2020 Smartphone Statistics And What They Mean In The Pandemic Age

We’re living in a time when one-third of the world’s workforce is in lockdown and everyone from London to Doha is relying on technology and information to stay safe. 

The rise in smartphone ownership has already changed the way we respond to international disasters and crises. Critical functions like location mapping, identifying vulnerable people and distributing aid can all be coordinated using mobile phones. The last two of which are equally relevant to our current situation. 

So, as everyone tries to adjust to a new normal, we take a look at the smartphone statistics that matter in 2020. And think about how they might impact the months ahead. 

In case you haven’t got the time to read them all, we’ve put together three insights that we think matter most to a tech-based pandemic response.

Almost half of the global population owns a smartphone

Just half a decade ago smartphone penetration outside of wealthy nations in Europe, North America and Australia was low. Mobiles were still a luxury item. But they’ve rapidly become an essential tool for taking part in modern life. 

With companies like Huawei pumping out cheap models, more people now own a smartphone than a toothbrush. Which means an increasing number of communities have at least some internet access, making it easier to report and respond to coronavirus cases. 

Social media is more mobile than not

As we hit on above, governments are accessing mobile data to respond to the coronavirus pandemic. But there’s something bigger and perhaps bolder going on. And that’s the rise of grass-roots community aid.  

In the US, mutual aid organisations have sprung up to ensure the healthy and able within a community can give the less healthy and able what they need. What’s interesting is that most of the information changing hands is channelled through social media. So it matters that 55% of social media engagement is from mobile phones.

Local businesses need to get tech-savvy to stay afloat

Pre-pandemic, 40% of mobile searches were for local businesses and almost half of Google queries were for local information. Which means people want to buy from their communities. 

Since non-essential businesses are being forced to shut down, local companies in parts of the US are taking to the internet for the first time to offer home deliveries of their food and products. With rolling lockdowns set to continue for at least the next 12-18 months, local business apps and local selling groups on social media, might just become the only way these businesses stay afloat.

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Jodie is a Conversion Copywriter, Content Strategist and Optimisation Specialist working with bold B2B SaaS and tech brands. Before founding This Copy Sticks, she spent a decade selling the toughest value proposition around and raised £2 million for charities before her 25th birthday. After 10 years in fundraising, Jodie decided to put her words to work helping tech-mad trailblazers grow their businesses.