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Author Topic: Bitcoin Survey Initial Results  (Read 7083 times)
unfinishe (OP)
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June 21, 2012, 06:37:46 PM
 #1

Before I present these initial compiled results, I would like to thank everybody who participated and made this little project of mine a big success! Also, I would like to thank those who donated for their generosity.

So, these are just some basic compilations of the answers I received for each question. If anybody has more experience analyzing this sort of data, I'm working on putting together an Excel file listing each of the individual responses in case you want to run anything more in-depth.

I'll just initially post the results for you all to see while I work on adding some commentary.

(This table might be a bit hard to read... Sorry..)

*****************************************************************
Question 1:
What country do you live in?
Answer#%
United States7238.9%
United Kingdom189.7%
Canada147.6%
Germany84.3%
Australia73.8%
Netherlands52.7%
Norway52.7%
Belgium42.2%
Finland42.2%
France42.2%
Poland42.2%
Other (European)2815.1%
Other126.5%
Question 2:
How old are you?
Answer#%
Under 18126.5%
18 - 245127.6%
25 - 305630.3%
31 - 404624.9%
41 - 50137.0%
51 - 6052.7%
Over 6021.1%
Question 3:
What is your gender?
Answer#%
Male17192.4%
Female94.9%
N/A52.7%
Question 4
What is the highest level of education (or its equivalent) that you have completed?
Answer#%
Some secondary education (High School)2211.9%
Completed secondary education168.6%
Some higher education (College, Vocational training, etc)5429.2%
Completed 2-Year Degree105.4%
Completed 4-Year Degree4825.9%
Graduate level study (Masters, Ph.D., M.D., J.D.)3518.9%
Question 5
If employed, what would best describe the field you work in?
Answer#%
Internet and Computer Technology7238.9%
Student5027.0%
Not employed126.5%
Services126.5%
Government94.9%
Construction52.7%
Finance, Insurance and Real Estate52.7%
Retail and Wholesale Trade52.7%
Manufacturing21.1%
Transportation21.1%
Agriculture, Energy and Mining10.5%
Health Care10.5%
Other94.9%
Question 6:
What term would best describe your political views?
Answer#%
Very Conservative42.2%
Conservative115.9%
Centrist94.9%
Liberal3518.9%
Very Liberal168.6%
Libertarian6736.2%
Apolitical179.2%
None of the above2614.1%
Question 7:
How did you first hear about Bitcoin?
Answer#%
Online media (Blog, podcast, Wikipedia, etc.)11662.7%
Word-of-mouth (Direct, social media, etc.)4423.8%
Internet search158.1%
Mainstream media (Newspaper, magazine, television, etc.)73.8%
Other31.6%
Question 8:
Approximately how long ago did you first hear about Bitcoin?
Answer#%
In the past month52.7%
1 - 3 months ago52.7%
3 - 6 months ago63.2%
6 - 12 months ago3720.0%
1 - 2 years ago11260.5%
2 - 3 years ago168.6%
Over 3 years ago42.2%
Question 9:
How do you use Bitcoin? (check all that apply)
Answer#%
Buying goods or services online10657.3%
* Internet Services (VPN, server hosting, etc.)4624.9%
* Technical or creative work (programming, web design, etc)2915.7%
* Entertainment (Music, games, etc.)3921.1%
* Clothing, Artwork, Other Crafts1910.3%
* Electronics or computer hardware3518.9%
Direct (face-to-face) trade3217.3%
Gambling6434.6%
Lending or Borrowing3418.4%
Donating to non-profit organizations6836.8%
Using as a store of value (comparable to gold)14176.2%
Other (Speculation, Investment)84.3%
Other189.7%
Question 10:
How have you obtained most of your Bitcoins? (check all that apply)
Answer#%
Purchasing in exchanges12969.7%
Mining9249.7%
Selling goods2312.4%
Providing services2413.0%
Other (Gifts, donations, promotions, etc)84.3%
Other73.8%
Question 11:
Why do you use Bitcoins? (check all that apply)
Answer#%
Convenience10456.2%
Low transaction costs10757.8%
Ease of international transfer9651.9%
Potential for anonymity11059.5%
Ideological or political reasons13170.8%
Opportunity for profit13573.0%
Other (Fun, curiousity, excitement, etc.)94.9%
Other105.4%
Question 12:
In your opinion, what are the greatest problems with Bitcoin? (check all that apply)
Answer#%
Security (Website hacks, etc.)7440.0%
Scalability (Growing block-chain size, etc.)7641.1%
Speculation3016.2%
Slow transaction times4423.8%
Difficulty of exchange with other currencies7339.5%
Difficulty of use for non-technical users11461.6%
Negative outside perception8445.4%
Other179.2%
Question 13:
Overall, would you consider yourself to be optimistic about the future of Bitcoin?
Answer#%
Optimistic15684.3%
Neutral2614.1%
Pessimistic31.6%
Question 14:
And finally, would you be willing to participate in another survey sometime in the future?
Answer#%
Definitely9249.7%
Maybe8445.4%
Probably not94.9%
Bonus Information
How many responders accepted the 0.02 BTC gift?
Payment Accepted#%
Yes14578.4%
No4021.6%

Check out the results from my Bitcoin Survey Project!
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=88927.0
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austonst
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June 21, 2012, 06:54:39 PM
 #2

Nice results. Pretty predictable for the most part, though 92% male? I know there's no girls on the Internet, but I'd think we'd get more than that simply out of troll responses.

unfinishe (OP)
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June 21, 2012, 07:37:02 PM
 #3

Nice results. Pretty predictable for the most part, though 92% male? I know there's no girls on the Internet, but I'd think we'd get more than that simply out of troll responses.

You really think someone would do that? Just go on the Internet and tell lies?

Anyway, if I had to venture a guess, Bitcoin users seem to have more technical backgrounds, libertarian leanings, and, given the nature of Bitcoin, more willingness to try and adopt something new and unstable, and those all might be contributing factors...

Check out the results from my Bitcoin Survey Project!
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=88927.0
MatthewLM
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June 21, 2012, 07:38:54 PM
 #4

With the survey I did, it was mostly male as well. Also a lot of Americans again.
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June 21, 2012, 07:40:35 PM
 #5

I also think the percentage of female libertarians is pretty low. Females like sharing a lot  Roll Eyes
unfinishe (OP)
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June 21, 2012, 08:45:52 PM
 #6

I also think the percentage of female libertarians is pretty low. Females like sharing a lot  Roll Eyes

According to the Pew Research Center, there are twice as many male libertarians than female.

http://www.people-press.org/2011/05/04/section-3-demographics-and-news-sources/

Check out the results from my Bitcoin Survey Project!
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=88927.0
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June 21, 2012, 11:27:15 PM
 #7

Very nice questions, responses, and survey size! I'm impressed! This will help me market Bitcoin a lot better!

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unfinishe (OP)
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June 22, 2012, 12:06:20 AM
 #8

Very nice questions, responses, and survey size! I'm impressed! This will help me market Bitcoin a lot better!


Check out the results from my Bitcoin Survey Project!
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=88927.0
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June 22, 2012, 12:46:08 AM
 #9

Wow, 18.9% with graduate degrees!  That's significantly higher than the national average (around 10%).  I suppose it is to be expected, given the technical nature of Bitcoin and complexity of using it (for now), but still, it surprises me.

It's a bit disheartening to see the lack of people who have recently heard about Bitcoin.  The vast majority heard about it more than 1 year ago.  Does that mean that Bitcoin growth is slowing?
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June 22, 2012, 03:26:30 AM
 #10

Any chance you could tell the percent of responses that came from this forum vs. Reddit? I know that at some point you dropped google authentication, so at least based on PM codes you sent out...? 

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unfinishe (OP)
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June 22, 2012, 03:32:12 AM
 #11

Any chance you could tell the percent of responses that came from this forum vs. Reddit? I know that at some point you dropped google authentication, so at least based on PM codes you sent out...? 

Well, I only got requests for codes from about 10 people, 3 here and 7 on Reddit, so that's not much to extrapolate with...

Check out the results from my Bitcoin Survey Project!
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=88927.0
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June 22, 2012, 04:49:28 AM
 #12

It's a bit disheartening to see the lack of people who have recently heard about Bitcoin.  The vast majority heard about it more than 1 year ago.  Does that mean that Bitcoin growth is slowing?

I'd say it means most people that frequent these forms are mostly died hard fans that have been here for 1 year +

would be really cool is if someone would do a cold call survey

438 - 257 - 1495
ring.. ring...
Quote
hello?
would you like to take a quick 5 min survey, and make some cash?
sure ok
have you heard about bitcoin
no
awww, sry you cant take this survey,  thank you!
repeat! Endlessly  Cheesy


unfinishe (OP)
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June 22, 2012, 05:10:06 AM
 #13

So, I'm not exactly sure how to tabulate the raw responses in Excel in a useful way because of the "check all that apply" questions, but I'll keep thinking about that.

Anyway, in the meantime, I ran some code to see if there were any substantial correlations between choices, but for the most part the distributions were fairly uniform. The only pairings that stood out were "no duh" revelations, such as the fact that 18-24 year olds were more likely to be students, libertarians were more likely to cite "Political or ideological reasons", and people who used Bitcoins to buy goods and services were more likely to like Bitcoin's "Convenience".

As for the idea of a cold-call survey, one idea that was thrown around in my original Research thread was to make a focus group specifically to find out how people react to Bitcoin when they first hear about it and see if there's any way to improve it.

Check out the results from my Bitcoin Survey Project!
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=88927.0
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June 22, 2012, 08:51:53 AM
 #14

Interesting (and good) to see that "Difficulty of use for non-technical users" is the biggest hurdle people see. Definitely lots to be done here.

Are you planning to repeat the survey in e.g. 6 months? Would be really good to know how things change.

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unfinishe (OP)
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June 22, 2012, 01:53:39 PM
 #15

Interesting (and good) to see that "Difficulty of use for non-technical users" is the biggest hurdle people see. Definitely lots to be done here.

That, in particular, is why I'm liking more and more the idea of next looking outside the community to figure out just what we can do about the usability barrier.

 
Quote
Are you planning to repeat the survey in e.g. 6 months? Would be really good to know how things change.

I suppose that wouldn't be a bad idea, although the answers might not change much if we mostly get responses from Bitcoin veterans (1-2 years experience) again.

Also, I might not be able to afford the "two cents" pun if the price quadruples again... Cheesy

Check out the results from my Bitcoin Survey Project!
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=88927.0
unfinishe (OP)
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June 24, 2012, 05:29:38 AM
 #16

I hate to both double-post and revive a slow thread, but I've been thinking about the implications and wanted to see what you all think.

I once thought that the technical aspect, both of using Bitcoin and of understanding it, was the biggest obstacle for Bitcoin. But perhaps it is actually the fact that Bitcoin just might not be all that useful to the everyday person, and the ideological appeal that Bitcoin has for many of us (myself included) can only go so far.

I don't know whether this will make any sense, but perhaps what Bitcoin needs is actually more difficulty exchanging it with other currencies. Right now, it seems that a lot of people exchange the Bitcoins they get for their currency of choice (or hold onto them and then sell), rather than spend them directly, simply because other currencies are more useful to buy with. All the great things about Bitcoin might not make up for the fact that it's just not widely used. You can't go to the grocery store or pay your rent with Bitcoin. But, if it were really difficult to exchange, then perhaps it would start making more sense to spend directly, and consequentially more potential Bitcoin users could recieve their first coins by providing services rather than having to buy them for hard-earned cash.

On the other hand, I never took economics, so this might just be a bunch of baloney... I probably shouldn't post when I'm tired...

Check out the results from my Bitcoin Survey Project!
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=88927.0
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June 24, 2012, 01:11:05 PM
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I don't know whether this will make any sense, but perhaps what Bitcoin needs is actually more difficulty exchanging it with other currencies. Right now, it seems that a lot of people exchange the Bitcoins they get for their currency of choice (or hold onto them and then sell), rather than spend them directly, simply because other currencies are more useful to buy with. All the great things about Bitcoin might not make up for the fact that it's just not widely used. You can't go to the grocery store or pay your rent with Bitcoin. But, if it were really difficult to exchange, then perhaps it would start making more sense to spend directly, and consequentially more potential Bitcoin users could recieve their first coins by providing services rather than having to buy them for hard-earned cash.

Actually, currency exchange is something that Bitcoin is (or, rather, will be once it is more widely accepted) really useful for. No need to take credit cards or foreign cash when travelling: just take bitcoins and exchange it for the local currency at your destination. No need to worry about theft or identity fraud or exorbitant fees or capital controls; just use Bitcoin and all the problems currently associated with currency exchange disappear. Remittance is also a prime candidate for Bitcoin use. In fact, if all Bitcoin was good for was currency exchange, that would still make it pretty darn useful in my book.

Of course, if you're worried that it'll be too easy, then fear not. I'm sure governments are going to do everything in their power to make it as difficult as possible. Wink

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June 24, 2012, 01:55:18 PM
 #18

why you list no china?
Question 1:      
What country do you live in?

I think china is a big market of bitcoin!
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June 24, 2012, 01:57:33 PM
 #19

Could be, but this survey likely suffers from selection bias.
unfinishe (OP)
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June 24, 2012, 02:53:13 PM
 #20

Could be, but this survey likely suffers from selection bias.

Oh, it definitely does. There's not an easy way to get around it, unfortunately...

Actually, currency exchange is something that Bitcoin is (or, rather, will be once it is more widely accepted) really useful for. No need to take credit cards or foreign cash when travelling: just take bitcoins and exchange it for the local currency at your destination. No need to worry about theft or identity fraud or exorbitant fees or capital controls; just use Bitcoin and all the problems currently associated with currency exchange disappear. Remittance is also a prime candidate for Bitcoin use. In fact, if all Bitcoin was good for was currency exchange, that would still make it pretty darn useful in my book.

That's true. I guess I hadn't considered that. However, that's still only going to be useful for a relatively small percentage of people. Not to say it wouldn't be significant, but Bitcoin would still a long way from being adopted as a true currency.

Quote
Of course, if you're worried that it'll be too easy, then fear not. I'm sure governments are going to do everything in their power to make it as difficult as possible. Wink

That's for sure. Bizzarely, I think that the more they clamp down on it, the more it will grow. Kind of like the Streisand effect.

Check out the results from my Bitcoin Survey Project!
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=88927.0
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