Instant Gratification is Passé. Welcome to the Age of Multiple Instant Gratifications

The Mobile Movement, a study by Google/IPSOS, reported the following finding in April 2011:  43% of adult smartphone users would give up beer for an entire month if they would otherwise have to give up their internet-enabled smartphone¹. Maybe those respondents weren’t living through a hot summer day, but no matter the day, one could argue that a beer and a smartphone are not perfect substitutes.  So what’s being evaluated in this tradeoff? I suppose it’s the aggregate value or pleasure that a person expects to derive from using a smartphone for a month compared to the aggregate pleasure of drinking beer over the same time period.

To begin with, the instant gratification that the 43% get from checking email, listening to music, playing games, shopping and updating their Facebook status probably outweighs the pleasure of a beer.  Further, people generally use their smartphones far more often than they drink beer: 76% use their smartphone to get online two or more times a day². In contrast, drinking in moderation is defined as having 1 to 2 drinks per day, assuming one doesn’t drink everyday³.  Even if each beer packed more joy than each smartphone usage occasion, the smartphone would win out on a cumulative basis. 

Finally, consider another statistic on alcohol consumption:  a July 2011 Gallup poll⁴ found that less than one-in-four adults consider beer as their preferred drink.  So maybe the 43% who’d rather have their smartphone than beer don’t even care about beer in the first place. I can picture them immersed in their unwired gadgets, with a glass of merlot or bourbon in hand and a big smile on their face.  They are not satisfied with instant gratification.  For them, this is the age of multiple instant gratifications!

Next time you have a happy hour, do invite everyone, even the folks who prefer smartphones to beer.  They’re all bound to be quite social.

Sources:

1. Google/IPSOS OTX MediaCT Study from April 2011. 
 http://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/insights/library/studies/the-mobile-movement/

2. Our Mobile Planet. http://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/mobileplanet/en 
3. http://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/faqs.htm/#moderateDrinking 

4. The Gallup poll I refer to reported that beer was the top choice of alcoholic drink for 36% among the 64% of US adults who drink alcohol. This translates to about 23% of adults overall.

http://www.gallup.com/poll/148676/wine-matches-beer-drinkers-preferences-year.aspx