What kept onliners busy during Singapore Grand Prix
Love was not on many minds at the 2014 Singapore Formula 1 Grand Prix despite skyrocketing social media engagement. Advertising technology and big data company, BlisMedia, took a closer look at online user habits during the F1 weekend and some interesting highlights surface. The usage of dating apps slipped amidst rampant social media activity during the weekend of one of the biggest events in Singapore. Music streaming shot up during race days while news content consumption dipped during the F1 weekend.
Dating apps Tinder and OkCupid – popular partner searching tools – decreased in activity among users by 40 per cent during the F1 race, in a surprising turnaround from what many would have considered an optimum event for partner seeking given high attendance figures and international visitors.
Social media usage increased 191 per cent during the F1 weekend, with YouTube, in particular, experiencing 211 per cent uplift, while Facebook usage rose by 52 per cent.
BlisMedia analysed over 30 million data points in the days leading up to and during the F1 event, to identify the changes in online and mobile usage habits. BlisMedia studied online user behaviour at the Marina Bay Street Circuit over the F1 weekend on Friday (19 Sep) and Saturday (20 Sep), and in the central business district on two normal weekdays last week (17 to 18 Sep) for data comparison.
“It’s hardly surprising that people are engaging on social media for everything F1- related. Event goers spend long hours on their phones before and during the event, which presents excellent opportunities for brands to reach their desired audiences through targeted, intelligent advertising based on their online habits,” commented Greg Isbister, Founder and CEO of BlisMedia.
During the event, many people plugged in to popular music streaming apps – TuneIn Radio, Grooveshark, SoundCloud and SG Radio – that likely helped to ease the wait prior to the race. The results show 33 per cent uplift in music streaming usage on race day when compared to a weekday.
Mobile app usage increased by 87 per cent over the weekend and, in terms of mobile operating systems, Android and Windows Phone saw a 110 per cent uplift, whilst iOS increased by 34 per cent. News content consumption was evidently less popular on race days when compared to a weekday. Commonly-visited news sites – The Straits Times, The Business Times, AsiaOne, Reuters and The Guardian – all witnessed a 51 per cent decrease in usage during the event.
