Nielsen recently released interesting data on the typical U.S. smartphone user. Targeting age and income, we learn that the smartphone is quickly transitioning from luxury to necessity.

Let’s dig into the numbers. Nielsen’s sample size is 20,000 mobile consumers, segmented by age and income. My three takeaways from the data.

1. The younger generation considers a smartphone a necessity, including those just above the poverty level.
   
2. When they can afford it, the older generation is adopting to new smartphone technology.
   
3. Younger subscribers, new within the last 3 months, are choosing smartphones 8 out of 10 times. Compare this number with current subscribers of which less than 50% are smartphone owners.

1. Younger generation: Smartphone = must have.

Let’s examine the 18-24 and 25-34 age group. While it’s no surprise that young high income earners choose smartphones, what should stand out is that 56% of 18-24 year olds and 43% of 25-34 year olds making less than $15k per year have a smartphone. That’s right, roughly half of young individuals surveyed who are only a few thousand dollars short of the 2011 poverty level of $10,890 made room in their budgets for the luxury known as a smartphone.

While income earners in the <$15k bracket should not be our focus demographic, I think there’s an important overall message:

The future generation considers smartphones a necessity. Period.

2. Older generation: I’ll adapt if I can afford it.

Age group 45-54 shows income earners in the $75k-$100k range opt for smartphones 51% of the time while 55-64 year olds in the same bracket choose a smartphone at a rate of 42%.

Takeaway? Smartphones aren’t just for the younger generation. Desirable demos in the older age bracket are increasingly considering this new technology essential.



3. New subscribers are choosing smartphones rather than traditional mobile phones.

Nielsen’s graphic on smartphone penetration by age gives us an overwhelming look at new subscriber habits and their taste for smartphones.

Across all age ranges, new subscribers choose smartphones at a rate of 69% compared to 48% adoption for current subscribers. Segmenting the younger age ranges of 18-34 we see an adoption rate of 80%. That’s 8 out of every 10 new mobile phone subscriber between the ages of 18 and 34 choosing to purchase a smartphone over a traditional mobile phone. Wow.

I think this helps solidify the “trend” of smartphone penetration.

Compare Nielsen’s data to your dealerships and franchise’s demographics. Is the adoption rate high?

Compare your target age demo in the penetration by age graphic. How much have recent subscribers adopted smartphones compared to current?

Post your comments:

What steps has your dealership taken recently to cater to your customer on the go?
How has mobile shaped your marketing plan for 2012?

As a complete Noob to the vendor world, I am constantly afforded the opportunity to learn new and amazing things... sometimes on an hourly basis. Talk about a One-Eighty: 15 years in the dealership, then to one of the most progressive automotive software solutions provider in the industry. When I’m lucky enough to get invited to a meeting, I have to admit that half the time, I have no idea what the hell they are talking about!  I’m still learning the language.

Complimenting my new friend Joe Mescher (@joemescher) the other day on his article discussing the Google Cookie Monster, I think we both got that “hmmm.... that might make a good snippet” look. I’m a huge fan of Joe’s writing and won’t pretend to be able to add much depth to any conversation about digital marketing from the vendor side, but let me know if this sounds at all familiar in your store:

After seeing a few discussions over in the forums, I (my dealership’s E-Commerce Manager or ISM) get an idea.  I do some research, and I get excited! I dig-in and really do my homework, and I am convinced that, for about $5000 a month, and with very little effort, I can completely own share of voice with a display campaign in my market.  I CAN’T WAIT  to get in front of the GM!! I set a meeting. I get-up a little earlier... dress a little nicer... stop at Dunkin and bring-in a Box O’ Joe, and when it’s time, I proudly Release The Hounds with:

“I’ve found a new display product that will make it easy for us to develop a contextual display campaign across the Google ad network while helping us build a pixel pool for those high-ROI re-marketing campaigns.”

Click to expand...

In all likelihood, what my Dealer just heard:

(that’s Charlie Brown’s Teacher for the You Tube impaired)

GM says, “How much?”

I say, “Only about $5000 a month!”

GM, after forcibly pushing his eyeballs back in his socket and and wiping-up the coffee he just spit all over his table, politely says, “Uh, yeah. Good work. Lemme mull that over a bit and get back to you.” (This is a very polite GM).

So what was the problem? Was it my research? No. Solid. Is the dealership out of money? Nope. Solid. Maybe the GM just doesn’t like me? Doubt it, I seem to be his go-to for a lot of stuff.  Maybe the GM just doesn’t get it? That must be it.

“These guys just don’t get it!”  The mantra of a many a frustrated ISM....

But I have news for you: your dealer may actually get it. But he doesn’t understand your language. Like the noob in the midst of vendor genius, your Dealer spent most of his career with a certain “language” that is both comfortable and familiar. Newsflash: your Dealer is not going to learn your language. It’s your job to learn his/hers. And your paycheck reflects your ability to master this language.

The point is, if you can make your Dealer understand your point on his/her terms, you’ve done your job. To do this, you need to understand their world; step 1, their language.

Back to our example. We’re talking about advertising, right? My dealer spends A LOT of money on advertising, so he should know something about advertising... So what does he know?

Well, we’ve done a lot of TV and radio advertising, so he probably understands a little about “Reach” and “Frequency” and has an understood value surrounding those campaign numbers. So maybe if I can describe the Google Ad Network in terms of Reach (how many will see the ad) and Frequency (how often my ads will be seen), my guy can begin to make a valid value comparison in his mind. Next, ad-in the idea that instead of these “commercials” appearing on the evening news, or the game on Sunday, these ads will appear on websites where the context of the site matches the context of your ads; we have cars to sell, the people seeing these ads are interested in cars. I now let my GM know that this new product does all of this in about 5 clicks so we won’t have to pay the agency to produce these ads like radio and TV ads, and now perhaps he starts to see the light.

Am I really saying anything different above then in the first example? Nope -- just used another language: translated Digital Speak into Dealer Speak.

Dealers do a lot of print advertising too. Would it make sense for ISM’s to be able to translate dollars-per-column-inch to CTR to SRP to VDP’s?

Of course, some Dealers do get it, many of which are readers of this blog.  I imagine a few can hold a Digital Speak conversation with their ISM or even their Vendor Rep without the need of a translator.  But I’m really wondering how many of the “new” breed of ISM and E-Comm Managers have taken the time to learn the language of their predecessors.

Are you multi-lingual?.