Behind the numbers for smartphone adoption
From the Create with Context newsletter
What, exactly, does smartphone adoption mean? comScore recently released their 2010 Mobile Year in Review, which - among other things - highlighted considerable increases in smartphone adoption in both Europe and the US. In particular, Spain has recently surpassed Italy to become the top adopter in Europe (at 38%), and both are closely followed by the UK at 34%, with the US lagging behind at 27%.
If we are to believe the statistics, the cafes of the Mediterranean and alleyways of old London should be saturated with the glow of iPhones and Androids, as Europeans swipe, tap, check-in, and liveblog their way through modern life.
However, our recent research has told us otherwise. We conducted an observational study in Italy, Spain, England, and Scotland which painted a somewhat different picture. While a smartphone is a smartphone, usage profiles differ from one geography to another - and this has a direct impact on the types of solutions that customers will demand and engage with over time.
Out of sight, out of mind
Take a look around the table at a restaurant, office, or conference in the US, and you'll see mobile devices spread out like Pavlovian Tamagotchi trophies, ready to be tapped at a moment's notice. In Europe, on the other hand (especially in Italy and the UK), phones tended to stay hidden - in a pants pocket or a bag - until they were needed.
Face-to-face, not pixel-to-pixel
Across Europe, we frequently observed that people in public tended to be more 'in the moment': chatting with friends, or simply existing within the (analog) world around them. Socially, bringing out the phone mid-stream would have been an affront, not a badge of honor. When people did have their phones in hand, it was typically with a purpose: getting a piece of information, making a call, responding to a text.
Microsoft got it right
The advertising campaigns for Windows Phone 7 show people 'dipping into' their phones briefly, and then getting on with their lives - much like we observed on the streets, in restaurants, in meetings, and even in locations with more downtime like subways and buses. During intermission at a play in England, for instance, there was nary a smartphone screen to be seen - compared to the feverish dive for the purse or pocket that one would see in San Francisco, Silicon Valley, or NYC.
Context matters
All of this sits in contrast to findings from research we have done in Asia. In Japan, for example, it's common to find dozens of people buried in their phones while on the subway - because due to cultural norms, people tend not to talk out loud, as it may be seen as a disruption to those around them.
What's the driver?
Smartphone usage has spiked in Spain recently, but our on-the-ground observation didn't see a concurrent increase in phone usage on the streets. Why? In part due to social norms, perhaps, but in part due to unemployment rates hitting nearly 21%. Rather than the phone being a new player in the social scene, it is instead replacing expensive computers and broadband connections in the home.
Lessons to be learned
While all things will undoubtedly even out over time, with smartphone adoption rates continuing to increase over the next years, there are some important lessons to be learned from these observations:
- Not all mobile adoption is the same: Owning a smartphone doesn't mean using it the same way that, say, someone does in Silicon Valley
- The smartphone isn't front-and-center for everyone: While adoption is high, people aren't necessarily spending their days staring at the screen
- Behaviors can differ: For instance, while 'checking in' may be a natural extension to everyday tapping for some people, for others it may require a conscious decision to pull out the phone and engage
When designing for mobile, make sure to design for all contexts of use - not just the one outside your front door.
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