• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, December 16, 2008

A recent Student Survey by eROI to determine how high school and college students, as well as recent college graduates communicate digitally, reports that the mean number of email addresses per student surveyed is 2.4. Most college students have had an email address for about 8 years, with the average student getting an initial email address at the age of 13. 

When students choose a primary email service, Gmail is the clear favorite.

• 32% of college students use Gmail as their primary email address
• 19% select yahoo
• 18% pick MSN/Hotmail
• 17% use their school email address as their primary address
• 14% use another address as their primary

In addition, the study developed valuable insight into the effectiveness of marketing messages received through email, finding areas of opportunity for marketers to connect with this in-demand group.

Students, on average, read marketing emails on a "rarely to never" basis, with 61% falling into this category, says the report. Only 16% are reading marketing emails on a frequent basis, while 66% of students rarely or never take action on marketing emails.

Most college students do not feel that companies' advertising is not effectively speaking to them personally:

• 60% of students take action upon receiving an email only if they are interested in the product
• 47% take action if they are attracted to a special offer
• 11% of students take action because of the design of an email

Though DMNews, Bokardo, and Skype & Harris Interactive have reported that email is a dying channel, says the report, speculating that students are now using email primarily to sign up for social networking sites and receive email alerts, the eROI study finds that:

• ... only about 36% of students use email alerts to keep up to date on what's happening on their social networks
• ... about one-quarter of students originally got an email address for social networking purposes
• ... one-quarter got an email address for the ability to buy online
• ... 81% got an email address for communicating with family
• ... 52% for communicating with friends

Overall there is a very minor increase in email usage since getting an initial email address. It appears, says the report, that students had a real and determined need for email when they first set up an email address, not just for the purpose of setting up a social network.

Students are actively on social networks, and the study finds that they are spending their time as follows:

• 83% of college students use Facebook,
• 65% use MySpace and
• 21% use LinkedIn

With over two-thirds of students checking email at least once per day, and 55% of those checking more than 3 times per day, there's no doubt that students are aware of the emails that hit their inbox and are looking for those compelling emails that go above and beyond to resonate with them.

The study identifies the channels are students using most. The preferred means of communication for college students are:

• Text messaging (37%)
• Email (26%)
• Social networking IM (15%)
• Instant messaging (11%)
• Social networking email (11%) 
• And 12% of students check email on a mobile device

Overall, concludes the study report, "... email plays an important role in college students' life as a personal communication device, but not as a major marketing channel."

For more information, please visit eROI here.