Not Another Mobile Post

Today’s exciting topic: mobile.

As if you haven’t heard enough about mobile and it’s inevitable plot to take over the digital world. Trust us, WE KNOW. All over marketing blogs nowadays; “mobile accounts for 50% of all online traffic”, “mobile information is easier to access that ever”, “mobile is the shizzle”.

Please, we’ve heard it all.

And while it may be redundant to restate what’s already been said, it doesn’t make it less true. We can come to expect wonderful things from the mobile device platform in approaching years.

There’s been an overwhelming amount of statistics and studies that have been conducted – especially in the past 5 years – in mobile marketing development. Statistics & marketing are like peanut butter & jelly, Bonnie & Clyde, milk & cookies, you get the point. We did some of our own online research and, here are our efforts to compress what we believe are the 10 most important factors that will make business owners go ‘mobile crazy’ (in the good way) in the next few years:

1. “82% of smartphone users say they use search to find local businesses”. It’s imperative that business owners understand the importance of getting their business name online in a variety of reliable ways. Making sure that your SEO is up to date is great, and paid ads never hurt anyone! When your location is set in Google, anyone searching for your product or service while walking by your store will have your business name prompted to them in the search, so make sure you’re set with Google My Business! (source: Think with Google).
2. Coincidentally, it’s been gathered that 82% of smartphone users also consult their phone while being in the store (source: Think with Google). This shows that your consumers crave a constant flow of information. People are very likely to go into your store, pick a product that they like, and research that product on the spot. They will search for reviews on your business and product, and perhaps tutorial videos, and look for anything they can get their mind on to grasp an idea of what could be the best purchasing decision for them.
3. People are impatient, it’s just the way we are. Google states that “29% of smartphone users will immediately switch to another site or app if it doesn’t satisfy their needs fast enough” (source: Think with Google). So in order to keep those extra potential customers, make sure that your landing pages have the most relevant information, and make sure the platform is optimized for mobile use.
4. 80% of Facebook’s total generated revenue comes from mobile devices. Facebook’s revenue for the full year 2015 came in at $17.93 billion, which means $14.34 billion of that came from mobile revenue (source: ZOG). Now, we understand that you’re most likely not Mark Zuckerberg, but it’s important to note that if Facebook is making this much money from their mobile services, then there is clear potential for business owners – be they large or small – to tap the mobile market. Make your product or service available via the cell phone! Get people to call you! Make great use of those calls to action, and reap in the benefits.
5. Video’s are a blessing! Use them to your business advantage. Google gathered that “48% of smartphone users are more likely to buy from companies whose mobile sites or apps provide instructional video content (source: Think with Google). If your business model allows for it, try and make an effort to add some video content to your brand.
6. Even with mobile booming as much as it is, people aren’t yet fully comfortable making the final leap. By ‘final leap’, we mean the final purchase. “40% of people who research on a smartphone will go on to [make the] purchase on a desktop” (source: Think with Google). Please keep in mind that even though people seem to be gravitating towards mobile devices, the desktop is still strong, and where most people feel comfortable doing their home browsing and final purchasing. Make sure that you’re optimizing your desktop displays just like your mobile displays!
7. Mobile click through rates are higher than desktop when you’re in the top spot. seoClarity conducted a massive CTR study (around 2 billion impressions, 2.6 million clicks, over a 90 day period) which led them to conclude that mobile average CTR for the top position on Google AdWords was 27.7% while the top spot on desktop had an average of 19.3% CTR’s. But the second position on mobile dropped to a low 9.2% CTR while desktop was at 11.4%. This is most likely because when someone conducts a search on Google using mobile, the top ad will take up the entire display of the screen, prompting the user to click that business’ website or ad.
8. If your business model allows for it, make sure that you’re targeting younger demographics. Global Web Index states that “84% of 16-24-year-olds are accessing the internet via mobile and, on average, they are online on their smartphones for well over 3 hours a day”.  
9. A study of around 13 billion email opens worldwide done by Litmus in 2015 also suggests that mobile is on the rise of popularity in email opens as well (source: HubSpot). From the year 2011 to 2015, mobile opens increased from 8% to 55%, while desktop opens decreased from 58% to a mere 19%.
10. Watch this video about how the makeup brand Sephora uses the mobile trend to their advantage.