#stuff we think

According to IAB UK this is the decade of the mobile. We have had ‘the year of the mobile’ bandied about every meeting ad-nauseam at this stage -  to bring this up now in H1 2013 is a bit of a faux pas. Why? Because it’s here...consumers are using their phones more than their laptops and in a much more fevered and personal fashion.

What is interesting is how brands are reacting to this phenomenon. Click to call mobile search ads are improving insurance companies cost per lead by 30%. This is a beautifully simple execution of mobile search advertising.  The tactile nature of swiping and the intuition of search on mobile devices is humanising the advertising experience.

At the recent *IAB Mobile Engage conference Google reinforced this humanisation of digital experience. Examples of voice controlled search and amazing developing technology which allows mobile phone and *Google Glass users to take a  photo with a wink. How deadly is that?

One of the best approaches to harness this mass adoption of mobile is for brands to ask themselves, what are we doing for people. How can we make our customer’s life easier, more convenient and most importantly more fun? If a brand can save a customer’s money, save their time or illicit a chuckle, then they have succeeded. That should be the goal... making sense for users.

There are loads of ways that brands can achieve this. One approach is to develop a multi accessible CRM platform that recognises and personalises for individuals, this is not mobile exclusive. If this is developed early on, brands will be rewarded with trust and loyalty from customers. Visa Europe’s Sandra Alzetta has predicted that 50% of Visa transactions will be carried out through mobile devices by 2020.

  So word to the wise... get mobile or go home...

*http://www.iabuk.net/events/mobile-engage