Each week, according to Nielsen, 67% of Boston consumers watch video programs that aren't delivered over-the-air by local TV stations.  They aren't coming from a local cable company or by satellite.  Instead, these programs are being streamed directly to viewers via an internet connection.

This type of streamed video content is called OTT (Over-The-Top-Television) or CTV (Connected-Television). These two terms are sometimes are often used interchangeably but do have a subtle difference.

OTT generally means the video is watched on a small device like a computer, tablet, or smartphone.  CTV, on the other hand, typically means the content is viewed on a smart-TV or a regular television using a streaming device like a Roku or Amazon stick.

In Boston, OTT/CTV has exceeded the weekly reach of local newspapers and streaming audio services such as Pandora and Spotify. The medium is rapidly approaching the reach of local cable and broadcast TV stations.

Boston area business owners are expected to invest $1.7-billion during 2021 to advertise to consumers connected to the internet. This forecast was produced by Borrell Associates, a company that tracks business advertising expenditures across the country.

These online marketing dollars will be spent on banner advertising, search engine marketing, email, as well as audio and video advertising. This is all to capture the attention of shoppers and buyers as they go about their connected days.

According to Nielsen, 95.8% of adult consumers in the Boston area have access to the internet. They connect, primarily, with desktop and laptop computers; smartphones; or tablets.

Ninety-seven percent of Boston adults spend at least one hour per week online, with most spending at least 10 hours connected.

Boston shoppers are expected to spend a record $12.5 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, 82.1% of Boston 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.

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

According to Nielsen, before the current chaos, 65% of Boston area 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, Boston 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.

The chaos created in New England 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 Boston radio, by any metric, was the best way a local small business could advertise.

For instance, pre-Coronavirus, 3.5 million adult consumers tuned-in to a Boston 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 Boston area small business owners who are depending on advertising for their long-term survival.

How quickly the millennials have grown up.

According to Nielsen, 50% of all Boston area parents with children under the age of 18 are millennials.  

From the time their kids are born until they reach they are 17, these young parents will spend, on average, $233,000 per child. This does not include the cost of college.

Currently, there are 910,018 children under the age of 18 living in the Boston area. That makes the local millennial-parenting economy worth upwards of $212 billion. These dollars are being spent, among other things, on diapers, daycare, transportation, toys, education, electronics, clothing, and health care.

For New England small business owners interested in competing for a substantial portion of this multi-billion dollar pool of parental cash, they must advertise to millennial moms and dads. By almost any measurement, advertising on Boston radio is the best way to reach this audience.

March is the biggest single month for used car sales in the Boston area. During these 31 days alone, local pre-owned vehicle dealers are expected to bring in $189 million in sales. This will represent 10% of their annual revenue.

By the end of May, these dealers owners will sell more than $525 million worth of pre-owned cars and trucks. This, undoubtedly, makes March-May 'used car season' in New England

Although most Boston area used car dealers are small business owners, they do really big business. In all, over the next 12 months, more than 650,000 pre-owned vehicles will be driven off their lots.

To capture a larger share of the area's $1.9 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 Boston radio.

Boston area consumers are expected to spend $100.9 billion at retail this year, according to Nielsen. This means that every household, on average, will be dishing out over $51,000.

To capture a larger share of these dollars, New England small business owners need to know the answer to two questions.

The first question is, where is this enormous amount of cash being spent?  The list below details the answer.

As Valentine's Day sales begin to dwindle, that's when New England 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, Boston area consumers spent more than $396-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 Boston radio is the best choice.

Consumers in the Boston area spent a record $6.1 billion on home improvements in 2019. This level of spending is projected to drop modestly next year, according to Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies.

“Declining home sales and home-building activity coupled with slower gains in permitting for improvement projects will put the brakes on remodeling growth,” says Chris Herbert, the center’s managing director.

“However, if falling mortgage interest rates continue to incentivize home sales, refinancing, and ultimately remodeling activity, the slowdown may soften some.”

If New England small businesses that sell home improvement products and services would like to continue to grow despite the softening market, then advertising will be required.