This one includes news about challenger banks, retail sales, digital healthcare, and lots more. Don’t forget to check out the Internet Statistics Database as always.
TikTok’s Q4 2019 revenue estimated to rise above $50m
Third-party data from Apptopia has revealed that TikTok’s in-app revenue rose 310% to more than $50 million in Q4 2019 compared to the year before. This refers to money that is spent by TikTok users on its virtual coins, excluding advertising revenue.
Interestingly, SensorTower, which is a competitor to Apptopia, has since told TechCrunch that it estimates TikTok’s in-app spending to have actually reached $87m in the final quarter of 2019, with a year-on-year growth of 521%.
While neither figures are definitive, it does point to the overriding theme of TikTok’s ongoing success.
Can TikTok rival Instagram for influencer marketing success?
Challenger banks hold less than 14% market share of UK banking app users
Ogury has released the findings of a study into usage of mobile banking apps in the UK. The research – which involved the analysis of 688,000 British mobile users between July and September 2019 – found that challenger banks only hold a 14% market share of mobile banking users.
This means that legacy banks make up the UK’s top five banking apps in terms of audience size, with Barclays at number one with 25% market share (followed by Lloyds, Natwest, Halifax, and Santander respectively).
However, the study also found that – despite currently only having a 6% market share of the mobile banking sector – Monzo is predicted to catch up to its rivals in the coming months. This is because, over the studied time period, 15% of all downloads (within this vertical) were for Monzo’s app.
On average, each app was found to have a 56% exclusive audience, suggesting that the majority of mobile users only use one banking app. For many traditional banks, however, almost half of users had at least one other banking app (44% for Santander, 43% for Halifax and 42% for HSBC). For challenger banks, the percentage of exclusive users is significantly lower than for traditional banks. At least 80% of Monzo, Starling, Revolut, and N26’s users had two or more banking apps.
The fintech revolution and its effect on customer experience in financial services
Half of US and UK consumers want phone or video consultations with doctors
New research from Global Web Index suggests that consumers are increasingly looking to digital technology in order to manage their healthcare.
In a global survey, 36% of consumers say they use the internet to research health issues and healthcare products. Interestingly, this jumps to 42% for users aged 55 to 64, presumably where a focus on health becomes even more crucial.
Alongside this, half of US and UK consumers say the ability to consult with a doctor by a phone or video call instead of in-person would help them manage their healthcare more effectively. 13% of consumers say they’ve already tried this and would recommend it to others.
The research also suggests that the perceived benefits of AI in healthcare among consumers are mainly centred around its ability to offer greater preventative care and generate greater efficiency. However, 51% of consumers are concerned about privacy and security issues, while close to half of consumers worry doctors might become too dependent on AI and have concerns with its accuracy.
Finally, consumers are less willing to share their health data with technology firms than they are with healthcare providers. 39% of consumers don’t feel comfortable with this, and a further 26% are unsure how they feel. Interestingly, consumers are more comfortable sharing their data with an AI research firm than a technology firm.
Consumers expect digital services from their healthcare provider [stats]
2019 was the worst year for UK retail in 25 years
New figures from the BRC has revealed that total retail sales in the UK fell 0.1% in 2019, marking it the first annual sales decline since 1995.
This news also comes in contrast to 2018, which saw an overall growth of 1.2%. November and December 2019 were particularly poor, with total sales declining 0.9% year on year.
Helen Dickinson OBE, Chief Executive for British Retail Consortium commented: “2019 was the worst year on record and the first year to show an overall decline in retail sales. This was also reflected in the CVAs, shop closures and job losses that the industry suffered in 2019. Twice the UK faced the prospect of a no deal Brexit, as well as political instability that concluded in a December General Election – further weakening demand for the festive period.”
Primark linked to rise in footfall
A study by Springboard suggests that discount retail stores like Primark have a positive impact on footfall in the UK high street.
From the analysis of footfall at 18 locations where the discount retailer Primark has opened a store in the past three years, a positive uplift has always been recorded in the surrounding area on the day it opened. Overall, footfall rose almost 48% on the first day Primark opened in these locations compared to the same day the previous year.
What’s more, there was a 18.3% uplift in the same month compared to the previous year, and a 7% rise even six months after a Primark opened compared to the same month the previous year.
A quarter of British organisations are failing to provide training to marketing and sales staff
Finally, a survey by Showpad has revealed that 25% of UK organisations are failing to carry out any kind of training or coaching for sales and marketing staff. The study states that “only 16% of companies offer the continuous and ongoing training and coaching necessary for sales teams to keep up with the increasingly sophisticated products, services and AI-driven solutions across their industry”.
Interestingly, the study highlights a disconnect in how organisations are empowering their sales staff with content, training and coaching, as 51% of organisations admit that training and coaching is important or crucial but that many companies fail to train effectively.
In fact, 65% of companies admit to using training methods such as lectures, presentations, or demos – even though these methods are proven to be less effective. Only 16% of sales staff are using highly effective methods, such as teaching others what you learn, which reportedly results in a 90% information retention rate.
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