The Mobile Movement in the UK
In June, we shared some research from the US market looking into the user behaviour of smartphone owners in our post Understanding smartphone consumers. This month, we are pleased to share the UK version of the study.
As with the previous study, the key objectives were to understand:
- How smartphones are typically used on a day-to-day basis
- What other activities consumers carry out while using their smartphones
- The types of information they are searching for on mobile
- How smartphone consumers are using their devices to help them make their purchase decisions
- How receptive they are to mobile ads.
More than half of UK smartphone owners use their device every day to go online. They have become so attached to their little pocket PCs that more than one in five claim that they would sooner give up their TV than their smartphone!
As you would expect, a large proportion of smartphone users (89%) access the internet while they are out and about. What is slightly more surprising is that an even larger proportion (98%) are using their device to go online while they are at home.
As with their trans-Atlantic counterparts, some of the most popular smartphone uses among UK smartphone owners include passing the time when waiting (65%) and finding information quickly (52%), as well as being used as a "kind of modern accessory" (48%).
Increasingly, smartphone owners are using their mobiles to assist with their purchase decisions. More than 50% make a purchase based on information which they obtained from a smartphone. Further, 81% looked for local information with nearly a third of these local information seekers going on to make a purchase.
When it comes to mobile advertising, 87% of smartphone owners recall seeing a mobile ad. However, 83% of top UK advertisers do not have a site optimised for mobile. It is important that advertisers build a good mobile user experience as 28% of smartphone owners have taken action after having been exposed to a mobile ad. More specifically:
- 44% have clicked on a mobile ad
- 33% have visited the advertiser's site
- 32% have made a purchase.