Upwardly mobile: Affluent users more receptive to mobile advertising, finds BBC report

Handheld advertising is more effective than the desktop and is four times more effective with those who can afford to flash the cash, suggests a world-first study from the BBC.

“Mobile advertising is twice as effective as the proven desktop in driving key brand metrics such as awareness, favourability and purchase intent amongst the total population”, the study claims.

Not surprisingly, the study also found that wealthier people were better connected to the internet through smartphones, with 39 per cent accessing the internet via mobile devices at least once an hour, compared to a humble 18 per cent of us mere mortals.

Jim Egan, CEO of BBC Global News Ltd, said: “This large study provides compelling evidence that mobile advertising works with affluent mobile consumers in particular and that has big implications for publishers and advertisers alike.”

The study surveyed 6,000 smartphone owners in Australia, Germany, Sweden, India, Hong Kong and the US, and compared the habits of affluent consumers – the highest 20 per cent income earners in each country – to those of the general population.

“This new research reveals significant change in mobile consumption – people are delving deeper into stories on their mobiles, consuming more video and, significantly, growing accustomed to advertising on their mobiles,” added Egan.