June 14th, 2022, Rishad Dsouza
Reports have done the rounds that Google Pixel has logged marked improvement in sales performances in the US and UK in the first quarter of 2022. In this article, we examine the features that draw consumers to Google phones and brand perceptions of Google Pixel.
YouGov’s Telco Profiles continuously captures data on specifications that consumers consider important in smartphones. Looking specifically at Google phone-owners, we see some noteworthy differences in the features they prioritise compared to owners of other big brands. For the control group, we use Telco Profiles data to select the other companies that feature in the top five most-owned brands in each market. in the US, these are Apple, Samsung, Motorola, and LG. In Britain, the only difference is that Huawei replaces LG.
Somewhat unsurprisingly, the biggest differentiating factor between Google device owners and owners of other brands is the focus on camera quality. Two-thirds of American Google phone owners (64%) say they place an emphasis on camera quality when buying a handset compared to just 55% of consumers that own other smartphone brands. Over the years, Google’s Pixel line-up has won critical acclaim for software-led camera features like Night Sight, Magic Eraser and its overall picture quality.
The clean Android experience found on Google phones also holds an appeal as Google phone owners are 17% likelier than owners of other devices to rate operating system as an important factor when buying smartphones. Battery life (76% vs 72%), the ability to customise and personalise (30% vs 25%) and electronic payment functions (17% vs 13%) also emerge as differentiating factors in favour of Google devices.
In Britain, the biggest differentiating factor is the operating system. Three in five Google phone owners (61%) say they regard that as an important factor, compared to just 43% of those who own devices from the other major brands. Google phone owners are almost 61% likelier than the other group to rate electronic payment functions as an important specification and 47% likelier to consider the customisability. Camera quality (63% vs 55%) and processor speed (37% vs 30%) are also key differentiators.
Younger males are most drawn to Google phones
In Britain, three in five Google phone owners (62%) are male compared to under a half of those who own other major brands (47%). Across the pond, 56% of Google device owners are men even though they make up just 48% of those who own the four other major brands.
In both markets, Google handsets are also particularly popular among younger generations. Exactly half of all Brits who own Google devices are millennials, whereas millennials make up only 30% of those who own the other brands.
Half of all Americans who own Google phones belong to the two youngest generation groups (50%). By comparison, only 38% of Americans who own handsets from the other four major brands belong to those generation categories.
Google Pixel has made marked improvements in Brand Awareness and Consideration over the years
Looking at BrandIndex data for the US, Google Pixel has managed to drastically increase brand awareness over the last five years. The brand had an Awareness score of just 49.2 in 2018, which has steadily risen to 65.1 as of 2022. Simultaneously, the Consideration score has gone up from 7.2 in 2018 to 9.2 in 2022, representing a small but significant increase in a very competitive product segment.
In the UK, Awareness has risen from 52.3 in 2018 to 59.6 in 2022, while Consideration scores have risen gradually to 8.8 from 7.9 in 2018.
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