Marketing to Women on Smartphones: That’s 50.9% of us!
May 10, 2012 § 3 Comments
Smartphones have crossed the tipping point. According to Nielsen, a majority (50.4%) of U.S. mobile subscribers owned smartphones, up from 47.8 percent in December 2011. And of course women over index the national stat – 50.9 percent of female mobile subscribers carried smartphones in March 2012, compared to 50.1 percent for men.
Shop till we drop our phone. So, is it any surprise that we are using those oh-so-smart mobile devices for shopping? Of course not. Seventy-nine percent of us are using our smartphones for shopping.
Smartphones are really the mobile shoppers dream for the following: “Locating a store” (73% vs. 42% for tablets ), “using a shopping list while shopping” (42% vs. 16% for tablets) or “redeeming a mobile coupon” (36% vs. 11% for tablet owners). However, tablet owners are much more likely to use their device for online shopping: 42 percent of tablet owners have “used their device to purchase an item,” compared to just 29 percent of smartphone owners.
For marketers, it is important to understand how our target is using a mobile device so we can tailor messages and design appropriate engagement opportunities.
Pay As You Go Currently we are buying online, but Nielsen points out that soon we will become comfortable with using our smartphones to make payments for items. I can’t wait. ” Just one less thing to worry about,” says Forrest Gump.
The Lipstick Economy 
The stats are compelling, but I’d like more information on the data.
For instance, while 50.1% of male cellphone owners carry smartphones, you can’t make a direct corollary to the 50.9% stat for women without first revealing what the breakdown of total ownership of cell phones is. If men over-index total ownership of all cell phones, the percentage breakdown may reveal that men actually dominate the smart phone market. Not saying this is the case, but it does need to be determined before we go full-bore on assuming women are the dominant force.
Thanks for pointing me toward this study.
Hey Bob – Thanks for the read. Yes, there are other facts to be known! Women are definitely using their smartphones for different activities than men are. Moms are particularly fond of smartphones. We are definitely keeping up with their families and the social fix. According to NPD, the number of moms with smartphones is about equal to men of the same age, but they are adopting the technology at a faster pace. The number of moms who purchased iPhones grew 132 percent in the first quarter of 2011 compared with 2010 — outpacing men, who rose by 121 percent, according to NPD. I don’t have NPD figures for this year.
I’ll have to give The Bean Cast a listen!
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