Almost 25% of Americans Now Cell Phone Only

Anthony Wayne    mobile marketing     cell phone only, no land line

CUTTING THE CORD: 24.5% are now cell phone only.

Nearly a quarter of American homes are now cell phone only and do not use a land line phone. Another 15% of American homes have land line phones, but rarely use them. These statistics were supplied by the National Center for Health Statistics.

During the second half of 2009, when the study was conducted, 24.5% of American homes had only a cell phone and no land line phone. That’s an increase of 1.8 percentage points over the first half of 2009. Another 14.9% still maintain a land line phone, but seldom use it.

The study showed that 23% of all adults, or 52 million Americans, had cut the cord and were now cell phone only households. Nearly half of the 25 to 29-year-old age group lived in households with only cell phones.

What this means for marketers is the need to use mobile marketing to reach those living in the now 40% of American households that either don’t have a land line phone or seldom use a land line phone.  Text message marketing is a big part of this new wave of marketing.

For marketers that use 900 numbers, it is important that they also add an automated credit card program to their media mix, as 900 number are not accessible from cell phones.  Marketers can also consider adding premium SMS services or voice short codes (aka Pound Codes) if they are active in Canada.

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