Mobile marketing: What clients are asking
Image by Beth Manzi
Mobile
09.09.2010
In:
Technology
Increasingly, clients are asking for advice on the recent boom in mobile. Should we jump in or wait? Here’s a sample of their questions.
We’re seeing a surge of consumers accessing the web through their mobile devices rather than through their personal computers. How do we adapt to this shift?
First, continue providing superior content on your traditional website. It’s the foundation for your online reputation. People won’t be interested in what you’re doing with mobile web if you’re not delivering quality content online.
Next, think of mobile web as an extension of your existing online brand. If done correctly, it will actually complement a company’s website and even boost traffic. The first step in this process is ensuring your company’s website is mobile-friendly. That doesn’t mean you have to run out and develop a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) site. Just make sure your website provides a clean and easy mobile experience. And remember, mobile can only deliver so much in terms of a dynamic user experience. Don’t overload your site with clunky or slow-loading content. It will only be exaggerated on a mobile device.
Finally, pay attention to the analytics. Understanding how your content is being viewed is imperative to providing a great overall digital experience. Ultimately, it is your consumers’ behavior that will influence how you adapt.
Does the iPad change the game completely?
The iPad isn’t the game changer that the iPhone was a few years ago, but it will help accelerate the booming mobile phenomenon. Specifically, the iPad will take mobile app development to an entirely new level. The content that developers are racing to produce is much richer than current smartphone content. And these portable tablets are much larger and more nimble.
Companies across every industry should be incorporating this improved content into their daily processes. For instance, sales teams armed with iPads can now generate and present richer demonstrations to potential customers. Hospitals can improve bedside communication by empowering nurses and physicians with this technology.
Has technology (in the sense of how we communicate and use the mobile web) peaked, or will we see content reaching audiences in different ways?
We haven’t seen the peak yet. The bandwidth limitations of provider networks are holding back the technology right now. Once 4G is universal, we’re going to see additional mobile capabilities. Look for features like augmented reality and image recognition to take mobile to another level. It will be interesting to see how mobile can be used to communicate with other platforms, such as television and radio. The potential treasure trove of user-specific metrics is particularly exciting. Right now, we’re only seeing glimpses of what this platform is capable of doing.
