Who Uses Location-Based Services?

Only 4% of US online adults have ever used location-based social networks on their mobile phones, with only 1% using them more than once a week, according to Forrester. That is clearly a small group, but it doesn't mean it is a group to be ignored by marketers, the consulting firm concluded. A typical location-based app user, it says, is:

• Influential, with 38% more likely than the average US online adult to say that friends and family ask their opinions before making a purchase decision.

• Part of an interesting target group, as they are typically young adult males with college degrees.

• A heavy mobile researcher, as they are also far more likely to search for information about businesses and products, as well as read customer ratings/reviews of products and services.

Online Holiday Spending Close to $22B

So for this year US consumers have spent more than $21.95 billion online, a 12% increase compared to the corresponding days last year when they spent $19.7 billion, according to comScore. In addition, the most recent week (ending Dec. 10) reached $5.15 billion in online spending, an increase of 11% compared to the $4.6 billion spent online during the corresponding week last year, as two individual days each surpassed $900 million.