Let’s face it, the whole world has gone gaga for mobile devices. People simply love their mobile gadgets and can’t imagine living without one. No matter what form, shape or size these connected devices take, they have become a permanent fixture (some would argue curse) in our daily routines.
Chances are extremely high that you’re reading this article on a mobile device. Actually, on a global scale comScore statistics now show mobile devices have already overtaken desktops for accessing the Web.
You have to put yourself and your campaigns/promotions/marketing into this whole mobile mix. You have to go mobile if you want to reach all of your potential customers and stay competitive – otherwise you are not truly in the game. No matter if you’re a full-time marketer or simply a webmaster who does promotions on the side, here are 10 good reasons why you must go mobile.
1. You Must Follow The Money Duh!
Using mobile devices to browse and shop online is starting to become the norm and you simply must follow the money. According to the Re/code website, half of the total traffic to online stores on Thanksgiving weekend was from shoppers using mobile phones and this traffic accounted for more than one-third of orders. If you have not adjusted your website or online store to be totally responsive and mobile-friendly, you’re leaving a lot of money on the table.
2. You Must Follow Your Customers
It has been estimated more than 64 percent of American adults now own a Smartphone — that is almost double the 35 percent it was in 2011, and many of them use it to access the Web. As mentioned above, mobile users have surpassed desktop users, and those mobile numbers are only increasing as these wireless gadgets become more popular with the general public. You must synchronize with customers and adapt your mobile marketing to take full advantage of these new browsing and shopping habits.
3. Mobile Phones Have Become Your Credit Card/Wallet/Bank/Money
With the advent of such digital payment systems as PayPal, Square, Stripe and Google Wallet, shopping on mobile devices has become much easier and more commonplace. Increasingly, customers are now paying with Smartphones, and many experts predict these mobile devices will even replace money in the coming years. You must adjust your methods to reflect this growing trend toward a cashless digital world. There’s nothing like total convenience to drive the market.
4. The Whole World Has Become Feed Addicted
If you don’t believe this obvious fact, try to recall your last social occasion where you didn’t see someone check their news feed. Chances are even greater someone took pictures or made comments and uploaded them to their Twitter or Facebook timelines. Again, you must follow your customers’ habits and place promotions into the mix — welcomed or not.
5. The Whole World Has Become App-lified
Another obvious trend is the growing popularity of mobile apps or applications where users can perform countless tasks on their phones, iPads and tablets. The world has become app-lified (some would say App-defiled but that’s hitting below the belt) and this trend will only get larger. As of July 2015, there were 1.6 million apps for Android users and 1.5 million apps available for Apple users. Marketers must make their sites, services, and products available in this mobile app marketplace.
6. The Mobile Phone Is The New Security Blanket
Sadly, our modern times demand we be connected at all times with family, friends and helpful authorities. Whether it’s a terrorist attack in Paris or a shooting rampage at your local high school — it has become a dangerous world and our Smartphones have become our new security blankets. Facebook even has a Safety Check where one can let their friends and family know they’re ok in case of a disaster — natural or otherwise. It gives us comfort and a sense of security in an ever increasingly uncertain world — how effective this security is can be argued but the growing perception that you’re safer with a cellphone in your back pocket will only increase the number of these mobile gadgets in the world. There’s nothing like fear to drive a market.
7. Mobile Devices Have Become Sexualized
Don’t laugh. Whether you want to talk about it or not, your Smartphone is probably associated with sex in more ways than you realize or would even admit. Even more alarming, especially where teenagers are concerned, mobile devices have become sexualized — no, not because they look sexy — but because users are now using them for sexting, hooking up and viewing those naughty parts of the Web nobody watches. Why mention any of this in a marketing article? Mainly because all marketers know sex sells and this primal force will only increase the popularity of mobile devices in the future. There’s nothing like sex to drive a market — just ask the Internet.
8. Mobile Phones Are Excellent Tracking Devices
It is common knowledge that online merchants/retailers have tracked their customers for years — right down to that last keystroke. Your online searches and browsing habits are constantly being analyzed to better market services and products. Now we have the same kind of data collection for mobile phone users; businesses can track actual customers as they approach a store, how long they browse, what they buy and how many times they have shopped at a particular store — all vital information for any marketer. There are now companies such as Physicalytics out of Toronto which can do the work for any retailer or store.
9. All Marketing Is Personal and Social
While many companies still like to keep their business transactions professional and formal, there is no denying the fact that the over-riding presence of social media and social networking sites has drastically changed the business environment. Social media marketing can’t be ignored, and mobility plays an important part in how these social networks are accessed and used. List builders and e-mail marketers have known for years the importance of creating a personal relationship with their prospects and subscribers. You should be cultivating the personal/social nature of mobile devices to help cement these relationships, even with B2B clients.
10. Oh and Google Now Ranks Mobile Usability as a Ranking Factor
As of last year, Google now considers your site’s mobile usability or friendliness when it ranks its search results. Google has some 200-pluss ranking factors, and it’s anyone’s guess how important mobility factors in, but Google has stressed for years a Web browser’s experience is paramount in how it ranks content on the web. Targeted organic traffic from the big G is some of the most valuable on the Web, so making all your content mobile-friendly is a must. Besides, using no-cost solutions such as the Bootstrap Platform or a responsive WordPress theme can give any marketer or webmaster a great looking site that can be viewed on any desktop, tablet or Smartphone.
There you have it, 10 reasons why you must consider the mobility component of marketing when catering to your clients and customers. Having a mobile-friendly site or business is a given in today’s Smartphone-obsessed world. Ignore this fact and the growing importance of mobile marketing and you will leave clients and customers stranded out in the cold, in the middle of nowhere. Now, that’s no way to run a business.
Ready to convert your business website over to mobile friendly? Contact us today!
