Study: Smartphones Now “Most Essential Thing”

A new and innovative radio industry study vividly demonstrates a sea change in the way smartphones are affecting the everyday behaviors of average American consumers. The findings show that radio has multiple opportunities to take part in the smartphone revolution.

The 60-minute video research project, “Goin’ Mobile,” was commissioned by Arbitron and conducted by Jacobs Media.

According to the study, smartphones are redefining business conduct and changing the social discourse. Survey participants used apps to conduct a variety of activities, such as checking on the status of business computer networks, shopping for specialty groceries and gaming. The phones’ multimedia features were not a major focus for participants. Even so, the online radio service Pandora was the second-most-common app on the participants’ phones, next to Facebook. This finding suggests that radio’s decades of experience as an entertainment content provider makes the industry uniquely qualified to take a spot on consumers’ smartphone “app” menus.

Radio has the ability to integrate real-time functionality, efficiency and immediacy on smartphones—if it makes mobile the priority that many of these respondents have. There is more to mobile than turning a smartphone into a Walkman®. Consumers want more from their apps, and radio will have to creatively and strategically fill those needs by designing and building applications that matter.

Among some of the study’s other conclusions:

•Apple iPhone® and Android™ smartphone owners are far more likely than other smartphone users to be immersed in apps. Companies—whether inside radio or out—need to design apps with customer needs and desires in focus.

•In the workplace, smartphones are game-changers, as users cleverly find uses for these devices that boost productivity. As an industry, radio needs to discover the smartphone applications that can facilitate audience and advertiser engagement, modernizing contact points with its two most important constituencies.

•Radio is impacted by in-car phone activity. While many “Goin’ Mobile” respondents listen to the radio while driving, smartphone use is the focal point and radio listening decreases when they use their devices. Radio needs to become a more significant part of the in-car smartphone menu.

•Nearly every “Goin’ Mobile” respondent used Facebook on their smartphones. Social conversation is gravitating from speech to data, and the need for radio to have presence in this digital universe is critical.

Collectively, radio has hundreds of millions of weekly listeners it can drive to download their mobile applications. Once those apps are on the market, the industry needs to create ongoing promotion and messaging strategies to ensure that it is taking full advantage of the mobile opportunity.