There’s no question that we live in a digital society. And not just digital, it’s digital plus. Users want what they want—now, easily, and on their own terms.
It used to be you’d scroll through your phone if your computer or iPad wasn’t handy. But now with larger phones and more apps, mobile isn’t the lesser alternative. We are now a mobile-first world. Think about the last time you walked into a public space—ballgame, airport, or shopping center. How many people were scrolling on their phones? And think about business—tablets are replacing print for presentations, and GoToMeeting is preferred over face-to-face much of the time. In many households mobile phones actually outnumber TVs and computers. And if you spend any time around children, you’ve seen kids under five navigating an iPhone as well (or better) than some adults. Millennials now use mobile phones as their primary device. This is the audience of our future, and as they make more, they’ll spend more. Here’s how to capture it.
With smartphone usage rocketing, brands are starting to think mobile-first. However, as with any major shift, while some brands are already there, it’s going to take most others time to catch up. While having a good mobile experience is part of the overall brand experience, many brands are behind on getting the strategy in place to deliver excellent brand executions to customers. Any brand today that isn’t going mobile is going backwards, and more important, losing to a competitor that is already there. Remember, your audience slips between traditional and mobile seamlessly and demands the same of your marketing. In a world that’s now mobile-first, having a site with simple, friendly user experiences at the tablet and phone levels is critical. It would be folly to fail to create experiences based on these needs.
Add Apps or Adapt Website?
The way brands utilize mobile is shifting. A few years ago we saw many brands get on the app bandwagon. But in 2016 there’s been a brand shift to investment in mobile web instead of mobile apps. That’s because only the largest retailers have been able to find success with their own apps and recurring consumer engagement. For smaller retailers, traffic is driven to their website from Google searches, social media, and marketing campaigns, so an app doesn’t make as much sense for them. Consumers must be very brand loyal to download your app, and they have to be able to get perks they can’t get elsewhere.
Turning Intent Into Sales and Loyalty
Sure, people still aimlessly scroll on their phones, but they are also looking for opportunities to know, go, do, or buy. Recent research shows that almost one-third of online shopping transactions are made on mobile phones. And that number is on the rise. Yet conversion is still the biggest problem for mobile commerce, as mobile checkout remains a major pain point. On smaller screens, product details are hard to see and credit card form fields are overwhelming, making it easy for shoppers to give up and go elsewhere.
People used to shop at certain times and shopping activity was expected in certain locations. But we’re in a demand-driven environment now where you get anything you want with a tap and a swipe. We are becoming loyal to the brands that use technology to simplify our lives. The brands that do it best will create experiences that have you asking how you ever lived without them.
