Thirty four per cent of smartphone owners will be ‘very likely’ or ‘likely’ to purchase more items from their mobile device thanks to 4G technology and faster internet connections. That’s according to the latest eCustomerServiceIndex (eCSI) survey of 2,000 consumers from eDigitalResearch and IMRG.

eDigitalResearch and IMRG found that 39 per cent of smartphone owners have already used their mobile device to make a purchase. Whilst adoption of 4G technology currently remains relatively low (according to the study, just 14 per cent of smartphone devices have 4G capabilities although not all are currently active), users on average are much more engaged with mobile technology than their 3G smartphone owner counterparts.

Seventy seven per cent of 4G users have accessed the internet from their enabled device whilst out shopping, compared to 53 per cent of 3G smartphone owners. Meanwhile, 62 per cent of 4G users have used a barcode scanner to see if they could get a product cheaper elsewhere, compared to 20 per cent 3G smartphone owners.

Derek Eccleston, commercial director at eDigitalResearch, comments, “The introduction of 4G technology looks set to have a considerable impact on retail markets. With faster internet speeds and a better all-round browsing experience, more and more shoppers are likely to turn to their 4G enabled device to help them through their multichannel purchase journey; whether that’s to read customer reviews, check product descriptions or compare prices. Whilst the thought of this might scare some, brands need to embrace this next step of the mobile revolution and ensure that their entire end-to-end customer journey across all channels is set for more mobile”.

Of those that have 4G technology available to them, and have used it, 43 per cent reported a substantial difference to their internet browsing experience claiming that it was ‘considerably faster’, whilst another 39 per cent said they found it ‘faster’.

Share Story: