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Microsoft has just announced its new free, web-based Outlook email system, which will take the place of the once popular Hotmail. The change includes not only a new name, but also a new design, simpler advertising and layout, and new features including integration with Skype and Facebook, and smartphone compatibility. Are consumers excited about the change? And how many would benefit from Outlook’s new features?
Hotmail vs. Gmail
In Ask Your Target Market’s latest survey, 30% of respondents said they currently have a Hotmail email account. Another 33% said they have used a Hotmail account in the past, but no longer do. And 37% said they have never used Hotmail.One of Hotmail’s biggest competitors is, of course, Gmail, which has a much larger current user base. 62% of overall respondents said they currently have an email account with Gmail.
Advertising
Advertising is one major factor for many online email users. While the ads allow them to send and receive messages free of charge, large and overly flashy ads can sometimes have a negative impact on the user experience. Overall, 24% of survey takers said they have often been bothered by ads in their email provider. 42% said that ads are sometimes bothersome. And 35% said they are never bothered by ads. Current Hotmail users were more likely to be bothered by advertising, and those who have never used Hotmail were much less likely to be bothered by ads.
New Features
But now Microsoft Outlook has changed its design, as well as some of its features, including easy integration with Facebook and usability with smartphones and tablets. And these new features may affect a lot of potential users, because 84% of overall respondents said they currently have a Facebook account, and 58% own a smartphone, tablet, or similar device.You can view the complete survey results in the widget below and be sure to click “Open Full Report” to take advantage of all the chart and filter options.Photo Credit: Windows Live Mail beta from FlickrWhat do you want to know? If you need some consumer insights on a particular topic, let us know in the comments below and we’ll consider it for an upcoming survey post.
Results were collected on July 31, 2012 via AYTM’s online survey panel.
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