Growing Strong: Global Mobile Survey Results from SAP

[Former Member]

Half of mobile phone users—50%—access the internet using their mobile at least once a day.

One third—32%—have used their mobiles to purchase products or services in the last year.

Over three-quarters—82%—say they’re interested in buying goods and services through their mobile.

Mobile commerce is happening fast. That’s what recent research conducted by SAP (my employer) reveals. We wanted to understand the global trends fueling mobile commerce: the momentum behind it, the potential for growth, and regional variations. We interviewed 12,424 adults (aged 18+) who own a basic mobile or smartphone. Respondents completed an online survey last spring. Here’s a rundown of the most interesting numbers.

What are people doing?

They’re buying tickets to entertainment such as movies, concerts, sporting events, etc. (43%), downloading music (40%) and books (40%), and paying bills (42%).

Why do they like using their mobiles?

People like that they can use their devices any time of day (51%), on the go (51%), with speed (50%) and convenience (50%).

Why keeps people from using mobile more?

Survey respondents cited the hassle factor of having to enter a lot of personal information (46%), safety concerns (45%) and lack of internet access (43%) at the point of purchase.

Do merchants and utilities like mobile as much as consumers?

1. Yes. Two-thirds (64%) of consumers have been encouraged to purchase using their mobiles, even from organisations that offer other payment methods.

What does the future of mobile payments look like?

1. Bright. Seven out of ten (71%) respondents agreed that using mobile phones for payment would be more important in the future, and—I mentioned this above—82% of consumers say they’re interested in buying goods and services through their mobile in the future.

What do consumers want to do—or keep doing—with mobile in the future?

Consumers expect to be able to pay bills (54%), buy goods online (51%) and check their bank balance (50%) through their mobile in the future.

That’s just a sample of the insights from the report. Download a free copy to see more—including a really interesting quadrant of things you can do or buy on mobile (arranged by how easy or hard they are to use) versus consumer demand for them (more demand to less).