57% Of Indians Will First Watch Videos Before Buying A Smartphone; But 75% Will Buy It Offline

The smartphone market is right now $23 billion market in India, and is growing at an incredible pace of 10% year on year, shattering all records.

So many Indians are buying so many smartphones, ranging from sub-Rs 5000 models to more than Rs 1 lakh priced premium models.

It is indeed interesting to observe, how this smartphone market is evaluating, and molding, with the Internet being the catalyst. Where does a user will search about his next smartphone? Which channels will he trust for getting more information about smartphones, and from which platform will he buy it?

Google, along with Kantar has conducted unique research to find out the truth about the smartphone buying habits of Indians.

And there are some major surprises here, all right!

57% of Indians Will First Watch A Video Before Buying Smartphones

When the decision has been made to buy a smartphone, then 57% of all surveyed users admitted that they will first search for videos and/or search engines.

In fact, 40% of all surveyed users said that they discovered a new smartphone only via video search or search engine.

Three Stages Of Smartphone Research

There are mainly three stages of research for smartphones: While 44% of the typical users will search more about the smartphone in the first phase, in which reviews are checked on videos, and articles; stage 2 comprises of specs comparison, and 50%  of al surveyed users will do that.

The last stage is about more in-depth searches and comparisons.

Shocking Discovery: 70% Will Search In The Store

A very interesting discovery has been made, which reveals that 70% of all surveyed users will search more about a smartphone right inside the store, where they are going to make the purchase.

This can be revealed as stage 4 of the research, which defines the moment of truth!

Stage 5 can be the post-purchase stage.

How Much Time Is Spent On Smartphone Research?

37% of all searches and research related to the new smartphone start 1 week before the actual buying takes place.

While 32% of the searches happen between 2-3 weeks, 20% of all searches are done before a month.

Note here, that 80% of all smartphone buyers who were surveyed will search about the smartphone on mobile or video.

But 75% Of Buyers Will Choose Offline Store

Now, the most interesting part: Despite spending considerable time on the online searches, almost 75% or 3 out of 4 users will select offline store to make the purchase.

This is mainly due to trust factor, and the fear that online buying can bring fake products.

Many users also wish to touch and feel the smartphone before buying it, and online buying lacks this experience.

You can find more details about this research right here.