Empathic Selling: Three Ways Marketers Can Use Smartphone Behavior to Their Advantage

Smartphone Usage:

Have you ever found yourself wondering how people really spend their time on mobile devices?  It’s no secret that the future of advertising will include a hefty dose of mobile; however, the more we understand about mobile consumption patterns, the more relevant we can be in our messaging.  A recent article published by the Harvard Business Review focuses on ‘how people really use mobile” and “where marketers get it wrong”.

How People Really Use Mobile

Let’s evaluate how smartphones are being used.  The Harvard study concludes that there are seven primary motivations for a person using a smartphone (excluding e-mail, SMS, and Voice calls), they are listed to the left and include: self-expression, discovery, preparation, accomplishing, shopping, socializing and "me time".  The graph also represents the average monthly minutes used and the percentage of interactions devoted to each.

In total, more than 2/3's of smartphone usage is spent socializing, shopping, or enjoying some well-deserved "Me time"  So the questions then becomes, what implications does this have on your decision making as a marketer?  Let's take a deeper look into the study and identify some potential traps marketers can fall into if they are not cognizant of these trends.

Making Bad Assumptions About App Use:

Apps should have more than one purpose to capitalize on the above consumption patterns.  For example, Facebook can be utilized for socializing, self-expression or discovery.  So when developing an app for your product or service, focus on leveraging several usage 'buckets' will help to engage more effectively with your consumers on their smartphones

Failing to Connect During "Me Time"

As the largest percentage of usage, it is critical to connect during "me time".  One way to create an ineffective ad campaign on a smartphone is to fail to connect to the context, and look like more of a nuisance than a savvy deal.  The statistics below speak volumes:

As measured by the % of viewers who click, search, recall, or purchase a product

Under investment in Mobile

Even with all of the statistics pointing towards a mobile future, marketers have still been hesitant to allocate a larger portion of their budgets to this channel.  As noted below, mobile continues to take up a larger percentage of consumer time, but is still a minimal percent of overall budgeted dollars.    

Three Ways to Use Smartphones to Build Sales

Now that we have a grasp of how consumers spend their time connecting with smartphones, we will take a look at three trends that can help marketers build a successful smartphone strategy:

• Multi-Screening:  One surprising statistic that popped out at me from the Harvard study was that 68% of smartphone usage occurs at home!  This statistic is very important, especially in the context of  what Google calls 'multi-screening'.  In a recent study, Google identified that 90% of people use multiple screens to sequentially accomplish a task over time, and that smartphones are the most common starting place for online activities.  So how important is multi-channel integration?  Note this statistic below:
• 57% of the time consumers are on their smartphone, they are using another device
• 28% with PC/Laptop
• 29% with Television

• Spontaneous Behavior:  The Harvard study showcased the importance of a relevant smartphone connection with consumers; however, how do we get them to purchase?  Google's recent study, The New Multi-Screen WorldStudy, identifies the spontaneous nature of smartphone usage.  When evaluating spontaneous vs. planned search, the study found that 80% of smartphone search was spontaneous as compared to 52% of all PC/Laptop.  Smartphones stimulate a more spontaneous response by consumers, so be aggressive with your offers to drive more sales on mobile devices.  

• The Shopping Advantage:  Smartphones allow consumers the ability to shop at home or on-the-go.  We have already established that 68% of smartphone usage occurs in the home; however, how does that translate into sales?  The answer, very strong!  Google's study highlights the following statistics to support this trend:
• SmartHOME:  59% of shopping events observed on a smartphone occurred in the home
• "I want it now": 81% of the smartphone shopping events were spur of the moment
• Search:  30% of shopping related content on the smartphone starts through search
• Multi-Device Path to Purchase:  65% of consumers that start on a smartphone, move to either a PC/Laptop (61%) or Tablet (4%)

Effective Use of Mobile in Marketing Strategy:

For marketers, smartphone usage is a new, exciting challenge.  Integrating smartphone advertising into your media mix will soon no longer be an option, but an imperative.  Understanding how consumption happens on a smartphone is vital to the strategic planning process.  While this entry focused on some key trends that are occurring, the mobile ecosystem is fluid and constantly changing so it is vital to study your audience and understand how they interact with smartphones on an ongoing basis.

Future postings will focus in detail on audience, new trends in smartphones, and other effective ways to integrate mobile into your marketing strategy.  I hope this information proves useful and helped to showcase the unlimited opportunities available when integrating smartphone touch points into your ad campaigns.

Useful Links:

Google:  The New Multi-Screen World Study, 2012:  http://www.google.com/think/research-studies/the-new-multi-screen-world-study.html

Harvard Business Review:  "How People Really Use Mobile"  http://hbr.org/2013/01/how-people-really-use-mobile