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?