Here’s a definition for consumer insights professionals: “engagement” and “mobile engagement” are increasingly synonymous for most Americans, according to the latest findings announced by Pew Research Center.

The headlines on Pew’s report and its accompanying charts pretty much tell the story: 

• “Use of mobile devices for news continues to grow, outpacing desktops and laptops”

• “About six in ten now often get news on a mobile device”

• “Younger adults more likely to get news on a mobile device.”

What it means for market research can be boiled down to five words: “Get mobile right, or else.” Especially if you want your research to be representative for minorities, Millennials, and the rising Gen Z.

Here are a few of the key findings:

• 58% of U.S. adults say they often access news on mobile, compared to 39% on desktops and laptops.

• “The share of Americans who often get news on a mobile device is nearly triple the 21% who did so in 2013.”

• “At the same time, the portion of Americans who often get news on a desktop has remained relatively stable, with 39% of adults often getting news on a desktop or laptop computer, up just 4 percentage points from 2013.”

• Americans ages 18 to 49 are especially attuned to news on mobile, with 71% in the 18-29 age bracket reporting that they often get news on mobile, compared to 32% who often access it via personal computers.

• For ages 30 to 49, the technology for frequent news access is 67% mobile and 38% personal computer.

• Nonwhites are twice as likely to access news on mobile as they are on personal computers, by a margin of 61% mobile to 31% PC.

To repeat, get mobile right, or else, Start by understanding the difference between in-app mobile research, and “mobile optimized” or “mobile web” research.

• In-app is state-of-the-art, created solely to harness the full capabilities of smartphones. Mobile web research is a rearguard action by online survey providers who were slow to respond to smartphones' dominance and are trying to play catch-up.

• In-app surveys are instantly embedded in respondents’ phones and can be taken in an interruption-free, offline space, driving full engagement and fast data. 

• Mobile-web requires a constant connection to the internet, which can easily be interrupted, leaving respondents frustrated and driving up research costs in both time and money as participants drop out, possibly never to return.

• An excellent mobile experience is the key to building the validated, first-party consumer panel that's now a must for reliable, representative data.

• And, as Pew's findings show, an excellent mobile experience meets consumers where they naturally gather.

You may have heard the story of the football coach who decided his team needed to get back to fundamentals, so he gathered all the players and began at the beginning: “This is a football.”

Today’s Mobile 101 installment is about the fundamental of all fundamentals, beginning at the beginning: “This is a native app.”

Dictionary.com defines “native” as “natural, hereditary, connected with something in a natural way.” So a “native app” is one whose natural and sole environment is a smartphone. It’s been created strictly with smartphones in mind, and designed to give perfect performance on a phone.

Researchers who use mobile have to choose between going with native app survey technology or a “mobile optimized” approach that ignores the smartphone’s own native environment and takes place in the same online space as traditional surveys designed for desktops and laptops.

By going the native app route, you get mobile-specific technology that loads your entire survey instantly into respondents’ phones, enabling them to answer without a connection to the internet. It’s like downloading a gaming app and proceeding to enjoy it without interruption because of the app’s fast-twitch functionality.

Researchers who choose “mobile optimized” over native app are asking their respondents to use their phones like ping-pong paddles. It's not exactly an efficient way to harness one of the most powerful consumer technologies ever devised.

• Mobile optimized surveys don’t load into respondents’ phones. Instead, they depend on users clicking on email notifications to connect with the web page where the survey is housed.

• Questions are served from the web to the phone one-by-one, and respondents volley their answers back, one-by-one. This back-and-forth continues until the questionnaire is complete.

• Each volley can fail if the internet connection vanishes or slows. The predictable result is frustration, dropped attempts, and inattentive responses.

• Surveys take longer, completion rates are lower, and consumers’ overall engagement with survey-taking suffers.

These are the fundamentals of today’s research game. Choosing the right mobile method is up to you – and you need to remember that in-app surveys aren’t just a little different, but different in kind from other mobile approaches. For more information about in-app mobile panel and technology, just contact us at solutions@mfour.com.