A thin blanket of snow covered Boulder this morning. The word I hear from local residents is that it’s the Californian drivers – unfamiliar with winter driving – who were causing all the trouble on the interstate. I couldn’t help but draw an equivalent parallel back to BC… My complex ratio is as follows:
Boulder Drivers (are to) Los Angeles Drivers (as) Kelowna Drivers (are to) Vancouver Drivers
I jest. Vancouver drivers are great… but only when it’s sunny and the roads are dry.
Speaking of highways, Digital Media has always been on a long, fast and twisting road. Let’s look back over the past few years. In 2006 and 2007 online video was the big thing – sites like YouTube came about and became popular amongst web users. Between 2008 and 2009 it was social media that emerged. A channel that is still very much in it’s infancy. And what might be the next big thing in 2010? Mobile.
You say… “Uhhmm, Brad, hasn’t mobile been the ‘big thing’ for like the last 10 years?”. You’re right, no doubt mobile has been in the media for a long time, but this year, the stars have aligned and smiled their good fortune on the mobile space.
We can thank this alignment to a few things…
Better devices
Better payment plans
Better networks
Better consumer experience
Better content
Those dreaded fabulous cellular providers (Telus, Rogers, Bell) have actually helped this along… if by only marketing the hell out of these devices because they come with higher priced plans. The mobile device market is still certainly fragmented. Many people still use old “feature” phones, but those who have made the jump to smart devices won’t be switching back anytime soon. Smartphone penetration (in the US) has reached 19% and is growing.
The majority of today’s BDW sessions revolved around what the future of mobile might have in store. On the very near horizon – expect real movement in things like augmented reality, 2D QR codes and coupons, better utility based apps and payments made through your phone. You say – “I’ve heard this all before – nothing is going to change”. Well, if you agree with that, I expect you probably still listen to cassette tapes. Take this into consideration, a study by Gartner research indicated by 2013, more people will access the internet on mobile devices than desktop computers. That’s an outstanding figure that simply can’t be ignored.
In many cases, mobile calls-to-action have proved to be more effective than URL destinations. A recent San Diego tourism campaign ran four different broadcast commercials with similar messaging. Three commercials contained URL calls-to-action, one contained an SMS short-code call to action. The winner? SMS. It outperformed the URL commercials by 325%.
Haiti is another good example. Record breaking donations by mobile devices. This in itself was a headline story across many major news networks. Don’t get me wrong, the “desktop web” isn’t going anywhere – it’s just that we’ll see improving cohabitation between all the different web connected hardware.
As a person who tends to misplace things (a fact my wife will attest to), one thing you’ll want tied and tethered to your body will your mobile phone. Even more so than today. Simply put, it will become the remote control for your life – and you won’t want to loose that.
[Travel Tip - Want to sound like a local in Colorado? Don't complete a sentence with the word "eh" as it will immediately out you as a Canadian. Weird, I didn't even think that word was in my vocabulary!?]
Nick
January 29th, 2010
No kidding, eh?
Interesting stuff, though I think the San Diego tourism SMS campaign could be misleading. I think it’s important to consider the psychology of why the SMS would be more successful.
What I’m about to say isn’t based on anyone else’s stats, but rather a general observation: People tend to listen to the radio in their cars quite often. (You know … while “Mobile” and “on the go”. It makes sense that a ‘Mobile’ device would work well here. That’s why they’re called … Mobile Devices.)
When you’re at home, you’ve got iTunes, computers, satellite radio, cds, xbox media centre’s, cable television, the news and all the rest… When you’re in your car, you’ve got your remote control for life (iPhone / Nexus One), and your car radio dialed into whatever happens to be convenient – or perpetually marketed and thus crammed down your throat.
So when you’re zipping around on your lunch break and pop radio says “Go to http://www.wherever.com/tourism/” for more information, you can’t do that. But text “tourism” to “2502″ is easy. You can do that while driving, and while it is still fresh in your mind, even though you’re not supposed to. (Around here anyway …)
I think Mobile will take off because right now the big corporations are all over marketing these devices, and they happen to be convenient in our fast paced lives.
That said, there will be a time when you actually want to find out more information about (for example) ‘San Diego Tourism’ and at that point … SMS isn’t going to cut it. You’ll need a proper website – and hopefully, the people you are channeling into your website, are prepared to, and willing to spend time there because they’re interested. You’re not just spamming them with SMS and reaping poor feedback through convenient response options. You ENGAGE them that way, and THEN offer up the more robust user experience.
Mobile devices will continue to be great tools to access ’stuff’, but it’s still up to us, and everyone else, to have something “real” to offer. It’ll be increasingly important to have marketing plans that include Mobile, Web, Print and Radio as part of a larger plan that funnels people towards a goal.
They shouldn’t be arbitrarily planned out seperately, but should all work together, utilizing each others strengths to overcome a different medium’s weakness.