Briabe Media released a joint report on holiday retail sentiments of Americans and the use of mobile devices in holiday shopping. The findings revealed that age demographics determine if the upcoming holiday season will be a boom or bust for retailers. The report also finds that mobile phones have become an important part of holiday shopping in a variety of ways, from price comparison to product research.
Age plays a big role in American spending plans this holiday season. Survey responses indicate that consumer spending over the holidays will increase from last year for Americans under the age of 30, but it will decrease for those 30 years old and above.
- 59% of those under 19 plan to spend more.
- 52% of ages 20-29 plan to spend more.
- The majority of ages 30-39 plan to spend less (53%).
- The survey finds a further drop-off after that, with 62% of ages 40-49 planning to spend less.
When it comes to mobile phone usage:
- 76% of respondents noted that their phone is "somewhat important" to "very important" to their holiday shopping this year.
- 62% of respondents said they were likely to use their phone for product research before entering a store.
- 46% use their mobile in stores for comparison shopping.
- 14% of survey respondents said they use mobile coupons, although 30% are more likely to use them around the holidays..
Briabe used data culled from a survey of more than 12,000 respondents from MocoSpace. "The results of this study provide new evidence of expanding consumer reliance on mobile phones to manage their daily lives and to help in their decision making process," said James Briggs, CEO Briabe Media. "Moreover, we are seeing a growing use of mobile phones to aid in shopping decisions, including for holiday purchases."
Casey Jones, VP of Marketing & Music at MocoSpace, adds, "This mobile survey demonstrates the value of reaching young shoppers during the holiday season, as they are the ones looking to open their wallets more than last year. It's also quite interesting that mobile phones have become a crucial shopping tool, especially earlier during the 'buy cycle,' a fact probably attributed to the rapid adoption of smartphone devices with increased browser speeds and faster access to data."