Email, social media marketing convincing smartphone users to make online payments

Online companies looking to tap the growing mobile market would do well to enact email marketing campaigns aimed at smartphones, as a recent study showed consumers exposed to these are exceptionally likely to make payments online.

ExactTarget surveyed 1,427 consumers for its study, finding that 16 percent of those who owned a smartphone used it to make payments. Of those, 55 percent said they were prompted by a mobile email marketing message, while 41 percent came in response to text message marketing and 35 percent found the product they wanted to purchase on Facebook.

Overall, the study indicated that mobile payments are emerging as the next front in the online payments sector.

“With more than 89 percent of U.S. online consumers owning a cellphone and 40 percent owning a smartphone, this is a watershed moment for marketers," said Jeff Rohrs, vice president of ExactTarget’s marketing research and education group. “Rapid smartphone adoption is transforming how consumers interact with brands and connect to the world.”

Facebook and other social media sites may soon be equally as fruitful sources for companies with an online payment gateway. The study also found that 35 percent of responding smartphone owners check Facebook on their mobile device several times a day.