Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V) is likely to latch its recovery efforts on to the Lumia handsets. A new research from U.K. research company, YouGov, shows the handset maker has witnessed improved customer loyalty since the debut of its Lumia handsets.
Backed with detailed statistics, YouGov argues that the Lumia will be a key driving force behind Nokia’s recovery efforts. The research firm’s smartphone tracker (SMIX) survey shows that Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V) ranked first out of four of some of the lesser, yet compelling, attributes surveyed. According to the survey, the Finnish handset maker ranks first in battery life, speed of call connection, robustness of handset and camera quality. In addition, Nokia improved notably in other key surveyed attributes like reliability, ease of use and internet speed.
The numbers obtained from YouGov’s survey gives a clearer insight on just how much the Lumia has contributed to Nokia’s recovery. According to the survey, the percentage of Nokia customers whose next phone will be a Nokia increased from 30 percent in September 2012 to 42 percent in December 2012. Those customers who would recommend a Nokia to first-time Nokia users also increased in a somewhat similar fashion, increasing from 32 percent in September 2012 to 45 percent in December 2012.
The increase in customer loyalty was mirrored by a decrease in those who would not want their next phone to be a Nokia, with the percentage decreasing from 37 percent to 33 percent over the three month period.
Another compelling statistic was the increase in the number of Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V) customers using the Lumia. As at December 2012, the proportion of customers using the phone was 40 percent, up from 1 percent.
In the same breadth, Symbian use declined notably, dipping from 99 percent to 60 percent. A company that has now added to this statistic is Foxtons, a UK real estate agency. Nokia announced Tuesday that Foxtons had ditched Symbian for the Windows Phone. This signaled a minor win for the Nokia Lumia in the enterprise market. According to Foxtons, the Lumia’s windows phone offers better office integration.
Well Positioned
Although there is some real daylight between Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V) and big wigs like Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (LON:BC94) (KRX:005930) and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), Russell Feldman, Associate Director at YouGov, is inclined to believe that Nokia has done a good job to change the perception among its customers.
“The fact they have changed consumer perception among their customers puts them in a solid position as the smartphone war intensifies,” he said.
