The extent of consumer mobile use was bought into focus this week with the release of the Mobile Online Journey Observation, a study from the Internet Advertising Bureau which focused on the different roles mobile devices played in purchasing behaviour.

The research, which interviewed 800 smartphone users, discovered the extent of mobile usage in the customer journey, revealing that 54 per cent of mobile owners researched a product they were interested in purchasing via their handset. Just over 34 per cent of consumers then elected to buy the item on their mobile.

The survey also found that 44 per cent of mobile users reached for their smartphone when wanting more information about a product they had seen advertised on television; twice as many users elected to use this approach rather than to travel in store to gain more information.

Indeed, the report also focused on how consumers used their mobile when present in a retailers. 38 per cent of those interviewed turned to their handset in a shop, with 55 per cent conducting a search regarding a certain product or service, while 49 per cent used their mobile to compare prices with other retailers.

Alex Kozloff, senior mobile manger at the IAB, said:

“This research takes us one step further in understanding the increasing impact digital devices are having throughout the purchase journey.

“By showing the deep impact digital devices are having from brand awareness, to research, to purchase (both in store and online), we hope advertisers will have a clearer understanding of how to adapt their strategy. In particular, the way the way consumers are turning to their mobile phone in store is a strong call to action for retailers to react to this growing trend.”

The majority of consumers use social media as a channel for customer service, according to a new study.

The research from Zendesk, which collated data from several different sources, revealed that 62 per cent of users from sites like Twitter and Facebook had relied on the platform as a customer service channel, contacting companies in order to resolve queries or complaints.

The study also investigated the proportion of different industries contacted via social media. It discovered that 45 per cent of consumers had contacted a retail organisation such as Game or Kitbag via social media sites. Meanwhile, 35 per cent of users had used sites like Twitter or Facebook to contact telecommunications businesses, while 34 per cent had relied on the channel to contact those organisations in the hospitability and travel industry.

Indeed, the research discovered that social media would likely get more attention in the future as a customer service channel; 76 per cent of consumers said they would be more likely to use online social platforms for customer service if they better understood the tools available.

However, recent research from Gartner revealed that only 35 per cent of customer service centres will have social media capabilities by 2013.

Writing about the research, Lauren Fisher from Simply Zesty, commented:

“Now is the time for brands to start catching up and realising that social media isn’t just about the fun, sexy side of marketing but that there is a very real job to be done, to bring customer service up to date to retain and attract new customers.”

Yesterday, the Mobile Retail Summit took place in London. Featuring speakers from Debenhams and augmented reality application Blippar, key takeaways from the conference were posted onto Twitter by attendees. Here are a combination of the most insightful statistics and comments from the event.

This week, Apple released their quarterly earnings, revealing that during Christmas period they had sold more iPhones per day than people born in the world.

During Q1, Apple had sold 37.04 million iPhones, a total which equates to 377,900 models purchased every day during the 98 days of the first quarter. Comparatively, the world’s average birth rate is around 371,000 per day.

The announcement from Apple means that the iPhone has now overtaken Google’s Android to become the most popular smartphone platform in the United States. Apple currently holds a 44.9 per cent market share in America, compared to 44.8 per cent from Android.

Speaking about the news, Dominic Sunnebo, global consumer insight director for research house Kantar said:

“Overall, Apple sales are now growing at a faster rate than Android across the nine countries we cover.”

The news of Apple’s continuing proliferation into the smartphone market should come as little surprise to regular readers of the numero blog. Last week we reported on the increasing number of consumers choosing to purchase an Android or iPhone. Indeed, 45 per cent of UK consumers now own a smartphone.

In related news, Kanta, the global research company, recently released a study examining the growth of smartphone usage across the globe. Some key takeaways included:

• Android has a 28 per cent share of the Brazillian smartphone market
• The British market is dominated by Android with a 43.9 per cent share
• Blackberry has a 6.1 per cent market share in the UK

Earlier this month, we set out our goals for 2012; our aim to grow as a company, to continue to develop our CRM solutions and to help even more companies to streamline their customer journeys.

We also looked at what the New Year would bring for Simon Khan, the European Tour Professional and 2010 PGA Champion. We’re honoured to have him represent numero on the global stage and we are very excited to see him back on The European Tour early in 2012.

Indeed, Simon Khan attends a number of important tournaments in the coming weeks, flying to the Arabian Peninsula for three major championships: the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship, the Commercialbank Qatar Masters and the Omega Dubai Desert Classic.

Held over the 26-29th January, the Abu Dhabi HSBC Gold Championship is one of the biggest events on the PGA European Tour. Launched in 2006, The Championship offers a $2.7 million prize fund and previous winners include Chris DiMarco, Paul Casey and Martin Kaymer. In 2011, six of the world’s top ten golfers competed in the competition, drawing in nearly 30,000 spectators.

Watch Simon in a clay pigeon shoot out in this European Tour clip from Dubai

Following on from The Abu Dhabi HSBC Gold Championship, The Commercialbank Qatar Masters begins on February 2nd. Hosted at the prestigious Doha Golf Club, the tournament has captivated audiences across the globe since 1998. Dane Thomas Bjorn is the defending champion of the championship.

Finally on the 6th February, Simon attends the Omega Dubai Desert Classic. This prestigious tournament, born in 1989, is held at the Emirates Golf Club and includes Tiger Woods, Alvaro Quiros and Roy Mcllroy as past champions.

So, it’s a busy start to 2012 for Simon and, as ever, we wish him the best of luck with all the tournaments. We’ll keep you updated on his progress through the 2012 season. Until next time, you can follow both Simon and numero on Twitter to find out more.

The Android mobile platform is the most popular smartphone operating system in the United States, according to a new study from research house Nielsen. Statistics from the survey in Q4 2011, demonstrate that the operating system from Google, Android, now runs on 46 per cent of all smartphones in America.

But the research also discovered that the release of the iPhone 4S substantially increased the market share of Apple’s own operating system; 45 per cent of those who had got a new smartphone in the past three month chose to purchase an iPhone.

Furthermore, the investigation also confirmed the continuing growth of smartphone ownership in the United States. 46 per cent of US mobile users now own a smartphone, while 60 per cent of those who purchased a new device in the previous three months said they had chosen a smartphone over a feature phone.

According to Nielsen European Telecoms managing director David Gosen, the statistics from America reflect the growth of smartphone usage in the United Kingdom.

“These numbers closely mirror what we’ve been seeing in the UK. Our Q3, 2011 report suggests 45 per cent of UK mobile consumers had a smartphone, compared to 46 per cent in Q4 in the US.

“We expect UK smartphone growth to continue. Mobile operators, device manufacturers and content providers are really focusing on the benefits of smartphones, while the cost of basic smartphones is becoming more affordable to consumers, tempting them to upgrade from feature phones.”

Of course, the growth of smartphone users has ramifications for companies across the web. Smartphones enable consumers to:

• Update their social networks on the move
• Write and respond to emails
• Purchase goods via mCommerce sites
• Research and write company reviews on the go

The additional features on a smartphone require companies to evolve their traditional contact channels. Consumers have the ability to interact and engage with a business wherever they are in the world and organisations have had to expand their contact process to include new channels like Twitter and Facebook.

The key now is for companies to link up these new contact methods and provide consumers with a fluid and comprehensive customer service experience.

In 2011, we were delighted to announce our sponsorship of European Tour Professional and 2010 PGA Champion Simon Khan. Our decision to sponsor Simon was a simple one as this international sports star embodies many of the core values we have at numero; dedication, passion and determination. We’re honoured to have a player of such character and integrity represent numero on the global stage.

In 2011, we followed Simon across three continents, cheering him on in Portugal, Hong Kong and Singapore. While results didn’t always go his way, he played some amazing golf and we’ve been consistently impressed with his talent and commitment; he’s a fantastic ambassador for numero and the values we stand for.

Like most of us, Christmas and New Year gave Simon the chance to recharge his batteries after a busy 2011 and, following a refreshing break, we can’t wait to see Simon back on the tour. When we caught up with Simon, he said:

“Last year I started the year with a lot of changes in my game, we all strive to improve but you need to remember your own solid principles. ”

Here at numero, it’s a sentiment we can agree with. 2011 was a fantastic year for numero and our customer service solutions helped dozens of companies, both here and abroad, to streamline their customer journeys. Still, we’re not resting on our laurels and, in 2012, we too are striving to achieve even more, building on our core principals to expand and develop our CRM offering.

Meanwhile, Simon has a busy start to 2012, playing in three important tournaments in the first two months of the year. Over January and February, we’ll be cheering Simon on as he takes part in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship, the Commercialbank Qatar Masters and the Omega Dubai Desert Classic.

We’ll be focusing more on Simon’s upcoming appearances later this month but, until then, we’d just like to take a moment to wish him and all our customers a prosperous and successful 2012.

New research has suggested that an overwhelming majority of telecom campaigns now incorporate mobile users into their advertising strategy.

The research, undertaken by Millennial Media, discovered that 60 per cent of advertising campaigns which took place in November utilised mobile-only features to encourage consumer participation, a seven per cent increase month-over-month.

The investigation went on to analyse the different post-click destinations for consumers, highlighting the variety of platform-specific techniques employed by campaigns in order to convert users.

The survey found that 33 per cent of consumers were directed to download an application, with 18 per cent sent to a mCommerce section of the site. Furthermore, 31 per cent of users were encouraged to make a phone call, while 15 per cent of adverts sent users to the social media profile of the advertiser in question.

The news comes as a new study from IBM revealed mobile transactions in December had increased by 107 per cent compared the same month in 2010. The research claimed that sales via mobile devices accounted for 12.9 per cent of all transactions made on the internet.

“This Christmas shopping season has been characterised by consumers looking for deals and increasingly using their mobiles to shop online,” said Andrew Jackson-Proes, a representative from IBM UK & Ireland.

At numero, we’re keen to emphasise the importance of mobile, as both an advertising medium and a customer contact channel. Over 45 per cent of the UK population now own a smartphone and, as a result, more consumers are demanding organisations offer them an experience suitable for this emerging medium. You can discover more about our work and how we help companies achieve this here.

The rising popularity of tablet computers, social media and online shopping was revealed this week after the release of the annual Christmas survey from eDigitalResearch and IMRG.

The research, which surveyed 2,000 consumers and their online habits over Christmas Day and Boxing Day, primarily highlighted the growing use of tablet computers. The survey revealed that the usage of iPads over Christmas Day and Boxing Day 2011 doubled compared to 2010, with 8 per cent of customers used tablets as their main method of going online over the festive period.

The annual Christmas activity survey also investigated social media use over the festive period,
discovering that 45 per cent of online users logged into their Twitter, Facebook and Google + accounts over the two days. This figure is up 20.8 per cent from 2010.

Speaking about the research, Andrew McCelland, chief operations and policy officer at IMRG, said:

“iPads and Kindles were among the most wished-for gifts this Christmas, and their popularity as a means for accessing the web is booming.

“The phenomenal popularity of social media is also continuing to grow at a remarkable rate, with over double the amount of people logging onto them over Christmas Day and Boxing Day compared with 2010. Social networks and tablets need to be considered as a key part of any retailer’s marketing strategy, as the opportunities for consumer engagement through these channels are becoming very apparent.”

Here at numero, we’ve spoken before about the rise of the online consumer. Indeed, this Christmas 71 per cent of customers purchased some of their gifts from the internet (a 1.3 per cent rise from 2010). Elsewhere, 50 per cent of all consumers said they now did the majority of their festive purchases online. In mobile news, 18 per cent of smartphone owners did half of their Christmas shopping from their iPhone or Android device.

First TransPennine Express customers travelling to and from Manchester Airport can now use their mobile handset as a ticket. The feature, which has just been made available on the company’s TPExpress app, gives travellers the opportunity to plan and purchase tickets directly from their smartphone if journeying on direct rail routes to and from the North West airport.

The m-ticketing facility, which could be eventually be rolled out to all First TransPennine Express routes, is another sign that companies are beginning to recognise the growing use of mobile in customer behaviour.

2011 saw a number of travel companies expand their contact channels to include the mobile medium. Train operators ScotRail, CrossCountry and Raileasy all launched iPhone and Android applications designed to offer consumers a dedicated mobile channel.

Indeed, the growing rise in smartphone usage across the United Kingdom and the rising expectations of customers – that companies should offer a presence on the medium – has seen a number of organisations adapt their contact channels to incorporate mobile ticketing.

A 2011 report from Juniper also predicts a rising demand for m-ticket purchases. Released in May, the research house foresaw 1 in 8 users would be using mobile tickets by 2015. The survey predicted that 750 million users would be using their mobile to purchase tickets. Currently, approximately 1 in 20 use their smartphone to purchase and validate tickets.

Speaking at the time, Howard Wilcox, author of the Juniper Report, said:

“Mobile technology is moving the ticket machine into our pockets. Our research demonstrated that mobile ticketing will change the way that many people buy and obtain their regular, everyday tickets that are mostly printed at the moment.”

To discover how numero could help your company embrace this new customer contact channel, visit this mobile page on our website.