urban airship

research report
contents
introduction: p. 2-3 | secondary research: p. 4-8 | primary research and analysis: p. 9-22 | executive summary: p. 23 | references: p. 24

thao bui, amber choe, avi kasperzyk, lana obrien, jordan paul and joey zolfaghari

introduction
U
rban Airship has one goal in mind: how to connect consumers to brands. Its this consumer, that in todays mobile era, must be at the forefront of every business decision. From start to end, the goal of our research is to divulge the insight into how consumers make brands and products part of their everyday lives. If we know what kind of information consumers wish to receive on their phones, and when they want to receive that info, we can create better business solutions. Urban Airship needs to find the keys to consumer engagement; what kinds of messages theyll pay attention to, and at what times they turn their push notifications on. They need to know what drives consumers decisions when it comes to the applications they use, how they use them, and what keeps them coming back. By reaching out to smartphone users directly, were getting straight to the most valuable source. This assures efficient results that make for intuitive information. This includes discovering the types of activities that people use their Smartphones for and sheds valuable light into when push notifications will thrive, and when they wont. It will help categorize the different markets that applications provide service in. In addition, it will bring focus to whats popular versus whats not a critical decision when it comes to investing in a brand. Our research aims to reveal what types of messages people want to see. If the notifications people are receiving are ones that are engaging in the right ways, theres a greater likelihood in them being left on. What does that mean for our client? It means customer satisfaction and the ability to spot trends. Again, the goal at hand is all about the consumer. Theyre the ones who drive brands to invest with our Urban Airship. Theyre the ones who use the end product. And theyre the ones who decide what stays and what goes. The research will be methodical, strategic, and

productive. Research that doesnt provide valuable insight is research done wrong. Urban Airship can be assured that this isnt the case in our findings. We began our research with the intent to answer an important question for the future of mobile messaging: Will consumers respond to coupons and deals within a push notification? Are consumers ready to make purchases within a mobile message, on the spot? We focused our research on the University of Oregon (UO) campus. We feel that UO students are a reflection of upcoming trends in digital marketing, and offer a unique insight into how Urban Airship should plan application development in the future. Our research offers multiple insights into how these students spend their time online, how they make purchases, how they interact, and how this group compares to the general population. The insights gleaned from this project offers Urban Airship a strategy for future app development and a way for brands to connect with students.

urban airship
better reach consumers by providing coupons and deals in

can

push notifications

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3

secondary research
rban Airship launched in May of 2009 in Portland, Oregon, by Steven Osborn and his former colleagues Scott Kveton, Adam Lowry, and Michael Richardson. His previous experience

working for a gaming company led him to establish this company. Urban Airship provides client based push notifications to smartphone users; the company has grown to become the industry leader in providing platforms for messaging to mobile devices. Push notifications allow you to send direct messages to the consumers who have purchased your application (app), even if the app is not currently running. As of 2012, Urban Airship has signed on more than 25,00 customers, sent over 10 billion push notifications, and connected to more than 100 million mobile devices. Urban Airship offers an effective way to use push notifications, in-app purchases and subscriptions in smartphone apps. Urban Airships easy-to-integrate tools extend the functionality of apps to the devices home screen, which keep users engaged to earn recurring revenue as well as to deliver an enhanced customer service experience. Among Urban Airships thousands of corporate customers are Dictionary.com, Verizon, Tapulous, Groupon and Warner Bros. The companys investors include Founders Co-op, Foundry Group, Intel Capital, salesforce.com, True Ventures and Verizon. Recently, Urban Airship announced a $15.1 million third round of funding. Urban Airship recently purchased its main competition in the push notifications industry; SimpleGeo. SimpleGeo specialized in services for apps that work with location services/tracking. This will help Urban Airship as they start to work with more location-based apps. According to their blog, during the first half of this year Urban Airship will introduce significant new features to their high performance push notification services that allow their customers to take advantage of location and context. For example, customers will have the ability to send push notifications to users on specific device types, in specific geographical areas, during specific time frames, e.g., iPhone users who have been in the downtown Eugene area in the past week. Currently, Urban Airship is the only company that offers the Rich Push service. This service

provides a way to enhance a clients message by delivering multiple features like music, video, coupons and surveys. This service allows an active communication between companies and their targeted app users. Urban Airship allows its customers to track interactions so that they can successfully manage their key messages by sending coupons and special offers. Typically, people tend to avoid making purchases on their phone if there is any sort of inconvenience or hassle involved. In-app purchase services allow customers to make their purchase directly within the app without having to go back to the App Store or the Android Market. By cutting down on the purchasing process, companies become much more likely to keep their customers interested, which in turn, can lead to an actual sale. Urban Airship currently offers the service on both the iOS platform as well as on Android. Push marketing has become one of the biggest developments for companies in the last two to three years and is increasing on a quarterly basis. As of July 2011, according to the Urban Airship website, there are 141 million people in the world, (86.1 billion in the US) that will use their phones to make purchases which is up 75.9% from 2010. It is believed that mobile app revenue will become increasingly meaningful in the coming years and in-app purchases will be a top strategy as well as app management and analytics. As developers attempt to measure the success of their apps, analytics and push notification management are at the top their list of desires. Over 300,000 smart phone apps have been developed in the past three years. Apps have been downloaded more than 10.9 billion times. However, Allied Business Intelligence (ABI) research has predicted that app stores will slowly begin to decline as subscribers migrate from download apps to mobile Web sites and more popular download apps, such as social networking sites. According to a 2011 report by Distimo, who makes analytics tools for mobile apps, the average price of a mobile app will be falling rapidly, except for those on an Android mobile device. The report also found that in December, the average the cost of downloading an app was considerably cheaper than it was in January 2010.

Change in price of a download app over 12 months, 2010

App store Number of apps Price change All apps Top 100 apps Apple 300,000 -12 -19 Blackberry 18,000 -24 -24 Ovi (Nokia) 130,000 +1 -9 Android 25,000 -29 -61

Source: The Distimo report (January 2011)

According to another study by Localytics in 2010, one in four mobile apps that have been downloaded will never be used again; many apps are downloaded, tried once and then discarded. The results went on to show that from January to March 22% of customers using an app for the first time never used the app again. From April to September, the percentage of onetime usage is flat at 26%. One-time usage grows to over 28% in the last quarter, but some of those customers may still use the app again in early 2011.

Localytics. (2011). First Impressions Matter! 26% of Apps Downloaded in 2010 Were Used Just Once.

Also, following up on this survey, Localytics found that building relationships with the specific app users helps to ensure long-term usage. Of all users in Localytics study who did make an in-app purchase, 44% did not do so until they had first had an interaction with that app at least ten

times. On average, a user who makes an in-app purchase will do so 12 days after their first time launching that app. Based on companies attempts at a positive relationship between engaged app users and in-app purchases, companies and mobile application developers should keep in mind that the more their users interact with their app, the more likely they are to get a chunk of the annual $5.6 billion industry for in-app purchases that are expected to be made by 2015 (Ruby, 2012).

Potential Urban Airship Target Audiences

It is difficult to define a specific overall target audience for Urban Airship since each app they offer targeted a different demographic. However, we figured that the main target audience for each company should be confined to smart phone or tablet users, who can easily access the app.

Based on the recent research by Nielsen, 46% of US mobile phone owners own a smart phone as of 2011 (Nielsenwire, 2012). The usage of smartphone apps varies by race and ethnicity. According to the research by Nielsen, in the U.S., Asian/Pacific Islanders (45%), Hispanics (45%) and African-Americans (33%), populations that also tend to skew younger while 27 percent of White mobile users reported owning a smartphone.

In the past six months, 60% of Asians/Pacific Islanders were using smartphones, along with 56% of Hispanics, and 44% of African-Americans, and 42% of whites. Secondary research is useful in answering some of the clients research questions. It helps to find out how companies can better engage with their consumers. We became aware if potential competitors and any similar products or services being offered, as well as how Urban Airship can continue to stay a step ahead. In Urban Airships case, it can provide them with possible companies to merge with to offer more complex services to their customers. Our second research discovered that Urban Airship is on a forefront of new mobile technology after the acquisition of SimpleGeo and the implementation of location services. Urban Airship is also the only company as of now implementing rich-push messaging. We found that often, apps are used only one time. In-app purchases are often only made after a user has interacted with that app an average of 12 previous times. With that information, we know that building the relationship between and brand and consumer is crucial in determining the success of an app. Our secondary research also uncovered that smartphone usage is increasing and spans across the all race/ ethnicity and age classifications within the United States.

primary research
W
e conducted this survey with the intent of answering an important business question for the future of mobile messaging: Are University of Oregon Students likely consumers for push notification purchases? This survey was sent out on February 24th, 2012 to University of Oregon students, faculty and the general population. The populations that have answered this survey are people that our group members are connected with by friendship, family, classmates, coworkers and online connections. We then asked those who had already take the survey to pass it on to their connections as well, enabling us to reach a wider section of the total population. Our survey is limited by those who answered. We feel however, that although small, it accurately represents smartphone users on University of Oregon campus. We used the survey website, Oregon Qualtrics (https://oregon.qualtrics.com), that is affiliated with the University of Oregon. Participants answered 14 multiple choice and likert scale questions about how they spend their time on their smartphone or tablet, how they interact with apps, and their purchasing styles. Our survey was taken by 228 people, with a completion rate of 86%. The questions that we asked were created with the intent of discovering if purchases in mobile messaging will be successful with this group, and in what ways this population already using apps and push notifications. Overall, we found that students and the general population are quite similar, however slight differences do stand out. We feel that these differences can provide insight into this highly soughtafter demographic. We can also assume that these differences may indicate upcoming trends and future changes in mobile messaging. Our data will aid in the decisions of when and how brands use push notifications to connect to consumers and ultimately aid in purchases.

survey information at a glance

ur survey covered 161 University of Oregon (UO) students and 66 nonO students/general population participants here was an 86% completion rate T he survey ran from February 24th to March 12th, a total of 18 days. T he survey was administered through a online program, Oregon Qualtrics, T run through the University of Oregon. articipants were found via e-mail and social media contacts, class contact P sheets and references through existing participants.

e found is that by far, the majority of both students at the University of Oregon (UO) that we polled, as well as those who are not students do currently own a smartphone or tablet. Of the students, 82% own a smart phone or tablet, and 86% of those not in school own a smartphone or tablet. Because of survey is skewed towards student participants, we found that 83% of those surveyed owned either a smartphone, a tablet or both.

Question 2. Do you currently own a Smartphone or Tablet?

Both populations (UO students and Non-Students) Total Responses: 228 Standard Deviation: 0.38

Off those owning smartphones or tablets, iOS is the most popular operating system with Android and Blackberry following behind for both UO students and the general population, however UO students are more likely to use iOS, compared to the general population. We can infer from this data that iOS will continue to gain popularity and usage as younger users graduate into the general population.

Question 12. What type of operating system does your smartphone or Tablet use?
iOS Android Blackberry WebOS Symbian Windows Mobile UO Students Total Responses: 115 iOS: 58% Android: 29% Blackerry: 8% Non-Students Total Responses: 48 iOS: 49% Android: 37% Blackerry: 6% Other I dont know what operating system I use

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tudents spend their time on their Smartphones or tablets engaging in a variety of activities. The most popular is social media sites such as Facebook or Twitter, however music and music videos came in second. E-mail usage ranked third for students, while non-students ranked e-mail as 5th on their list. Entertainment fashion or gossip sites came in last for non-students, while shopping or retail sites, (such as Amazon) was last on the list for non-students. Surprisingly, on average, nonstudents reported clocking an more time on their smartphones or tablets per week, compared to UO students. For both students and non-students, each activity reported takes up about 3.5 hours per week. From this data we can conclude that because there is an extreme amount of standard deviation between the participants in usage, and that smartphones and tablets are used for a wide variety of tasks.

Question 3. How many hours per week do you actively spend using your Smartphone or tablet on the following activities? This could be either on a website or via an application (app).

E-mail Social Media such as Facebook or Twitter News apps/websites News aggregate apps/websites Yahoo! News Sports information Weather Shopping or retail sites such as Amazon

Personal blogs Games Music and music videos Movies of television or videos such as Hulu or YouTube, not including music videos Entertainment, Fashion or Gossip Information or Research (i.e. Wikipedia)

Both populations (UO students and Non-Students) Total Responses: 160

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ur research results show that UO students rarely download paid apps. Among the 119 respondents, 41% UO students responded that they pay for downloading an app one to three times per year, while the highest response from non-students was I do not pay to for any app downloads, which makes up 33% of responses. Only 3% of UO students often download paid apps, which is more than four times per month, while none of non-students respondents said they do. Although there are slight differences in responses between these two groups, overall, we can conclude that the majority of respondents tend to not pay for paid app downloads. Since almost 70% of UO students dont download for paid app and so does 50% of non-student, we recommend offering apps for free for higher audience engagement. If needed, companies could have two version of an app, one purchased, one free, so that they can provide more information and services for people who would purchase the paid app version.

Question 5. On average, how often do you PAY to DOWNLOAD applications (apps) for your Smartphone or tablet?

UO Students Total Responses: 119 Standard Deviation: 1.72

Non-Students Total Responses: 49 Standard Deviation: 1.65 Rarely- I pay for 1 to 3 app downloads per year Somewhat- I pay for 3 to 12 app downloads per year Occasionally- I pay for 1 to 3 app downloads per month Often - I pay for 4 or more app downloads online per month I do not pay to for any app downloads

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Question 6. On average, how often do you PAY for SUBSCRIPTION applications (apps) for your Smartphone or tablet?

UO Students Total Responses: 119 Standard Deviation: 1.87

Non-Students Total Responses: 49 Standard Deviation: 1.95

Rarely- I pay for 1 to 3 app subscriptions per year Somewhat- I pay for 3 to 12 app subscriptions per year Occasionally- I pay for 1 to 3 app subscriptions per month Often - I pay for 4 or more app subscriptions online per month I do not pay to for any app subscriptions

oth groups clearly show they dont pay for subscription for apps. Among the 119 respondents from UO students, 74 of them responded that they do not pay for any app subscriptions, compared to 38 of them said they rarely pay for an app subscription, which is about one to three times per a year. However, although there are quite small numbers of respondents, weve noticed that 7% of UO students pay for subscription somewhat occasionally or even four or more times per a month. On the other hand, no one pays for app subscriptions among the non-student group. The result showed that non-students are more likely to pay for app subscription than UO students. Since the non-student group (we assume) tends to make more money than students in general, the non-student group should be targeted for app that offers paid subscription. Targeting this group would lead actual sales since they are more likely to purchase something via app subscription compared to students due to financial stability.

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Question 7. On average, how often do you download FREE applications (apps) for your Smartphone or tablet?
Definition given to participants: A push notification is when an applications notifies the user with a mobile message, even when the application is closed. Examples include sport scores, the weather or news updates.

UO Students Total Responses: 119 Standard Deviation: 0.86

Non-Students Total Responses: 49 Standard Deviation: 0.79

Rarely- I download 1 to 3 free apps per year Somewhat- I download 3 to 12 free apps per year Occasionally- I download 1 to 3 free apps per month Often I download 4 or more apps online per month I do not download any free apps

ontrary to previous question, the data shows that UO students download occasionally, approximately one to three free apps per a month. 41% of respondents from UO student group said that they occasionally download free apps, which is three to 12 times per a month, and 35% of them try one to three free apps per a year. On the other hand, the result indicates that non-student group tends to download free apps more often than UO students group. From the nonstudent group, the answer occasionally and often are ranked first and second. Therefore, we can conclude that non-student respondents download three or more free apps to their smartphones or tablets. As recommended in the previous question, we believe that offering a free app would be the best way to reach audience. Since people tend to download free apps occasionally to get information they are interested in or just to try, free apps should include interesting content or easy-to-use technology to keep the audiences as user.

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e found both groups, UO students and non-students, use apps quite often. Among 168 respondents who own smartphones or tablets, including both UO students and non-students, almost three-fourths of them said they use at least one app daily, while other responses were distributed evenly from both groups. The response two to three times a week is commonly ranked as second from both groups. About ten% of respondents from both groups commonly showed quite a low level of app usage. Although we were not able to find out what kinds of app do they use for daily use, we believe that once UO students and even non-students found that the app is useful or interesting, they tend to use it everyday. A detailed research about the most frequently used app category over the longest period of time will be needed.

Question 8. How often do you use applications (apps) on your Smartphone or tablet?

Both populations Total Responses: 168 Standard Deviation: 1.24 Never (1%) Less than Once a Month (2%) Once a Month (3%) 2-3 Times a Month (5%) Once a Week (4%) 2-3 Times a Week (10%) Daily (76%)

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Question 9. Do you allow for applications (apps) on your Smartphone or tablet to notify you via push notifications?*

UO Students Total Responses: 115 Standard Deviation: 1.45 Yes- I always allow push notifications

Non-Students Total Responses: 49 Standard Deviation: 1.55

Yes- I allow push notifications for more than 50% of the apps I use Yes- I allow about half of my apps to use push notifications Yes- but I allow fewer than 50% of my apps to use push notifications No- I never allow apps to notify me via push notifications I do not use apps on my Smartphone or tablet I do not understand what a push notification is

he results from question nine demonstrates that students and non-students alike are incredibly discriminatory in how they receive mobile messaging. Modern users expect to be able to self determine the kind of information they see and when. This can be seen in the wider business trend from services like TiVo to social media sites where you choose what information is seen in your newsfeed or who you follow. Users are opting for more pull information where they become the curators of content, as opposed to the traditional forms of media. When developing push notifications therefore, it is important to include various ways in which the user can customize the level in which they want to receive information about your brand. Setting times, number, or even place where push notification are allowed will show that brands understand the consumer.

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Question 10. If you were to receive a push notification, how likely are you to click on a link within the message?

UO Students Total Responses: 115 Standard Deviation: 2.04 Very Likely Unlikely Somewhat Unlikely Undecided

Non-Students Total Responses: 49 Standard Deviation: 2.0 Somewhat Likely Likely Very Likely I do not understand what a push notification is

uestion ten demonstrates that students are overall much more likely to be accepting of data and information, once they actually choose to opt-in to an app that enables push notifications. While they are discriminatory about the information they choose to get, once the brand is accepted as part of their life, students will choose to engage much more often. For push notification development, this means that content must be consistently worthwhile and engaging for the consumer. Dont expect to flood these students with information and have them ignore it. They will engage, and then determine if your brand is worth the relationship. This means that brands have a high potential to use mobile messaging in a way that is meaningful and important to this younger generation. In the future, brands will find that if they create compelling content, these students will seek them out to interact.

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Question 11. If you were to receive a push notification with a coupon or deal on something you were interested in purchasing, how likely are you to click on a link within the message to make a purchase?

UO Students Total Responses: 115 Standard Deviation: 2.03 Very Likely Likely Somewhat Likely Undecided

Non-Students Total Responses: 49 Standard Deviation: 2.04 Very Unlikely Unlikely Somewhat Unlikely I do not understand what a push notification is

he result shows that 115 students from the University of Oregon answered the question. The majority (23%) is somewhat likely to click on the deal and 5% is very likely to check it out. On the other hand, 16% is very unlikely to look at the deal although the deal is something that they are interested in purchasing. In between, there is 13% of the students are undecided. In a survey done on 49 people who are not student or do not enroll at the University of Oregon, the result shows a difference since the majority is very unlikely or somewhat unlikely to click on the push notification (18%). The people who are undecided to check the deals on push notification also take a large part in the survey with 16%. From this data, we can conclude that while students are more likely to click on push notifications, the general public shows a different pattern since they are unlikely to look at the deal.

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he results from question 14 show a high percentage of students that will likely to buy based on a coupon or a deal. From the survey, 39% of the students say that they will somewhat likely to purchase and 25% of the students will be likely to buy. The percentage of students who do not want to make purchase based on coupon or deal is significantly smaller in which 7% is very unlikely, 8% is unlikely, and 8% is somewhat unlikely. The sector of undecided also takes a smaller part in the result with 8%. The result from the survey done on non-students also gives a similar percentage with 36% is somewhat likely, 15% is likely, and 13% is very likely to make purchase with a coupon or a deal. On another hand, only 17% of the people are somewhat unlikely, 11% are unlikely, and 4% are unlikely to purchase even if they have a coupon or a deal. The data show a similar buying pattern of both student and non-student audience when a coupon or a deal available.

Question 14. How likely are you to make a purchase based on a coupon or deal?

UO Students Total Responses: Standard Deviation: Very Likely Likely Somewhat Likely Undecided

Non-Students Total Responses: Standard Deviation: Very Unlikely Unlikely Somewhat Unlikely

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Question 4. On average, how often do you make purchases online?

UO Students Total Responses: 119 Standard Deviation: 0.93

Non-Students Total Responses: 49 Standard Deviation: 0.98

Somewhat- I make 3 to 12 purchases per year. Rarely- I make 1 to 3 purchases per year. Occasionally- I make 1 to 3 purchases per month. Often- I make 4 or more purchases per month. I have not bought anything online in the past year.

lmost half of the students surveyed say they make purchases online about three to 12 times a year and 20% of them say that they only make about one to three online purchases a year. 19% occasionally shop online with one to three purchases a month and 8% buy things online from four or more times a month. Only a small percentage of 3% has not bought anything online in the past year. For the survey done on non-student audience, the result shows a slight difference in shopping online pattern. 39% of the people make three to 12 purchases a year, 33% make one to three purchases a month, and 10% shop online more than four times a month. Only 4% say that they have not bought anything online in the past year and 14% say that they rarely shop online during the year. From the data, we can conclude that the majority of students and non-students shop online about three to 12 times a year. A very small percentage of both audiences do not make purchase

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online in a year. The differenced between these two groups is drastic. It is clear that the modern college student has come of age in an era where it is acceptable and encouraged to make online purchases from shoes and clothing, to books and gifts. Sites like Amazon.com give student discounts, and teachers often encourage students to buy the textbooks online for a better deal. So what does this mean for mobile messaging? It means that the younger generation is already accustomed to trusting purchases in an online context. The shift for this age group to begin to make purchases over their mobile devices will come to this group in a much easier stride in comparison to the general population/non-students.

rom the questions eleven, 14 and four, we can conclude that although people shop online and make purchases based on a coupon or deal, the students are more likely to click on a coupon sent via push notification. With the data from the students, we can predict the consuming trend in the future when these college students graduate in a few years. Because they are used to getting deals and coupons currently via sources such as e-mail, the students will be more likely to be interested in a push-notification that offers the same service. As these students begin to enter the work force and start families, push-notification sales can be targeted to their individual lives. In addition, the sector of undecided (14% average in students and non students) in question eleven: If you were to receive a push notification with a coupon or deal on something you were interested in purchasing, how likely are you to click on a link within the message to make a purchase? is very important because the attitude may change if the notification of a deal or a coupon is sent to consumers at the right time. Based on the information collected from the students, we think that companies can engage with consumers by sending real-time notifications about a deal or a coupon based on the geographic tracking, the activities on smartphones and tablets as well as the interest shown on social media profiles. Maintaining the relationship with the consumers after they make a purchase will enable for repeat consumers. An in-app review system that directly sends the questions or concerns from the consumers to the customer service will lead to a more positive experience. In addition, a review system would show different peoples experience with the company or the brand will create a more trustworthy value. This increases the chance of a non-student and students alike to click on a deal sent via push notification. Our research is demonstrates simply the beginning underlying feelings about online purchasing patterns and the likelihood of this same behavior transferring to mobile messaging. We have strong reason to believe that indeed, purchases through push notifications has the potential to be beneficial to both consumer and brand.

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Question 13. What percentage of your discretionary money to you spend on the following items per month ? (total must sum to 100).

Food or Beverage. 49% Entertainment. 18% Clothes. 14% Travel or Vacation. 9% Electronics. 5%
UO Students

his questions demonstrates how college students spend their money. As brands use this information to develop their push notifications, knowing how discretionary income is spend will greatly aid in determining how successful the mobile messaging will be at attracting this age group to make purchases. Because we know that UO students spend almost half of their income on food and beverages, companies such as restaurants can use this information in to tell a college student that its happy hour through a push notification or offer a deal on a food item that would be purchased within the message. We believe that this information proves that messaging such as this would be successful. We also found that entertainment accounts for about 20% of the (UO) college students budget. This means that companies that can offer deals on concerts, movies, etc. will have the attention of college students. This question also addresses that students spend the least amount of their discretionary funds on electronics and travel. This may be due to the fact that these are generally both larger purchases that one has to save and budget for. Many students also hold part time jobs and have real purchasing power. With this in mind, mobile messaging that reminds users to save for that big flat screen or trip to Hawaii would have potential with college students.

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hrough our secondary and primary research, we found that Urban Airship should encourage their clients to use more coupons and deals within push notifications to encourage direct purchases through mobile messaging.

executive summary

Our secondary and primary research proves that smartphone use is increasing, and will continue to gain in popularity across the varying demographics over time. Our primary research focused on the demographic of University of Oregon college students. Within this population we found that the overwhelming majority of students use smartphones or tablets. Of those users, more than half use the iOS operating system of iPhones or iPads. We believe that the number of iPhone smartphone users will continue to increase as this younger demographic begins to graduate and move into the workforce. Our secondary research shows that this is true across gender and race. Due to these findings, we recommend that Urban Airship continue to develop apps for all operating systems, but focus the largest amount of time and money on iOS operating system app development. Our primary research concluded that UO college students and the general population are not that different in how they use their smartphones. Each individual user spends their time on various activities across the board, however social media plays the biggest role in smartphone/tablet use. Free applications are by far more popular that onetime purchase or subscription apps. According to this information, it is wise that Urban Airship encourage clients to make their apps free of charge and recoup this income in a different avenue. We discovered is that students are less likely to allow the majority of their apps to use push notifications. These younger users are much more technologically savvy, and have matured in a world where they get to choose what entertainment and information they see. Push notifications follow this same trend of the discriminate consumer deciding what they see and when. We believe that specialization for the user will be extremely important in the future of mobile messaging. We recommend that more research is needed to determine exactly how this age range is interacting and determining the messages they receive. The most important insight of our research demonstrates is that UO college students are more likely than the general population to make a purchase based off of a coupon or deal. They are also more likely to click on a message for further information. When asked if they would click on a link within a push notification with a coupon or deal that they were interested in, 41% ranged from somewhat likely to very likely. This is a 6% increase from the general population. These insights demonstrate that Urban Airship should encourage clients to use more coupons and deals within mobile messaging that encourages the user to make a purchase when they receive the push notification. These messages help connect brands to consumers that will make a purchase, without having to seek out a store or website. Our findings show that food and beverage is how college students (along with the general population) spend the majority of their discretionary income. Entertainment comes in second. According to our research, food and beverage brands that are able offer coupons or deals for events such as Happy Hour will be successful. In conclusion, we believe that more research needs to be done to determine exactly how college students are using push-notifications. We do know from our small research sample, that college students are more likely than the general population to respond in a positive way to a coupon or deal within a push notification. We believe that our research clearly demonstrates that Urban Airship should continue to develop and encourage clients to use free apps (focusing on the iOS operating system) to connect their brand to college students in a way that will likely result in a sale. Brands must be aware however, that young college users are much more discriminatory in how they use mobile messaging and in what information they seek out. We believe this is the overall future trend of push notifications: specialize your app for the user, and offer an easy way for direct purchasing by including coupons or deals in mobile messaging.

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references
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