Here’s a shocking revelation: college students love deals. And while that statement was probably the opposite of shocking, here’s something you might find more interesting: the majority of college students use their mobile phones to search for mobile deals, discounts and coupons.
Research from Study Breaks and Campus2Careers shows that nine out of 10 college students use their mobile phones to find deals. And what’s more? Twenty percent of respondents call themselves “mobile deal addicts” and say they “always” check their phones for deals.
Not only are college students on the hunt for ways to save money—they’re more likely to make purchases on their phones, too. Study results show that 70% of college students made mobile purchases—and of those, 52% made mobile purchases at least once a month.
Although the study’s sample size (689 U.S. college students) leaves a lot to be desired, what’s more fascinating is what the study implies about mobile usage. If you have a product or service that’s of interest to college students, are you easy to find on a mobile device? Do you offer coupons or discounts through channels that are easily accessible via mobile? If not, you might immediately reconsider your strategy.
And even if your target audience isn’t comprised of college students, these sorts of stats provide invaluable insight into your future consumers. Think about it—college students (and youth in general) are growing up in an increasingly digital era. Their phones are their lifelines—far from mere communication devices, instead they’re tools that help users communicate, connect, shop, work and more.
That sort of behavior isn’t going to change as they get older—and that means your future consumers won’t simply prefer mobile access; they’ll demand it. And that’s why now’s the time to examine your mobile strategy. Do you offer mobile shopping? If not, can you start? And what about important assets like your mobile website? Does it quickly serve up the info and resources your mobile customers need?
Studies like the one mentioned above show that your customers (or future customers) are already living and thriving in the mobile space. The million-dollar question: is your business there, too?
Shelly Kramer is a Principal Analyst and Founding Partner at Futurum Research. A serial entrepreneur with a technology centric focus, she has worked alongside some of the world’s largest brands to embrace disruption and spur innovation, understand and address the realities of the connected customer, and help navigate the process of digital transformation. She brings 20 years’ experience as a brand strategist to her work at Futurum, and has deep experience helping global companies with marketing challenges, GTM strategies, messaging develoment, and driving strategy and digital transformation for B2B brands across multiple verticals. Shelly’s coverage areas include Collaboration/CX/SaaS, platforms, ESG, and Cybersecurity, as well as topics and trends related to the Future of Work, the transformation of the workplace and how people and technology are driving that transformation. A transplanted New Yorker, she has learned to love life in the Midwest, and has firsthand experience that some of the most innovative minds and most successful companies in the world also happen to live in “flyover country.”
