Oxygen8, a UK headquartered multi-channel communications platform provider, revealed that close to 100 per cent of UK mobile users plan to make a mobile payment during 2015, and that almost a quarter plan to increase the amount they spend via mobile.
A study of 1,000 UK mobile users found that 92 per cent of respondents intend to make payments with their mobile devices in 2015 and that a further 24 per cent said they would increase the amount they spend on their mobile, in line with growing availability of additional payment mechanisms such as carrier billing.
The research also found that consumers' engagement with brands via mobile is already high. Some 31.7 million people have already connected with an average of six businesses using their mobile device, which in turn increases the number of marketing channels consumers engage with from two to three.
Oxygen8 said 75 per cent of UK businesses plan to use four different channels to connect with consumers during 2015. These are typically a company's website, social media, email, and app or SMS communication up to the point of purchase. The company added that the number of channels utilised post-purchase typically falls to two.
The research also highlights the importance of using the right marketing channels, revealing that 10.8 per cent of consumers would increase their spend if they are properly engaged with a brand, and that a further 24 per cent would be positively influenced by accurate use of marketing channels.
Oxygen8 CMO Robert Townsend said the research shows that modern consumers want "businesses, over a sustained period, to engage with them using SMS, email and website across their mobile device."
Townsend credits smartphones for increasing consumer usage of mobile payments by enabling "multichannel marketing to come full circle."
However, he noted that consumer engagement by big brands "becomes increasingly challenging over time", particularly if companies continue to use voice as the primary mobile marketing channel when Oxygen8's research shows that "consumers preferred contact through SMS and email, showing potential disconnect between these businesses and their customers."
For more:
- see this Oxygen8 release
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