A University of Queensland Business School PhD student is investigating the consumer behaviours that can be expected in response to marketing messages sent to their mobile phones.
Known as m-marketing, the medium has been seen as the ultimate in personalised communication with the capacity to reach and interact with individuals anywhere, anytime. But does it work?
Currently little is known about how users will react to such messages, both in terms of their emotional responses and the resulting behaviours.
PhD Student Lynda Andrews has developed a program of three research studies in an attempt to address this knowledge gap.
The first study has been completed and Lynda Andrews said her results show emotional responses to the ownership and use of mobile phones fall into one of three clusters.
"Each of the three clusters had particular characteristics with regards to how they view the way mobile phones fits into their lives,” she said.
“Moreover, each cluster has been linked to a particular m-marketing strategy that complements these views.
“In the second study I asked for information about the kinds of emotions respondents experienced.
“This helped reinforce my findings that there is an emotional dimension to the way people use their mobile phones.
“It also provided the ideas for the scenarios I will use in the final study, which will attempt to find out what behaviours can be expected as a result of the emotional reactions participants experience.”
The final study begins in May with results expected mid-year.
Media: For further information contact Lynda Andrews (telephone 0400 261 706, email l.fitzgerald@business.uq.edu.au) or Cathy Stacey at UQ Business School (telephone 3365 6179, 0438 339 538).
.jpg)
