Study: 50 Percent of People Can’t Shop Without Their Phone

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Something caught your eye in-store? It already might be second nature to whip out your phone, using it as a guide about whether you should really splurge on that brand new Inception Blu-Ray.

A report conduced by Arc Worldwide, a marketing services firm, found that half of shoppers consult their phones while shopping. The report surveyed 1,800 cell phone users and studied 30 shoppers while they were out buying goods.

But the more interesting thing is that, in fact, less than half of all cell phone users even have smartphones at all. This means that the majority of people surveyed have normal, feature phones. Eighty percent of people out of this group turned to their phones in-store. It’s not just all the super-techy users doing all the consulting.

The advantages of using a phone are obvious. Most smartphones have apps that will scan barcodes, allowing users to find the cheapest price online as well. Most mobile phone have some sort of ability to hook up to the Internet as well, allowing you to turn that impulse buy into a much more informed decision.

The firm goes on to categorize these consumers: shoppers are often categorized as heavy or light users. Heavy users tend to go app-crazy, while light users (the majority) see phones as an on-the-go version of their computer. Perhaps just proof that these ‘light’ users are using their phones more than most people think they are.

(via Mashable)

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