The media industry has paid a great deal of attention to the role of mobile as an important medium for moms. With Father’s Day nearly upon us, IAB’s Mobile Center and Millennial Media thought it was an opportune time to look at the other half of the parenting equation: dads. We examined how dads use mobile and where marketers should seek them out in app and on the mobile web. Our findings (drawn from comScore data) are detailed in the below infographic, and we summarize some highlights here.
There are 52 million mobile dads in the U.S., and they make up 21% of the total U.S. mobile audience. Eighty-two percent of dads own a smartphone, and 40% own a tablet. Dads spend slightly less of their interactive time on mobile than moms do: while moms spend 71% of their total online time on mobile devices, dads spend about 57% of their online time on mobile. This difference is even more pronounced for millennial moms and dads.
So what makes mobile dads an important demographic segment? Spending power for one thing: 58% of mobile dads have a household income over $75,000 per year, which is 33% higher than the mobile average income. That’s because almost three in four mobile dads work full time. And they are willing to spend some of that money via their mobile devices. Thirty-seven percent of all mobile dads make mobile purchases, and that number jumps to 45% of millennial dads. Dads are twice as likely to spend over $500 on mobile purchases compared to the average consumer; and millennial dads are three times more likely. They are not just buying things for themselves: dads are four times more likely to buy things for their families via mobile devices than the average consumer.Similar to the general population, dads’ most frequently accessed content categories are weather (their number one category for smartphones) and social media (their number one category for tablets). In terms of mobile categories where they outstrip mobile moms, the top content categories are predictable: dads access sports content 28 percentage points more, financial news 23 more, and technology news 19 more than moms do. More surprisingly, dads also access horoscopes, share photos, use shopping apps, and access maps more often than mobile moms. The stereotypical dad may still have trouble asking for directions in the real world, but he is prepared to ask his phone.
Moms get much attention for being heavy mobile users, as they are. But we think that dads deserve greater attention from marketers as well, and not just around Father’s Day. Seeking out these big mobile spenders can help ensure that family-oriented marketing campaigns reach both parental partners, and increase their likelihood of having an impact.