Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Thinking Mobile? 4 Questions You Must Answer


"THE YEAR OF MOBILE"

Like a looney with a sandwich board claiming the "End of the World", self-proclaimed "experts" have claimed that THIS is the year that mobile devices will exceed desktop browsers in surfing the web.  Is this the year?  I don't have a crystal ball but I'd wager to say that even if it doesn't happen this year then it's going to happen sooner rather than later.  The rapid adoption of the tablets (ok, the iPad… which is 90% of the tablet traffic) and smart phones has created mobile society that now expects to be able to grab info or buy stuff "on the run".  No more sitting at your desk or your home computer or lugging around a laptop to research a company, buy sunglasses, or make dinner and travel reservations.  Going to your kids sports game, pull out your mobile device… Sitting at the DMV, pull out your mobile device… at the beach, in the park or whatever, you should be able to perform any function on the web that would normally have required sitting at a desk.  So, who are these people, why are they coming to your site or accessing your application, what do you want them to do when they get there and how can you be sure you are providing them the best user experience?  These are all questions that you will need to answer as you develop a winning mobile strategy.

WHO IS YOUR MOBILE CUSTOMER?

Persona development is an important part of developing any business strategy.  You must take the time to determine the demographics of those who would be accessing your web site or application from a mobile device.  This exercise will help you design an effective user experience that provides a tailored presentation and delivers the appropriate content and calls to action.
Your Personas may contain some or all of the following:
  • Age
  • Gender
  • Income
  • Industry
  • Title
Once this information is collected, create more detailed categories such as:
  • Responsibilities
  • Pressures
  • Key Drivers
Once you have fleshed out these Personas, it will be much easier to determine why they would access your mobile site and how they would want to use it.

WHY WILL SOMEONE VISIT YOUR MOBILE SITE?

The "WHY" is equally as important to the "WHO".  Why is this customer accessing your site and what are their needs?  This will coincide with the detailed persona categories.
  • Are they attempting to research your brand, products, or services?
  • Do they need directions or contact information?
  • Are they looking to buy a product, make a donation, become a member or consume information?
  • Are they hoping to receive notification of coupons or sales?
  • Are they looking for employment opportunities?
In order to have a successful mobile presence it is critical to understand the needs of your users and to design the user experience to allow them to meet these needs simply and efficiently.

HOW WILL YOU DEFINE SUCCESS?

Now you must align the customers needs with your business objectives.  Now that you have determined WHO is accessing your mobile site and WHY, you have to determine what your goals are?
  • Drive revenue, sales and sales leads?
  • Increase membership or donations?
  • Reduce operating expenses and improve customer satisfaction?
  • Brand exposure and loyalty?
  • Gather qualified employment candidates?
Regardless of your business objectives, aligning them with your customer's goals will help you determine effective metrics that can track the success of your mobile strategy and help determine return on investment (ROI).

WHAT IS THE BEST MOBILE FORMAT FOR YOU?

Next step will be to select the best mobile format for your mobile presence.  Each of the considerations already noted will feed into this decision.  The formats, for the most part, break down into the following categories:
  • Mobile Specific Site - Creating mobile specific templates that will serve up specific content and format based on the type of device accessing your site.  You can get very targeted with this format such as designing a specific template for particular model(s) of LG smart phones.
  • Native App - This requires designing the user experience and building an application for the Apple iOS and/or Android platforms (for example).  This is most prevalent where there is some level of interaction or transaction such as retail, banking, social or gaming.
  • Responsive Web Design - I have heard this format called "future friendly".  No one can anticipate what the future will bring (who saw the tablet explosion) however Responsive Web Design provides the best approach to ensuring your web site design will function with all current mobile devices and browsers.
Your mobile strategy will require one or more of the formats mentioned above.  Ultimately you will need to determine the best way to reach your target audience and deliver a user experience that will meet their needs and achieve your goals.

MOBILE MATTERS

You might be thinking that the whole "mobile thing" is just for them dang, young whippersnappers.  Not so much... Consider these stats as you lay the groundwork for your mobile strategy:
  • 66% of Americans ages 24-35 own a smartphone (Source: Nielsen, 2012)
  • 55% of mobile owners access mobile web (Source: Pew Research Center, 2012)
  • Mobile search will generate 27.8 billion more queries than desktop search by 2016 (Source: BIA/Kelsey report, 2012)
  • Worldwide mobile payment transactions will surpass $171.5 billion in 2012, up 62% from $106 million last year (Source: Gartner, 2012)
  • 50% of smartphone shoppers use a GPS/mapping app to find a retail location; 44% access the site of a retailer where they typically shop; 34% downloaded a retailer’s app; and an equal number (24%) search for a coupon to use at checkout or use a barcode-scanning app to comparison shop (Source: Nielsen, 2012)
Now that you have adressed these four questions.  What questions or comments do you have for me?

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