Desktop continues to hold sway over smartphones for print referrals
Desktop browsers continue to hold sway over smartphone users in terms of directing online traffic from print, according to the DMA’s Mobilising print media survey.
The survey of 1,000 UK consumers found that those driven online by brand and charity print marketing with 75 per cent doing so via a desktop or laptop and just 25 per cent using a smartphone or tablet.
Reasons given for this tendency included poor mobile web functionality, with 27 per cent complaining of difficulty in scrolling and browsing. A further 22 per cent voiced qualms over data security on handhelds.
Despite these reservations 18 per cent of those quizzed said they had bought a product or service via a mobile device in the past month.
Elsewhere 5per cent of respondents said they ‘always’ visit a brand’s social media page, download a mobile app or register for emails in response to print marketing of a product or service they are interested in. In addition 30 per cent of consumers occasionally made use of QR codes and somewhat less, 23 per cent, used AR apps.
Mark Davies of the DMA’s Door Drop Board Committee said: “The results show that while consumer behaviour is trending towards the digital, print media is still playing a vital role in their consideration acting as a key stimulus to go online.”
Nick Barnard, chair of the DMA Inserts Council added: “Today, the path to purchase is more complex than often thought, particularly on how certain media channels are perceived. What media owners, agencies and clients need to remember is that in the end the consumer is always the most integrated and important person in the marketing mix.”