social media mobile market research

Handset penetration has reached unprecedented levels, with smartphones becoming increasingly popular in major market research markets.

One in three British (34 percent) and American (33 percent) consumers are now accessing the Internet using their mobile phone at least once a week, up from 27 and 28 percent respectively in 2010, showing that Mobile Internet has become an important part of daily life for consumers on both sides of the Atlantic. 

People are demonstrating their favour for apps with 10 billion app downloads from Apple’s AppStore and Google’s Android market has 3.5 billion app downloads and counting. According to Compete’s quarterly smartphone report people are using their smartphones:

• at home (84%)
• during miscellaneous downtime (80%)
• waiting in lines / for appointments (76%)
• while shopping (69%)
• at work (62%) and
• during their commute in to work (47%). 

For market researchers this means that all of those people with mobile internet enabled smartphones suddenly have a data collection device in their pocket or purse everywhere they go, and they've shown they are eager to use them for research. With their smartphone respondents can:

• discreetly photograph a supermarket shelf
• scan a product’s barcode 
• answer a couple of questions about their purchasing decisions
• capture a video of themselves using the product sample you’ve sent to their home
• tell you instantly how they feel right at that moment
• classify their feelings from pre-set fields you’ve created. 

Why wait for recall when respondents can tell you what is actually happening?


Has this been proven?

The increased availability and use of mobile-internet-enabled handsets has enabled us to undertake some large qualitative studies globally. MCASI/panel projects delivered on our mobile platform are revealing that respondents are enthusiastically completing even highly complex research tasks within a matter of hours of receiving the survey invitation.  For example, in one recent study for a consumer packaged goods client respondents were asked respondents to complete a baking task, share the recipe and photograph the process.

64% of people responded within 5 hours with rich text and photographs of the task in their natural environment.

100% of quota was fulfilled within 48 hours, ending the research project with full compliance 3 days early. 

This enthusiasm for using mobile research apps is making researchers take notice. 

Mobile is not always the right mode, but when Rich information is required at the ‘point of experience’ to give a holistic view of the respondent, mobile MR goes further than conventional survey research to create a clearer picture of consumer behaviour and intention. Market researchers are asking what additional qualitative insight is offered by mobile over paper or online methods. Our projects have revealed that mobile research can tell you what is actually happening - with photos, video & GPS - in real time - rather than being filtered by your respondent's recall.

That's why your clients and your boss are talking about 'going mobile'. Market Research on Mobile devices is a huge opportunity that has come about because of the changes in consumer behaviour and smartphone use.

We’ll be talking about this project and how to make the move to mobile apps based research at the CASRO Online Conference in Las Vegas later tomorrow.