Mobile Holidays l SMB Mobile Marketing l Smartphone Share

Greater than 33% of both smartphone and tablet shoppers plan to start their holiday shopping this year before Thanksgiving, according to projections from Google. The search provider also says many advertisers do not realize that mobile users actively search for last minute holiday gifts and to locate stores to purchase these last minute gifts.

In fact, Google projects that 44% of total searches for last minute gifts and store locator terms will be from mobile devices this holiday season based on historical growth rates.

• Research from Borrell Associates indicates that half of all small-to-mid-sized businesses (SMBs) are hoping to jump on the mobile marketing bandwagon this year, driving combined spending on mobile advertising and promotions (including the ever-popular “deals”) more than $1.2 billion this year.
• Forty percent of mobile consumers older than 18 in the US now have smartphones, according to data from Nielsen. Android is the most popular operating system, with 40% of mobile consumers reporting they have a smartphone with an Android OS. Apple’s iOS is in second place, with 28%.
• eMarketer estimates that nearly 20 million US adults will redeem a mobile coupon this year, including coupons or codes received via SMS, applications and mobile web browsers; quick response codes for redemption online or offline; and group buying coupons purchased via mobile. By 2013, the number using such coupons will nearly double, and 16.5% of all US adult mobile phone users will redeem a coupon that year.
• During the past two quarters, mobile advertising has seen a steady increase in reach in the UK, according to comScore data. comScore says 5.4 million UK smartphone subscribers (25 percent overall) recalled having seen ads through a mobile browser or app in the quarter ending June 2011, representing a 28% increase from three months prior. In addition, nearly 8% of smartphone users recalled seeing ads at least once a week (up 28%), and 7.5% recalled seeing them almost every day (up 52%).
• Apple Safari was the top mobile/tablet browser in August 2011, holding 53% market share, according to NetMarketShare. Opera Mini followed with roughly 21% market share.