Okay, this is a must read. Carphone Warehouse out of the United Kingdom has put out a comprehensive survey called Mobile Life 2006. Although this is a British survey, so we can only imagine these statistics and findings would be somewhat different in the United States, it is still an eyeopening snapshot of how mobile devices are changing every aspect of our culture.

I am particularly fascinated by the "tribes" of mobile users detailed in the report.

They include:

- Phonatics: young, heavy cell phone users, text message more than they actually talk to their friends, their mobile device is a status symbol.

- Practical Parents: Young parents who shop on a budget for their handheld. They still have a landline at home. They do text messaging, but prefer talking.

- Smart Connecteds: Affluent professionals 25-44. They see their mobile devices primarily as a tool to organize and accomodate their busy lives. These are the people you see sitting in traffic talking to the windshield, because they have a Bluetooth in the other ear.

- Fingers & Thumbs: Middle-aged marrieds or early empty nesters. They see mobile devices as a luxury and only make calls when they absolutely need too. They are intimidated by the technology and downplay it's importance, tending to be clumsy with it in the beginning. But once they get the hang of it, they're hooked.

- Silver Cynics: Affluent, married, approaching retirement. They use their phones only for emergencies and are cynical about technology.

Do these "tribes" sound familiar? As businesses contemplate seeing the mobile crowd as a market to access, think of these tribes as demographics. Which ones sound like your customers? Perhaps, it will give you some idea of how to reach them - by phone.