According to the findings of a new global SAP study, consumers in twelve nations have one thing in common — a strong penchant for communicating with brands via SMS.
81 percent of those surveyed express liking SMS over a mobile app to communicate with a brand largely for the sake of simplicity.
In addition, 71 percent say that it’s annoying to have different conversations in different apps and not all messages in one place. SMS is viewed by consumers as a quick (67 percent) and convenient (56 percent) way for companies to communicate.
Report highlights published in Billingworld indicate that nearly three-quarters of all survey respondents believe they should uninstall more than a few apps on their mobile devices today purely due to a lack of routine use.
“We are seeing a clear maturity in the way consumers are using their mobile phones,” Sethu Meenakshisundaram, president of SAP Mobile Services, is quoted in the same report. “We are moving away from customers asking ‘Is there an app for that?’ to asking ‘Is there an SMS for that?’ Consumers want to engage with brands and enterprises on their own terms. They want simplicity and to use the mobile channel that best meets their needs at that time. As this study shows, in many situations SMS wins out and this is a clear opportunity for enterprises to make use of the SMS advantage.”