The smartphone is becoming the driving force behind changes in consumers’ purchase habits

This article was originally posted on 22 September, 2011

It’s no longer a fact online brands can ignore: the smartphone is becoming the driving force behind changes in consumers’ purchase habits.  An interesting study we came across recently finds that more than half of consumers who’ve made at least one purchase on their smartphone have done so based on a marketing message delivered to them via mobile email.

According to the figures, 16 per cent of smartphone owners have completed at least one purchase as a direct result of a marketing message they received on their handset and of those, 55 per cent have completed a purchase directly on their smartphone, 43 per cent have completed a purchase on their computer, and 35 per cent report purchasing in-store.

With more than 45 per cent of UK consumers owning and regularly using a smartphone to browse and buy online, these findings offer a valuable insight into the correlation between rapid smartphone adoption and the subsequent interaction with brands that sell online.  We subscribe to the assertion that by next year, smartphone sales will overtake those made through a computer.  Just as we saw the web evolve from solely a means of discovery to a purchase tool, the mobile internet is developing in much the same way.

While calling, texting and emailing remain the most frequent daily activities for smartphone users, the study also found consumers are increasingly using their smartphones for more than the basics.  More than a third (35 per cent) of smartphone users check Facebook several times a day on their smartphone and just less than that (34 per cent) have checked a bank account balance on their smartphone.  Only slightly less than a third (30 per cent) of smartphone owners have used their phone at least once to check in using location-based services like Foursquare or Facebook Places and 24 per cent have scanned a QR code or barcode on their smartphone.

It has been suggested that on average, people look at their phones 150 times a day.  Whether that statistic fills your heart with glee, or horrifies you probably indicates which side of the smartphone fence you sit on.  What this study does mean is that if you’re not thinking about taking your e-commerce solution mobile yet, you certainly should be.