16 July, 2005

Eve shocks Vodafone!

Vodafone's new study on 'women and mobile phones' has raised many eyebrows and not without reason. The online survey was conducted among 1,044 female mobile phone users, aged between 14 and 49yrs, to understand various aspects of mobile phone purchasing and usage.

The key finding from the study: 'overall, women are informed mobile phone users who know what they want'. It appears that Vodafone had different hypotheses (blatantly stereotypical) about their female customers, as some of their questions indicate (Ex: Do their phones have to be pink?). Furthermore, the report expresses surprise that women appreciate and confidently use new technologies, can make up their own minds when deciding which model to purchase and are comfortable with 'technical' functions!

What surprises me in all this is that in this day and age, Vodafone was carrying such stereotypical notions about women in the first place and required a survey to 'remove the clichés'! Nevertheless am glad that now we are free from the burden of appearing non-feminine without our pink phones and hope that GfK market research institute had a handsome billing!


Link via Boing Boing

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