Households with children are the major buyers of all things technology in the home, as well as all consumer goods. They provide the viewing and recommending experiences for new products to the more average buyers and their assessments, of specific brands and product types help guide the overall marketplace. Parks Associates research shows there are about 32 M households with children including:

• 15% of all US households with 1 child;
• 12% of all US households with 2 children;
• 4% of all US households with 3 children;
• 1% of all US households with 4+ children

Households with children at home are eager buyers of technology products and services. Households with children are Innovators at more than 5X the rate of households without children and more than 2X the rate of broadband households in general. Just more than half of the households with children (52%) report themselves as either Innovators or Early Adopters; that compares to 22% of households without children.

This strong technology affinity in these households reflects their relative youth, often high educational level, better than average household incomes for many, and the presence of children who are entertained by these products. The high smart home device adoption reflects homeownership and households’ interest in products that can save money and offer enhanced security.

Motivations for smart home purchases vary on whether children are in the home. Convenience is more important to households without children at home. Savings and security are most important for those with children at home. Also, households with children are more confident in their ability to purchase smart home technology and confident of their ability to complete good research.

Half of all smart home buyers put only minimal time and effort (spontaneous purchase while looking around or purchased without waiting or researching) into the purchase of their smart home device. Conversely, 45% conducted some research prior to making a purchase—an additional 4% waited for a sale. These “researchers” can be influenced prior to the purchase decision phase during the awareness and consideration stages of the customer journey. Younger respondents are less likely than older ones to conduct research.

Overall, households with children show stronger engagement with lifestyle activities and opinions than households without children. Parents are more involved across multiple aspects of life. The value of technology increases for parents, driven by safety and security concerns, as well as interest in what's happening in their homes. Families and households with children will continue to be the leading buying segment for all technology in the home.

Join us at Parks Associates 26th annual CONNECTIONS: The Premier Connected Home Conference May 17-19 in Frisco Texas addressing the future of the connected home and keynotes from Alarm.com, Comcast, Cox Communities, Nice North America, and Sunnova Bringing together more than 1,500 senior executives throughout the year virtually and in person, CONNECTIONS™ provides insights into technology innovations, consumer adoption and trends, product and service forecasts, and the evaluation of new business strategies, partnerships, monetization opportunities, and value-added service design for the connected home.

For over 35 years, Parks Associates has tracked the adoption of technology in US households. Please visit www.parksassociates.com for more information. We welcome and value feedback about our research. Thank you for reading our work.

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