Mobile social networking report
- Added:
- Jan 25, 2008
Wireless community service provider BuzzCity has released the findings of a consumer survey looking at how and why people use mobile social networking.
The study was conducted in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, North America and Western Europe with users on its portal, myGamma,
The findings showed significant trends in an emerging market sector that are consistent across all markets, looking at when, why and how users access mobile social networking services.
The study indicated that the vast majority (90%) of BuzzCity users accessed the service more than once a day. In fact, half use the service at least five times a day.
For the majority of users (62%), each session lasts between 30 minutes and one hour, which shows that most mobile social networkers access the site long enough to check messages from friends and see what their group is up to.
In Thailand, nearly three quarters of respondents spend more than one hour online in any one session, while in the US one in five logs on for less than five minutes.
The time spent on the service in one session may be influenced by market forces, such as the popularity of flat-rate data packages in Thailand.
How users access the service
The research showed that although nearly all (91%) members access the site and the mobile internet primarily via their mobile, most are not actually on the move when they log in, with an average 80% accessing the site while at home, at work or at a desk.
KF Lai, CEO of BuzzCity, comments, “Most users access the social networking site from their mobile phone, which re-affirms our numerous observations that mobile phone usage tends to be closely personal, even intimate, and this ‘personal use’ continues as people use the mobile internet to extend their social networks.
However, what will be interesting to those in the telecommunications industry is the high proportion of users who are stationery while using the service”. Romanians, Thais and Kenyans are the least likely to surf on the go, while in India, South Africa, UK and Nigeria, surfing while out and about is more common.
Why users access the service
The most cited reason for logging on to myGamma was to communicate with friends, with 75% wanting to “meet” their friends in the chat rooms, take part in networking activities or leave messages for one another. Members have an active "virtual" life and nearly three in five communicate with myGamma friends as much, or more often, than with their "real" friends. However, about 44% of users in Nigeria, Romania and the UK say they spend less time with their online friends than with real ones.
M-commerce
While m-commerce is not the primary reason for using myGamma, 35% of members have made a purchase online, with South Africans and Thais being particularly prolific buyers. Rich media content – such as games, ring tones and wallpaper images – is popular. Virtual goods are a fast rising sales item and are used as a networking tool in the form of gifts for online friends. Interestingly, users are over three times as likely to make a purchase when provided with special offers as with direct advertising. Kenyans are the least likely to buy anything via their mobile, with only 14% ever having purchased goods this way, which may be due to the lack of a robust billing method.
Conclusion
From this research study BuzzCity has gathered a unique insight into the behaviour of mobile social networkers, particularly in the fast-growing markets of Asia and Africa where wireless communities are emerging as a part of everyday life.
"This research has revealed that consumers’ mobile social networking habits around the globe are linked by similar behaviour, despite living in different parts of the world; they are united by a desire to connect with each other. And instead of a computer, more and more of them they are choosing to do this via the most personal of devices, their mobile phone”, said KF Lai.
He continued: “What we find really exciting is that members not only use the service to network, but also to buy goods and services. This augurs well for our advertisers and merchants, who will benefit from the influence of social networks on members, and the power of referral and recommendation. In the future, as our service evolves, we are looking forward to seeing more interesting advertiser campaigns, creating a dialogue mediated by a network of friends, all powered by a multi-sided market like myGamma”.
“As we attract more users globally we continue to learn about different social networking habits in different markets, which are not always as anticipated. It is only once we truly understand our audience that we can deliver services and goods that will not only appeal to their individual tastes but that also brings value to our partners”, he concluded.