Recent findings from a survey of U.S. smartphone and tablet owners, by Ipsos OTX MediaCT, indicate that tablet ownership increases the frequency of mobile shopping, improves the purchase
experience, and makes consumers who own both devices use their smartphone more often.
The study revealed that owners of tablets (as well as smartphones) buying nearly twice as often as those
who only have smartphones.
Mobile Purchasing in Past 12 Months (Smartphone
& Tablet Owners; % of Respondents) |
# of Purchases | SmartphoneOwner | Dual Owner |
Average | 10.4% | 18.3% |
20+ | 12 | 41 |
5-19 | 43 | 44 |
<5 | 43 | 14 |
Don’t know | 2 | 1 |
Source: Ipsos/PayPal, October 2011 |
Further, says the report, more than 40% of these “dual owners” made more than 20 mobile purchases over the past year, while nearly two-thirds of dual
owners indicated higher overall spending due to their mobile purchasing activity.
Todd Board, SVP of Ipsos OTX MediaCT, noted that “Dual owners have the classic markings of early tech
adopters, including skewing high-income and male... owning both a smartphone and tablet can positively reinforce mobile
shopping and spending habits.”
The study finds that dual
owners are significantly more likely (63%) to indicate increased overall spending on mobile purchases, versus owners of smartphones only (29%). Tablet owners may be enticed to spend more, says the
report, due to the device’s larger screen and keyboard, and touchscreen capabilities, which tablet owners say improve the shopping experience.
Self-Reported Impact of Mobile Purchasing on Overall Spend (% of Respondents) |
Impact | Smartphone Only | Dual
Owner |
Because of mobile purchasing: | | |
Surely spent more money than otherwise | 13% | 28% |
May have spent more money | 16 | 35 |
Spending no different | 59 | 32 |
Mobile purchasing with coupons: | | |
May have spent less | 7 | 3 |
Surely spent less | 4 | 2 |
Source: Ipsos/PayPal, October 2011 |
Laura Chambers, Senior Director of
Mobile, PayPal, expects “... retailers will see quite a bit of ‘couch commerce’ this year... the first big spike in mobile shopping will be right after Thanksgiving dinner, where
consumers will be shopping from their tablets and smartphones right from their couch... (an) early opportunity for retailers to engage their customers.”
The study also found that the
addition of a tablet complements the smartphone shopping experience. In fact, the results show that dual owners still prefer smartphones for a wider range of m-commerce tasks:
M-Commerce Activities By Device (% of Respondents) |
Own smartphone and tablet | Mobile Shopping/Buying on Smartphone (B= And Not
Tablet) | Mobile Shopping/Buying on Tablet (A= And Not Smartphone) |
Scan coupons with camera | 29% B | 11% |
Purchase in store | 25 B | 13 |
Listen to audio info/ad with
music | 23 B | 14 |
Purchase in public setting | 23 B | 12 |
Make a final purchase | 21 B | 12 |
Shop or buy sensitive category | 20 | 15 |
Purchase using an app | 20 B | 12 |
Purchase using Web | 18 | 25 A |
Buy where visual info key | 18 | 22 |
Buy where much typing required | 18 | 21 |
Don’t know, not applicable | 30 | 29 |
Source: Ipsos/PayPal, October 2011 |
Board concludes, “Where dual owners have a preference between devices for mobile
commerce activities, most preferences are in favor of the smartphone... easier to use for... coupons or QR codes, listening to audio with privacy, and buying in... public settings. ... tablets
preferred for website-based purchases... tied to... at-home purchasing... (though) the profile and habits of these ‘dual owners’ are still fluid, with tablet adoption still early...
“
These findings are based on an Ipsos OTX MediaCT survey conducted on behalf of PayPal in August, 2011. Identically fielded surveys and a 100% response rate would have an estimated
margin of error of +/-2.7 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, compared to these study results, notes the report.
For additional information about the study from Ipsos, please visit here.