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Submitted by Mike Grenville on Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:58 |
A survey has found that French women are three times more likely to take their mobile phone into the bathroom than men.
A survey on the secret habits of French mobile phone users found that 14% French women (compared to just 4% of men) actually take their mobile phones into the bathroom with them. The survey published by mBlox was conducted amongst 221 members of the public between the ages of 18 and 70 in Paris between 31 May and 1 June 2008.
Amongst the trends and mobile usage patterns highlighted by the survey include the fact that 73% of SMS recipients read promotional messages and make a decision immediately on whether and how to respond, with 14% saving the message to review later and 13% deleting the message without reading it. Users’ behaviour remains virtually identical whether the text message is received during the week or the weekend.
Christophe Collier, product marketing manager, mBlox France, explains that – although light-hearted in nature – the survey findings do reveal some important trends for the mobile marketing sector to consider.
“Over 87% of recipients of SMS promotional messages actually consider the message either immediately or at a later date; an extremely high rate of contact for potential advertisers which is both direct and personal,†said Collier. “While 69% of 18-24 year olds read and act immediately on incoming SMS texts, nearly of quarter of recipients aged 50 or above save them to review at their leisure. These practices highlight the degree of control afforded to users by their mobile phones.â€
Splish Splash
The survey goes on to reveal 18 to 24 year olds as the most likely to interrupt a bath or shower for an unexpected mobile phone call (34% compared to an average of 14% across all age groups), while 8% of this age group would do likewise to consider an incoming SMS message (compared to just 2% on average).
“Quite apart from the hygiene and safety issues associated with the practice of interrupting the cleansing routine to take a call or text, these findings do reveal the ease and frequency with which the younger generation exchange information in a way that is genuinely non-planned, spontaneous,†added Collier.
“Compared with other forms of digital communication such as email where communications and transactions are pre-meditated, with the user sitting in front of a computer, for instance, mobile-phone based communications can be completely instinctive and – in this respect – far more intimate. These findings correlate with a range of other studies highlighting the intimate relationship enjoyed between mobile phone users and their handsets.â€
Disturbed Sleep
The research also found that 59% of women and 41% of men go to sleep next to their mobile phones. This is a bad habit as according to scientific research into their impact on human rest, published in January 2008 funded by the Mobile Manufacturers Association mobile phones severely disrupt sleep patterns.
One of the reasons people sleep with their phones on is that they use the clock and alarm function on the phones to wake them in the morning.
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