Mobile shopping: A surprising gender gap emerges

Are men or women more likely to make purchases using a mobile device? The answer may surprise you: According to a uSamp Mobile survey of 1,100 adults aged 18-75, men are more active mobile shoppers, and the gap between the sexes is large. uSamp reported 45% of male respondents had made a mobile purchase, compared to 34% of women. Men were also more likely (46% vs. 34%) to have used a mobile device to make a payment.

However, drilling down into the behavioral data, the survey also revealed patterns that help explain the gaps. For instance, while men are more likely to conduct mobile shopping at work (25% vs. 15% for women), when waiting in the doctor’s office (a far less common activity) women dominate mobile shopping (12% vs. 8% for men). The survey also revealed this amusing tidbit: Three percent of men surveyed conduct shopping in meetings, compared to just 1% of women!

Men are also more likely to buy certain types of items. The list includes consumer electronics, food, office supplies, luxury goods, movie/event tickets, computer equipment and digital content (see chart, below).

For companies engaged in mobile commerce, this data begs the question: How can the gender gap be closed?

At Neemware, we believe there is a huge opportunity to boost engagement through in-app messaging and marketing. Once the Neemware SDK is installed, marketers can use the Feedback Module to find out what users of both sexes think about the app and its features, and make adjustments accordingly. Neemware’s Messages Module, which lets marketers send alerts or special offers in real time, can be used to promote products or features that appeal to certain audience segments. You can find out more about Neemware’s features and download the SDK here.

Be sure to follow us on Twitter at @Neemware, too — we’ll be posting use cases for in-app mobile marketing that are sure to spark some ideas about how you can increase downloads, boost revenue, and target certain groups of users.

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