Gongos: Smartphone Owners Want To Unlock By Voice, Fingerprint
As U.S. smartphone engagement rises at an increasing rate, so too does the desire for capabilities beyond expected features such as information search, entertainment and social networking. According to results from a flash poll among smartphone users within Consumer Village, an online consumer database maintained by Auburn Hills-based Gongos Research, 59 percent selected ownership awareness as a desired feature currently unavailable through their devices. Ownership awareness was defined as the ability for a smartphone to unlock itself through owner recognition more advanced than passcode technology, such as fingerprint or voice identification.
The desire for ownership awareness was tops both among the millennial generation, those ages 18 to 25, as well as those 25 and over.
"Contrary to popular belief that millennials share information frivolously, this exercise tells us that they place great value in their mobile content," said Bob Yazbeck, vice president of community methodologies for Gongos. "Both age groups want to rely on technology to safeguard information as smartphones become even more interconnected with their lives."
Among the 400 consumers polled, live video chats with family and friends was the second most desired feature at 51 percent, followed closely by in-store shopping recommendations and coupons via geolocation (also known as geotargeting). The flash poll and open-ended query were fielded starting Sept. 7 for 72 hours inside Gongos Research's Consumer Village, an online research community of over 20,000 members.
Gongos Research manages Consumer Village, its proprietary large-scale "community of communities" used for quantitative and qualitative research. A Flash Poll/Conversation is an activity initiated in Consumer Village which enables companies to ask up to five questions in order to gain instant insights. A sub-community called Airwaves was launched in September 2010 to specifically engage mobile users in research.
Since 1991, Gongos Research has worked with leading companies including Best Buy, Hallmark Cards, Mars Snackfood, Domino's Pizza, Visa, U.S. Bank and GM. In 2007, the company was first named to the Inc. 5000 list of "The Fastest Growing Private Companies in America," and in 2008 became a Honomichl Top 50 U.S. marketing research organization.
More at www.gongos.com.
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