketer. This would represent year-over-year growth of 32.4%.

During the same period, according to eMarketer, receipts at brick-and-mortar stores have contracted by 3.2%.  Overall, excluding gas and auto sales, e-commerce will account for 20.6% of all retail sales this year.

The Coronavirus pandemic is credited with this seismic shift in shopping behavior as consumers continue to avoid stores and opt for online shopping.

“We’ve seen e-commerce accelerate in ways that didn’t seem possible last spring, given the extent of the economic crisis,” said Andrew Lipsman, eMarketer principal analyst at Insider Intelligence. “While much of the shift has been led by essential categories like grocery, there has been surprising strength in discretionary categories like consumer electronics and home furnishings that benefited from pandemic-driven lifestyle needs.”

Even before the onset of the pandemic, 76.7% of Tampa area consumers had bought goods online over the prior six months, according to Nielsen research. Purchases included clothing, health & beauty products, travel reservations, books, furniture, and groceries.

Type "TAMPA REAL ESTATE AGENTS" into Google. In slightly over a half-second, the search will deliver 13,900,000 results. Similar searches for Clearwater, Carrollwood, Temple Terrace,  produce a proportional number of returns.

Despite the economic hardships imposed by the Coronavirus crisis on Tampa Bay consumers, the demand for real estate is booming. 

The Wall Street Journal published a trend yesterday indicating that mortgage applications for purchase a home have achieved levels equal to last year.

According to redfin.com, home buying demand is 16.5% higher now than it was pre-COVID-19 on a seasonally adjusted basis.

Redfin attributes this explosive growth in real estate shoppers to two factors, including record-low mortgage rates. The other primary driver is a migration trend from expensive metropolitan areas as buyers hunt for more space at lower prices.

To capture a larger share of the robust market, local real estate agents need to stand apart from the millions of Google results.  Advertising on Tampa radio will help accomplish this.  Here's why.

Facebook usage has swelled since the onset of the Covid-19. 

According to Nielsen, before the current chaos, 61% of Tampa Bay adults used Facebook each month. This was significantly fewer than were reached by local radio or television each week.

According to the New York Times, however, since the start of the Coronavirus, daily Facebook traffic has increased by 27%. This compares to 33% growth in the amount of time consumers spend listening to local radio during a similar period.

Based on the surge in Facebook consumption, Tampa area small business owners might be tempted to purchase advertising on the social media platform to augment their regular, free postings. Here are are few facts these businesses should consider before investing.

Since the onset of the Coronavirus crisis, consumers are not flocking into the showrooms, storefronts, offices, or dining rooms of Tampa Bay small business owners. It turns out, though, social distancing has not proven to be an impediment to shopping.

Florida consumers are still spending money despite the chaos imposed by the pandemic, according to Gordon Borrell, CEO of Borrell & Associates. His company specializes in the collection of marketing data from business owners across the country.

"During depressions, recessions, floods, hurricane, earthquakes, fires, and, now, pandemics, commerce goes on," Mr. Borrell told members of Tampa's small business community during a recent teleconference.

To prove his point, he shared research from IBISworld  which, indicates spending continues despite a plunge in consumer confidence.

Every week, 2,193,604 adult consumers tune-in to a Tampa Radio station. That is way more than are reached by other media, including local television, newspaper, social media, or streaming audio sites like Pandora and Spotify.

There is a more significant number, though, for thousands of Tampa Bay small business owners who advertise on Tampa radio. The real question is how many of these listeners stick around when their commercials come on?

A 2011 Nielsen study discovered that, on average, 93% of listeners stayed with the radio station they were tuned-to when the commercials came on. That number amazed many advertisers at the time who believed that audiences were far more likely to defect when the music stopped.

A lot has changed since 2011. Tampa Bay consumers have many more media options and can instantly connect to each with a button-push, mouse-click, screen-tap, or voice command. With all this instant gratification, do radio audiences still stay tuned during commercial breaks?

The chaos created in Tampa Bay by the onset of Coronavirus has been a disruptive force among consumers. 

Work routines, buying habits, family life, and media consumption have all been palpably affected. These are all factors that need to be considered by small business owners who continue to advertise their goods and services during the crisis.

Before the current chaos, advertising on Tampa radio, by any metric, was the best way a local small business could advertise.

For instance, pre-Coronavirus, 2.1 million adult consumers tuned-in to a Tampa radio station every week. This is significantly more than watched local TV, read a newspaper, accessed social media, or streamed audio from sites like Pandora and Spotify.

New research released from Nielsen indicates that amidst the current crisis, listening to local radio remains little changed. This is great news for those Tampa Bay small business owners who are depending on advertising for their long-term survival.

March is the biggest single month for used car sales in Tampa Bay. During these 31 days alone, local pre-owned vehicle dealers are expected to bring in $121 million in sales. This will represent 10% of their annual revenue.

By the end of May, these dealers owners will sell more than $336 million worth of pre-owned cars and trucks. This, undoubtedly, makes March-May 'used car season' in Tampa Bay.

Although most Tampa area used car dealers are small business owners, they do really big business. In all, over the next 12 months, more than 415,000 pre-owned vehicles will be driven off their lots.

To capture a larger share of the area's $1.2 billion used car market requires pre-owned vehicle dealers to advertise. By any measure, the best way for these business owners to advertise is on Tampa radio.

As Valentine's Day sales begin to dwindle, that's when Tampa Bay small business owners start thinking about Mom.

Mother's Day, which happens on the second Sunday of May, is second only to Christmas in terms of holiday spending. Last year, Tampa Bay consumers spent more than $253-million celebrating the women in their lives. That number is expected to grow again in 2020.

To claim a significant share of this Mother's Day cash, local retailers and restaurants will need to advertise.  By almost every key metric, advertising on Tampa radio is the best choice.

If you were one of the 2,193,604 consumers who tuned-in to a Tampa radio station last week, then chances are you heard at least one commercial from GEICO, Progressive, or Liberty Mutual. That's because insurance is big business in Tampa.

Each year, Tampa Bay consumers spend $4.4 billion to insure their homes and cars. That's almost $1500 for every area adult.

There is good news and bad news for the 5600 local insurance agents who are competing to earn a substantial share of the home and auto premiums consumers are paying.

According to Nielsen, 258,000 policyholders in Tampa Bay are planning to switch insurance providers during the next 12 months.