A survey has indicated that 74 percent of smartphone shoppers make a purchase as a result of using their smartphones to help with shopping.

Published: 28 Apr 2011

A survey has indicated that 74 percent of smartphone shoppers make a purchase as a result of using their smartphones to help with shopping.

As per the key findings from “The Mobile Movement: Understanding Smartphone Users,” a study from Google and conducted by Ipsos OTX, an independent market research firm, 71 percent of smartphone users search because of an ad they’ve seen either online or offline; 82 percent of smartphone users notice mobile ads, and 88 percent of those who look for local information on their smartphones take action within a day. The study featured 5,013 US adult smartphone Internet users.

Findings:

General Smartphone Usage: Smartphones have become an integral part of users’ daily lives. Consumers use smartphones as an extension of their desktop computers and use it as they multi-task and consume other media.

• 81 percent browse the Internet, 77 percent search, 68 percent use an app, and 48 percent watch videos on their smartphone
• 72 percent use their smartphones while consuming other media, with a third while watching TV
• 93 percent of smartphone owners use their smartphones while at home

Action-Oriented Searchers: Mobile search is heavily used to find a wide variety of information and to navigate the mobile Internet.

• Search engine websites are the most visited websites with 77 percent of smartphone users citing this, followed by social networking, retail and video sharing websites
• Nine out of 10 smartphone searches results in an action (purchasing, visiting a business, etc.)
• 24 percent recommended a brand or product to others as a result of a smartphone search

Local Information Seekers: Looking for local information is done by virtually all smartphone users and consumers are ready to act on the information they find.

• 95 percent of smartphone users have looked for local information
• 88 percent of these users take action within a day, indicating these are immediate information needs
• 77 percent have contacted a business, with 61 percent calling and 59 percent visiting the local business

Purchase-driven Shoppers: Smartphones have become an indispensable shopping tool and are used across channels and throughout the research and decision-making process.

• 79 percent of smartphone consumers use their phones to help with shopping, from comparing prices, finding more product info to locating a retailer
• 74 percent of smartphone shoppers make a purchase, whether online, in-store, or on their phones
• 70 percent use their smartphones while in the store, reflecting varied purchase paths that often begin online or on their phones and brings consumers to the store

Reaching Mobile Consumers: Cross-media exposure influences smartphone user behavior and a majority notice mobile ads which leads to taking action on it.

• 71 percent search on their phones because of an ad exposure, whether from traditional media (68 percent) to online ads (18 percent) to mobile ads (27 percent)
• 82 percent notice mobile ads, especially mobile display ads and a third notice mobile search ads
• Half of those who see a mobile ad take action, with 35 percent visiting a website and 49 percent making a purchase

Implications

The findings of the study have strong implications for businesses and mobile advertisers, says Google Mobile Ads Marketing Team’s Dai Pham

Pham, according to a posting on the company’s blog, said, “Make sure you can be found via mobile search as consumers regularly use their phones to find and act on information. Incorporate location based products and services and make it easy for mobile customers to reach you because local information seeking is common among smartphone users. Develop a comprehensive cross-channel strategy as mobile shoppers use their phones in-store, online and via mobile website and apps to research and make purchase decisions. Last, implement an integrated marketing strategy with mobile advertising that takes advantage of the knowledge that people are using their smartphones while consuming other media and are influenced by it.”