Mobil Strategy and Psychology

My mobile usage in a day:

• 30% Emails
• 22% Messaging 
• 14% Pinterest
• 14% Facebook
• 10% Instagram
• 7% Twitter
• 3 % Random (banking/snapchat/weather)

Whether it be a work day or an off day, I'm using my mobile for predominately emails. Why? Most of my family, my mom, dad, and brother, are not in my time zone, nor in the country. As a result, e-mail works more effectively with data rates and notifications on our devices.

For work, e-mail works best, rather than texting or messaging, because it is a more formal approach and adds professionalism to the message.

Why e-mailing from my phone? Often it is because my phone is in front of me. At work, I travel a bit, picking up supplies or running around between buildings and since my phone is most often with me, it's easy to pick up and respond. Now, does this ad value? Yes and no. The ease of my work phone allows me to stay connected, yet disconnecting is far more difficult - like when I'm out for dinner with my husband or friends. Do I bring my work phone or no? Working shift work can be an issue, too, since not everyone in my municipality fully understands that I'm not scheduled Monday-Friday, 9-5.

When I'm home for my two days off, I actually turn off my notifications, sound and alerts on my work phone. It's my way of checking out and ensuring I get my two days off.

Next up is messaging or texting. I supervise a staff of 20 directly and then indirectly a staff of 65+. When my staff want to switch shifts, or are running late, text is the best mode of communication for them, thus I go to where they are. Moreover, when I do time sheets or need documents (like awards, criminal checks, or permission forms) I text my staff a reminder. The text works better than e-mail, probably because it's direct and intimidate. As you can see below, 98% of text are read versus only 22% of emails being read. I need to communicate with my staff, thus I text away!

Pinterest is far easier to use from my phone than on a desktop. Why? It's just the slide of a thumb and the item is added to your board - you're not taken away from the main pinboard and there is no need to navigate back. I'll use Pinterest to save recipes for dinner, add fall or winter dresses to a board in preparation for my staff holiday party - all while waiting in line at the grocery store or while taking a breather at work, in at attempt to 'de-stress'. At times, I'll use Pinterest for work - pinning educational games or holiday decorations that we could use around the centre.

As noted above, Facebook is sometimes used to stalk friends or to keep in touch with people. For me, I use Facebook to keep in touch with family. What my cousins are up to, and it's fun to watch their kids grow up. We also have a Facebook page for work that needs updating and since Facebook is blocked at work, using the app from my phone is smoother. One draw back to that, however, is that the notifications for my work Facebook page are linked to my personal phone. Learning to filter such notifications is a challenge at times.

Although Facebook has a high usage rate, other social media sites are also used often. The image above shows that Twitter is used more than Instagram - for me, it's the opposite. Why? Most likely because I follow more people on Instagram than on Twitter. I primarily use Twitter to stay updated on news, celebrity gossip, sports, travel and recipes. On Instagram, I follow photographers, other bloggers and friends. The images wash over easier than tweets, which is why Instagram is a go to in a quick moment.

In the end, I fit into the group who uses their mobile device the most. Shocking? No. I do not feel I use my mobile device too much - I have the ability to put them away, or even turn them off if I feel like I need some time. Moreover, I have built in hobbies, like sewing, working out and cooking that pull me away from my mobile device and give me space.

Each day, however, isn't the same. Work days are different from training days, which are both different from personal days spent on the couch watching Netflix. The tracking is helpful, yet is not a "full picture".

Tracking my personal usage has made it clear where, perhaps, I'm 'wasting time' and made me questions which apps are being used more than others and why.