Independent agency, The Works, has launched its sixth annual Datafication project, A Quiet Revolution, reporting a 45 per cent decrease in voice calls in Australia for messaging app users.

The research, which is being launched today at the ADMA conference, was focused on the use of messaging apps across the nation and has revealed 10.5 million active Australian users with a staggering 3.4 million reporting messenger apps as their primary contact.

While not surprisingly 15-34 year olds make up with bulk amount of users (4.6 million) it seems that guys have over taken girls in the new communication method reporting an average of 2.8 messaging apps in use (females 2.4).

While the research has reported an average decrease of 25 per cent in SMS, 24 per cent in email and 12 per cent on Facebook newsfeed, 17 per cent  of Australians admit to having a clinical addiction to messaging apps engaging with the apps more than 16 times a day including 34 per cent taking their phone to the bathroom to continue the conversation.

Douglas Nicol, partner, The Works said, “While the global statistics around the uptake of messaging apps have been well reported, we have focussed on uncovering the truth about how Australians are using messaging apps.

“It’s a substantial piece of analytics and really has highlighted the quiet revolution in how we are using apps like Facebook Messenger, Snapchat and WhatsApp. It’s important not to view messaging apps as just another frothy promo channel, this environment is very personal and potentially intrusive if the marketer gets is wrong.

“We see messaging apps as a blend of customer service, operational services and brand engagement all mashed together to provide real utility and value for the consumer. Our research highlights messaging apps as a scale opportunity for marketers, the challenge is to think differently and not screw up the once in a generation opportunity it offers.”

Not just all typing and text, Australia has given the thumbs up to its affection for love and laughter with 58 per cent of Australian men sharing emojis and stickers with friends and family, a rapid growth on the once female dominated expression.

To celebrate the increase in love heart eyes, clapping hands and clinking beers, The Works has launched Australia’s first emoji tracker, using real-time analytics from Australian tweets to further support the growing trend of communication through imagery.

Dr Suresh Sood, University of Technology Sydney Advanced Analytics Institute said, “The two key cultural moments in social media inform our thinking as well as the findings of this study.

“Firstly, the increasing use of emojis and awareness of stickers is gravitating us to the emotional web another layer atop social media interactions. This helps machines determine sentiment with greater accuracy.  Snapchat is changing culture through linking identity and emotion with selfies.

“This is not new but a continuance of expressing oneself through the power of myth as expressed by Joseph Campbell, Jung and Shakespeare.

“Secondly, the psychology of social media is evolving from highly public interactions to intimate content engagement, gaming and chats with close friends and family circles. It’s no longer just about social networks and feeds, instead marketing and advertising professionals have to think hard about finding their way into the phone address book of the consumer.”

Confirming Australians are very much on the ‘M’ wave with no sign of the swell dying down, Datafication ‘A Quiet Revolution’ used a combination of survey data including a Facebook research BOT, mobile battery use analytics, one on one interviews and academic support from University of Technology Sydney Advanced Analytics Institute.