Much awaited year of the mobile finally here?

April 29, 2010 in Features

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It has been talked about for a good part of the last decade but now it looks as if the mobile has finally become an important force for media and advertising.

According to Dr Goi Chai Lee from the School of Business at Curtin University of Technology, the mobile market has finally reached a tipping point.

He said: “There have been a range of false dawns but a number of signs are indicating that the mobile is finally here.”

“Web-enabled smartphones now make up 20% of the 3 billion mobile devices worldwide, with market share blazing towards 50% over the next 3-5 years.”

The development of mobile devices has been incredible. Most of us can still remember the huge cases that were dragged around in the early days of the mobile.

As the size has shrunk, the technology has become more powerful.

According to an American inventor/futurist Ray Kurzweil, current mobile devices conceal computers that are a million times cheaper, a thousand times more powerful and about a hundred times smaller than an MIT computer in 1965.

Possibility for a real connection

iphone_ads (1) So we’re walking around with the world in our pockets. Now the challenge for the marketers is to make use of that.

To get the full benefits out of mobile marketing, Dr Goi Chai Lee says marketers need to be ready to accept the technology as part of their marketing strategies.

He said: “There’s no doubt that ‘wait and see’ attitude will still exist both among customers as well as marketers.

“If we are ready, there’s no communication device so useful. It provides a possibility to make a real connection.”

And the market to operate on is huge – 93% of adults in the U.S. are reported to own a mobile phone. Some estimates suggest that by 2020 mobile devices will be the world’s primary connection tool to the Internet.

A recent study by AOL and Universal McCann on smartphone users also provided good news to mobile marketers – customers are becoming more comfortable with the idea of shopping on a mobile.

The study found that nearly one in every four smartphone users has made a purchase of non device-related products or services from their phones.

Whenever, wherever

The ability to reach consumers where ever they go is priceless for a marketer.

The study by AOL and Universal McCann concluded that smartphones offer the first marketing channel that makes it possible to move with and message consumers everywhere they go.

The personal aspect of a mobile device is something that appeals hugely to advertisers. The focus has shifted from passive receiving of a message to active participation that improves quality of life.

One of the user comments in the study stated: “It’s not just about screaming a message at me anymore. It’s about providing value and that, to me, is so much better than trying to influence me by interrupting my favorite TV shows.”

mobile_marketing As well as an opportunity, adding value to the consumer’s lives is one of the biggest challenges in mobile marketing, Dr Goi Chai Lee notes.

He said: “At the maturity level, consumers have become more demanding. Marketers should think about delivery of rich content expanding to a variety of mobile devices.”

As mobile devices bring marketing closer to the consumers’ personal space, delivering a message is simply not enough anymore.

“Marketers should build trust and confidence with the customer”, Dr Goi Chai Lee concluded.