LONDON: Consumers in Europe are lagging behind those in the US in the transition to a mobile mindset, new research has claimed.

Forrester Research describes the mobile mind shift as the expectation by customers that any desired information or service is available on any appropriate device in context and at their moment of need.

It identifies three components in this – the number of connected devices, the frequency of access, and the diversity of locations in which connections occur.

Josh Bernoff, Forrester's senior vice president, Ideas Development, revealed new European data which indicated that only 16% of Europeans had made the shift to a mobile mind set, compared with 22% of Americans.

He said that while Europeans had more connected devices, they actually connected significantly less frequently and in fewer locations than their US counterparts.

He postulated that this "appears to be a result of the data plans on European mobile devices, plans that interfere with users' natural desire to access mobile everywhere as a matter of habit".

Forrester's Mobile Mind Shift Index divides consumers into six segments, with the bottom three – Disconnecteds, Dabblers and Roamers – constituting consumers who do not show clear signs of a change in attitude, while the top three – Adapters, Immersers and Perpetuals – are shifted and have high expectations for their mobile experience.

The European Mobile Mind Shift Index showed Germany to be the least shifted country in Europe, followed by the UK and France, which are both slightly more shifted but still below the European average. At the highest end of the index, Sweden is more shifted than the US.

Forrester suggests that companies whose customer base falls largely into the shifted segments need to have a plan in place to provide mobile services.

"For marketers, meeting the needs of this demanding customer base in a mobile setting is a marketing imperative," it said.

Data sourced from Forrester; additional content by Warc staff