WHAT WE DO ABOUT SERVICES CASE STUDIES NEWS LOGIN CONTACT GWS U.S. Consumer Research Survey Teleworking during the pandemic The shift to expanded telework during the pandemic is revealing new app winners and losers. In addition, demographics have a surprising impact on consumers’ communications behavior. GWS’s consumer research survey is a thorough examination of consumer communication habits, including behavioral shifts during COVID-19, consumer satisfaction with their wireless carriers and mobile devices, and variances based on demographics such as location (urban, suburban, and rural) and age group. The data shows a dynamic story of the products and technologies that Americans are turning to during the pandemic, as well as rapidly evolving priorities and preferences shaped by more time living, working and communicating from home. The following are key takeaways from GWS’s survey of 5,000 U.S. smartphone users. Most video calling and conferencing applications see usage rise during the pandemic but... Zoom was the top choice among video calling and conferencing tools during the COVID-19 stay-at-home mandate – most popular and most widely used. Favorite video calling and conferencing apps (top three choices): 1st: Zoom – selected by 24% of respondents 2nd: Facebook Messenger - 21% 3rd: Apple FaceTime - 18% Favorite video calling and conferencing app by age: Younger respondents ages 18-24: Apple FaceTime top choice Older age groups (35+): Zoom and Facebook Messenger tied for top choice. While video calling and conferencing usage surged, voice calling still reigned supreme When asked which one mobile phone capability consumers would keep for at home telework the top choice was voice: 1st: Voice calling - 33% 2nd: Texting - 28% 3rd: Video calling and conferencing - 20% 4th: Emailing - 15% 5th: Team collaboration (for example, Slack) - 4%. Consumers remain attached at the hip…and fingers…to their smartphones If consumers could only keep one product or service during the COVID-19 stay-at-home mandate, their top choice was their smartphone (based on % of respondents selecting a certain product/service): 1st: Smartphone - 45% 2nd: PC - 19% 3rd: Streaming service (like Netflix) - 12% 4th: TV - 10% 5th: Car - 7% 6th: Tablet - 4% 7th: Alcohol - 2% Consumers not only rely heavily on their smartphone during the pandemic, but most are sticking with their current mobile devices 72% of consumers have not purchased a new smartphone yet this year, and of this group half said the reason why is that they are satisfied with their current device. Going forward, 38% of consumers plan to buy a smartphone in the second half of 2020, 26% plan to do so in 2021 and 11% in 2022 or later. Behind every successful smartphone is a strong carrier Consumers are generally content with carrier overall performance: 84% of survey respondents said that their carrier has met their mobile communications needs in terms of wireless performance ‘always’ or ‘most of the time.’ Carrier performances are still given high marks when looking at specific needs: When needs are further broken down by network coverage, voice calling quality and reliability, and data throughput and reliability, 80% or more of the respondents felt that their carrier met each of these needs most or all of the time. Stick with or switch carriers – depends on where you live: When given the option to stay with their current operator or switch to a new one: Rural and Suburban: 76% of rural and 76% of suburban survey respondents would keep their current operator because it offered the services and/or devices they want Urban: 51% of urban respondents would stick with their current operator for the same reasons. Wireless carriers delivering on what matters most to consumers Strong consumer satisfaction suggests that carriers are delivering on capabilities most important to their subscribers. In fact, the three most important factors for consumers when selecting a carrier are network coverage, reliability, and network speed: Survey methodology All survey figures, unless stated otherwise, are from a study commissioned by GWS and conducted by Toluna. Total sample size was over 5,000 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between June 16th and July 3rd, 2020. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of Americans (aged 18+). About Global Wireless Solutions, Inc. Founded in 1996 and headquartered in Dulles, Virginia, Global Wireless Solutions has set the industry standard for network benchmarking, analysis and testing. Its proprietary OneScore network ranking combines high-level network testing data with real-world network usage scenarios to make the results of testing relatable and easy to understand. Working with some of the world’s largest wireless network providers, GWS offers high-quality network data and engineering analysis through a suite of benchmarking products, services and OneMeasure diagnostic apps that include drive, venue and in-building testing. At last count, GWS has driven 13 million data collection miles for its customers. For more information, visit gwsolutions.com and follow us on Twitter at @gwsolutionsinc. GWS defines the industry standard for wireless network benchmarking. We offer network data and engineering analysis through a suite of benchmarking services. 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