More adult mobile owners used their devices to help them shop during the 2012 holidays than during the 2011 season, finds the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project in new survey results [pdf]. Among various actions taken, 27% used their device to look up product pricing (“mobile price matchers”). While that was not up significantly from a year earlier (25%), what they did after comparing prices did shift. Specifically, 46% of this group reported ultimately purchasing the product at the particular store. That represents a significant 31% increase from 35% who reported doing so the prior year.
The other respondents either decided to not purchase the product at all (30%), purchased the product online (12%), or purchased it at a different store (6%).
Other Findings:
- 46% of mobile owners surveyed called for advice about a purchase while in-store, up from 38% in 2011, while 28% used their device to look up product reviews, slightly up from 24%.
- In total, 58% of respondents used their device in-store, a 12% increase from 52% during the 2011 holiday season.
- Women were 39% more likely than men to call for advice while in-store (53% vs. 38%), while there was little to no gender disparity in terms of price matching or looking up product reviews.
- 1 in 2 18-29-year-old mobile owners looked up prices while in-store, compared to just 7% of those aged over 65.
About the Data: The PSRAI January 2013 Omnibus Week 1 obtained telephone interviews with a nationally representative sample of 1,003 adults living in the continental United States. Telephone interviews were conducted by landline (501) and cell phone (502, including 241 without a landline phone). The survey was conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International (PSRAI). Interviews were done in English by Princeton Data Source from January 3 to 6, 2013. Statistical results are weighted to correct known demographic discrepancies. The margin of sampling error for the complete set of weighted data is ± 3.6 percentage points.
The survey asked respondents about the actions they had taken using their cell phone during the previous 30 days.
