UK consumers lead the way in smartphone use, but SMEs getting left behind in capitalising on this

The UK is the most advanced nation in world at using smartphones, using it for everything from keeping in touch with family to doing sophisticated price comparisons and buying things when in shops, finds a study by Ghent-based analysts InSites Consulting. And UK consumers are increasingly adept at using their mobiles while doing other things: 68% use their smartphone while shopping, 48% while watching TV and 34% while sitting on the toilet.

The UK leads the pack with 89% of smartphone owners having a data connection (though it does beg the question, what are the other 11% doing with a smartphone?) and this makes the UK the most mature and sophisticated mobile market assessed by InSite.

Elias Veris, Mobile expert at InSites Consulting explains: “Although on the European mainland the Netherlands are often seen as thé example for smartphone usage, we see that on the mobile front the UK is even more advanced. This is reflected in the number of data connections, but also in the fact that the US and the UK make more use of options such as in-store searching for the competitors’ pricing.”

Staying in touch with friends and family is the traditional motive for using a mobile phone (74%). Those remain the main motives for smartphone users, which is also reflected in the high level of usage of social media applications. Added to that are 2 more typical usage motives: first of all 64% of smartphone users admit that a motive is making one’s life easier by having access to information (e.g. online, but also by constantly having access to one’s agenda); and the second motive is entertainment, e.g. at moment when one is waiting for something.

All this – well maybe not the toilet part – shows what a huge opportunity for any business mobile actually is. The fact that using mobile while shopping comes out so high, shows that mobile commerce, and mobile retail in particular, have really grasped the public’s imagination and, with 64% saying they use a phone for all these data apps because it makes their lives easier, it is surprising that more isn’t done to tap into the market.

Another study, by MoPowered, finds that 89% of small retailers really want to get going with mobile to sate this growing need, yet only a quarter of them have done anything about it. Why? Well they are stymied by the lack of knowledge and information around how to actually do it.

While this pertains purely to the retail sector, I think the lessons can be extrapolated back into any vertical market. While the big players get it – and have pockets deep enough to try it and sometimes get it wrong – smaller businesses, which make up the vast majority of commercial organisations, can’t take that risk. And while they are in the dark about how to do it, they are losing business and pissing off all those consumers who want to buy and interact with them (though pissing the ones off that are sitting on the bog is probably not such a big deal, they are after all ideally placed to be pissed off, if I may be so crude).

What the InSite study reveals is that consumers want an easy life, and want to be entertained while they are doing other things. Of course, the telemedia industry – and telemedia-news and all our products – have long recognised this and we spend the vast majority of our time showing businesses how to make this happen. But they are typically the big boys and girls out there. What of the smaller businesses?

As the world moves away from PCs towards smartphones and tablets – which may well happen quicker that we think: Microsoft’s Surface is here, kindle has sold millions of Fires in the US, Google is putting out a £159 7inch tab later this month and now Apple is pretty certain to be launching iPad Mini towards year end – the way consumers interact with businesses is going to be significantly different from the ‘old’ internet model.

In many cases the PC is still the preferred device: for e-mailing, for surfing, for working and for social networking. But this preference is not always reflected by the actual behaviour: in many cases the smartphone is the only available appliance, so that is the one which is used.

“Users estimate that at least 5% of the time they currently spend on computer and laptop will go to smartphones and tablets in the near future,” says Veris. “I personally think it will be a lot more; at home the tablet will claim a lot more time, and on the road the smartphone will do the same.”

But how do businesses that want to engage with consumers this way actually make it happen? Sure much of the back end is the same, but the experience and, moreover, the payment/purchase side is going to be crucial. Making it simple, affordable and easy to do for small commercial entities is where I believe the real telemedia in m-commerce opportunity lies. And the businesses that want it need our help to make it happen.

At a time of economic uncertainty – not to mention a time of crooks being finally unmasked in banks – everyone needs to get on board with m-commerce and it is up to us, as an industry, to make it happen.