Report: Web Site Usage Up 130% in 1997

A new, joint study by I/PRO (Internet Profiles Corp.) and Media Metrix, The PC Meter Company, shows that the average Web site grew 130% in 1997 and now receives 250,000 visits per day.

The companies said they teamed up for a joint initiative to deliver a
comprehensive review of Web usage, combining their two different but
complementary data sources.

The result of the collaboration is a report titled “The Web in Perspective: A
Comprehensive Review of Web Usage.”

I/PRO uses a site-centric approach, which involves measuring and analyzing
activity at a Web site. Media Metrix has developed a user-centric measurement
approach, which through its patented PC Meter software technology, tracks
actual Web user behavior and demographics. By pooling their data from a
representative sample of Web sites, the companies said they have been able to
provide unprecedented insight into Web site usage and individual user
behavior.

Approximately 40% of Web growth can be directly attributed to users accessing
the Web from home, the study showed, and another 15% can be linked to
increased frequency, or more usage among existing users. The remaining growth
is a result of increased usage at work and burgeoning non-U.S. based traffic.

Other findings:

• Marketing and e-commerce sites were the fastest growing type of site, increasing 500% in 1997.
  
• Significant traffic generating events like the death of Princess Diana and
  the Heaven’s Gate suicides have a tremendous impact on Web usage. However,
  rather than increasing reach, these events seem to increase frequency as
  existing users move around the Web to pull together details.
  
• The percent of females online nearly equals the percent of males; however,
  men access many more pages.
  
• Usage patterns by day of week and time of day have remained virtually
  identical to the patterns reported in 1996. This finding has implications for
  media planners and
  buyers as they look to make optimal online buys.
  

The report is available for $695 and can be ordered on the Web at ipro.com/wip98, or at http://www.mediametrix.com.