JiWire Mobile Study: Positive Perception of Location-Based Advertising

A majority of the on-the-go crowd is open to sharing its location in exchange for relevant advertising. Men share their location more often than women. And couponing is still king, with check-ins playing catch-up. These are just a few of the findings from JiWire’s Q2 2010 Mobile Audience Insights Report, which studies consumer behavior and device use related to location-based advertising and content. 

Among the top takeaways from the report:

– In exchange for relevant advertising, 51 percent of JiWire’s “On-The-Go Audience” is willing to submit its location.  Interestingly, women, who are generally much more likely to participate in social group buying services such as Groupon and other deal-a-day providers, are less likely to share their location (54 percent of men; 42 percent of women); 25-to-34 year-olds show the greatest propensity to share location, with the 18-24, 25-34 and 35-44 age brackets all answering yes at 50-plus percent.

– Unsurprisingly, the 18-44 age demo represents the strongest interacters with location-specific mobile ads; 25-34 is the only group in which more than half (53 percent) of respondents were willing to engage these ads. Again, men (47 percent) are more likely than women (40 percent) to participate in this behavior.

– For all the chatter about check-ins, “mayorships” and game mechanics, couponing still scores at or near the top in advertising and application appeal. Thirty-nine percent of respondents say that coupons are their favorite form of location-based advertising. Meanwhile, only GPS/Maps is considered a more “valuable” location-based application.  The check-ins that Foursquare, Gowalla and others have popularized rank fifth on the valuable-applications list, with “collectible badges and competition” seventh.