Our Phones Connecting Us More & More

With the power of smartphones now reaching a level of maturity, some significant usage patterns are emerging that show we are now using our phones more and more to find information, make decisions and purchase products – as well stay connected with family and friends.

A new survey The Mobile Movement: Understanding Smartphone Users commissioned by Google to promote their Mobile Ads service has delivered some surprising results. One quirky statistic is that some 39% of us are using our phones while using the bathroom!

Seriously, there are some revealing statistics from this survey, conducted by Ipsos OTX, an independent market research firm, among 5,013 adult smartphone users in the US at the end of 2010. For example:

• 81% of smartphone users browse the Internet, 77% search, 68% use an app, and 48% watch videos on their smartphone
• 72% use their smartphones while consuming other media, with a third while watching TV
• 93% of smartphone owners use their smartphones while at home 

Then there are the other revealing details, such as 95% of smartphone users have looked for local information, 79% of smartphone consumers use their phones to help with shopping – from comparing prices, finding more product info to locating a retailer.

With all this use of the internet from smartphones, a surprising statistic from the survey is that 79% of businesses don't have a mobile optimised site – showing there's a lot of catchup to happen.

If you want the visual brief, take a look at the Google highlights video:

Changing Behaviour and Having Fun

What a great idea – get people to change their behaviour by introducing "fun" into the activity. Volkswagen have been running a campaign designed to encourage people to do things they don't necessarily want to by introducing a fun element.

The winner had a simple idea – help reduce the incidence of speeding, using speed cameras. We all know how most people hate speed cameras, but Kevin Richardson's simple modification was to turn it into a lottery. As you'll see in the video, the results are impressive – during the lottery, speed on the selected road was reduced by 22%.

Some of the other ideas include getting people to use the stairs instead of escalators, encouraging recycling glass bottles and using the bin instead of throwing rubbish on the ground.

To see all the fun ideas, visit Thefuntheory.com