TheBolt

According to Retail Customer Experience, 15% of consumers use their phone to make purchases.  This includes using their phone to verify product ability, competitively price items while at a store, and create shopping lists.  Out of the respondents, two thirds like the idea of self-scanning their items to avoid checkout lines, while one fourth of respondents would like to use their phones to get coupons and store specials.  The main complaints of using the mobile channel were internet connection problems, the cell phone’s screen size wasn’t large enough to compare products, and security issues.

Do you use your phone to shop? If yes, what are your reasons to do so and do you have any concerns?

-Jennifer A.

In May, the Pew Research Center conducted a study about how Americans use their cell phones. Some conclusions were expected, while others were a surprise.  It wasn’t a shock to know that six in ten adults go online with either a cell phone or laptop with wireless internet connection. Also, it was not a shock to know that Americans have increased going online through their phone and using internet based applications (internet, email or instant messaging) with compared to last year’s data. What did surprise me was that 38% of this group used their phones to get on to the internet, while 34% played games on their cellular devices. I thought that more people would use their phones to access the internet. It was not a surprise that 76% use their phones to take pictures and 72% use it for text messaging. What do you do on your phone? Do you browse the web, take pictures, play games, text or use it to call people?

–Jennifer A.