In the second month of the Quirk Graduate Programme, you begin your Studling Project, which is essentially a mini thesis. This post is about mine.

I had to decide on a topic (related to digital, of course), research it then present my findings at a University of Quirk session and submit a written version. Most people can’t go an hour, let alone a day without checking their phones – whether it’s their email or social networking profiles. It’s for this reason that I decided to focus my project on how mobile affects how we (the users) interact with brands on a regular basis.

I decided to investigate whether interactions with brands via mobile devices increased or decreased as users moved from feature phones to smartphones. I collected my information through questionnaires, online and offline (at events and places that I knew the people within my specific demographic frequent).

Not too long ago... Image Credit: Geekchique

Hypothesis: Engagement with brands via mobile devices by SA youth between the ages of 18-24 increase as they move from feature phones to smartphones.

Why them?

• They were the first mass adopters of MXit (a South African based instant messaging system).
• Their uses for their mobile devices have adapted as they have grown. Most of them started out with very basic feature phones and, as the technology changed and different platforms being readily available, so did their need for mobile devices that could run these platforms.
• They are less reluctant to adopt new technology. This demographic has grown up in a time where technology changes rapidly (compared to past generations) and adopting new technologies has become the norm.
• Most of them started out their mobile relationships with your basic WAP enabled phone before moving to feature phones and now, smartphones.

My insights:

• The brands that respondents engage with the most have strong ties to them with regards to their lifestyle and how they see themselves. Respondents follow these brands not only online, but also in the offline space.
• Phone usage increased when users moved from feature phones to smartphones. Increased usage equalled an increase in brand interactions.
• There is huge integration between Social Media and Brand Awareness and Engagement. This is as a result of the ease and convenience of using mobile to access brand information and interact with these brands.
• Feature phone users interacted with brands mainly via SMS and USSD while smartphone users interact with brands mainly via brand specific mobile apps: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and MXit.
• Brands that use cross platform campaigns to engage users were the most liked!

What this means for marketers:

At the moment, most users are still making the move from feature phones to smartphones. While the smartphone adoption rate for this specific age group (18 -24) is high and by 201, there’ll be a higher smartphone penetration due to cheaper Android devices becoming available to the market… Campaigns shouldn’t be aimed specifically at smartphones ONLY, but rather target feature phone users.


Also check out:

• Sprattified - A Q&A with Justin 'The Aussie' Spratt
• Friday Fact Box - How the Youth Are Connecting Online