[Consumer study] How do people feel about programs like the new Apple iPhone subscriptions?

An Apple iPhone subscriptions program might be on the horizon. Basically, Apple would let consumers use iPhones through a subscription. So, we wondered how consumers feel about it.

The methodology

We completed the entire study of 100 respondents through Voxpopme’s Influence market research online community (MROC) of on-demand consumers in a few hours.

In the platform, we combined quantitative and qualitative questions in the study, and the platform neatly packaged the results in one dashboard.

On the quantitative side, we asked:

• What kind of smartphone do you own?
  • Apple
  • Samsung
  • IQOO
  • ASUS
  • OPPO
  • Vivo
  • OnePlus
  • Xiaomi
  • Other
• Would you be interested in subscription services to pay for your phone?
  • Yes
  • No

On the qualitative side, we asked:

• Why or why not are you interested in this service?
  • Please tell us what the pros and cons of this installment program are and why you would use it or not. And please tell us what kind of phone you currently have.

Read next: Not sure what to ask? Check out Voxpopme’s tried and tested open-ended questions for video research.

The results

Here’s a quick highlight reel of reactions:

The quant results

Most respondents – 73 percent – said they own an iPhone. Sixteen percent own a Samsung, and the remainder owned Xiaomi or another phone.

Seventy-two percent said they would be interested in a subscription service.

The qual results

Respondents recorded a quick video message for the qual questions – selfie-style, directly from their phones.

The automatic sentiment analysis showed that 41 percent of all statements were on the neutral side, with 33 percent being positive and 27 percent being negative.

Unlike the quant questions – which are self-reported answers – this sentiment analysis pulls from what respondents said in their video responses.

The automatic theme explorer and Word Cloud gave me an idea of some of the most mentioned topics.

At times, I also use the Theme Builder and my knowledge of the subject to build and group themes for topics that I consider related.

The analysis

I like to review the theme explorer first to get an idea of what trends I’m seeing. The Word Cloud is my next step. Then I want to skim through the automatic transcripts and each response. Here’s a summary of what respondents said.

Some of the reasons mentioned for enrolling in a program like the Apple iPhone subscriptions program:

• the opportunity to always have the latest phone
• don’t have to pay for the phone upfront
• helps with money management over time

Some of the reasons mentioned for not being interested in a program like the Apple iPhone subscriptions program:

• don’t want the time-based commitment
• switching to a new phone when you like the current one
• worried about hidden fees
• prefers consistency of device
• ongoing charges
• questions about how difficult it would be to cancel

Where to next?

While most respondents said in their quant answers they would be interested in a subscription program they also offered several concerns in their video responses.

That’s an opportunity for further research. The next round of questions could include:

• Why do you have those concerns?
• What can we answer to address them?

Read next: How you can use video surveys for your next project!