Segmenting and profiling of mobile app users on their lifestyle – implications for attitude and usage behaviour

Abstract

Extant literature is abundant with studies of technological adoption in varied contexts. However, there is a dearth of segmentation studies, which have delved into mobile app usage. With psychographics gaining traction, it was decided to investigate the market segments of mobile app usage in the National Capital Region (NCR) of India using lifestyle variables as a basis. Literature review and the output of a qualitative research study was used to design the research instrument which was pilot tested. The questionnaire was distributed online through convenience sampling which resulted in 407 valid responses. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted and three factors were extracted. Subsequently, cluster analysis was conducted and three clusters – multiple benefit users, app-dependent users and socially driven users – were obtained. Differences among the three clusters in terms of attitude towards mobile apps and actual usage was also examined using ANOVA. Managerial implications for each of the segments were discussed.