Now You Know, Thanks to Data: 4 out of 5 Mudah.my users plan to upgrade their mobile phone in next six months

‘Now You Know, Thanks to Data’ is a 4-part content series exploring different themes of e-commerce, consumer behaviour, buying and selling trends. This first part explores the consumer behaviour of Mudah.my users when it comes to purchasing a mobile phone in the next 6 months.

People view their phones as an extension of themselves, it follows them everywhere and sometimes even to the most unorthodox places such as the shower. This has helped the mobile phone market remain strong despite COVID-19 challenges.

The benefits of having a smartphone at this day and age is quite clearly innate to the mind of the average user. The behavioural reasoning for this shift is simple: Reduced cost and increased personal time. So, at a day and age where smartphone usage is ubiquitous and economic benefits are scarce, how does this affect consumer behaviour towards buying new phones?

On Mudah.my, Malaysia’s largest marketplace that offers a simple and convenient platform for buying or selling almost anything, over 570,000 unique visitors a month use Mudah.my to browse, sell or buy through the mobile phone and accessories category.

A Malaysia-based market research company, Insightz Club recently conducted a survey with 626 Mudah.my users who use the platforms to either sell, buy or browse for products. The survey findings revealed that the purchase intent for mobile phones among respondents is considerably high as 4 in 5 of them plan to buy a new mobile phone in the next 6 months.

Unsurprisingly, Apple and Samsung are at the top of the list as the most desired mobile phone brand, followed by Huawei and Xiaomi.

The survey also found that the profiles of respondents who are skewed towards Apple are in the middle age group (between 25 – 34 years old) and come from the high affluent segment (household income >RM8,000). Whereas, both Android mobile brands, Samsung and Huawei, shared similar profiles, directionally skewed towards the mid affluent (household income between RM 5,000 and RM 7,999) Chinese.

As for Xiaomi, the most recently founded brand in the list, the majority profile of respondents are Malay males with a household income of less than RM 5,000.

Interestingly, the survey also found that 70% of the respondents are saving and investing their money instead of spending it. When this finding is compared to the mobile phone purchase intent, it suggests that mobile phones are increasingly becoming an essential item for Malaysians.

When it comes to the action of buying a mobile phone, 70% of buyers look to online platforms for reliable information and close to 40% of buyers visit Mudah.my to buy new or preloved phones.

One of the reasons Mudah.my is a popular choice among buyers and sellers is because the philosophy behind the platform lies in its name, Mudah. As part of Carousell, one of the world’s largest and fastest growing marketplace platforms in Southeast Asia, the platform allows anyone to buy and sell in his or her region simply and conveniently.

Mudah.my connects millions of buyers and sellers in Malaysia every month by delivering remarkable user experience on the site where every Malaysian can find something to buy or sell.