Mobile App Usage Skews Young, Male, Slightly Affluent

Posted by: Neil James // January 31st, 2011

Few marketers would deny the importance of mobile as a medium. With the rise in smartphones and advances in technology, marketers are capable of delivering a rich interactive experience to anyone, anytime. But while mobile adoption has reached saturation across most major age, gender and income demographics, mobile app usage remains largely the domain of the youthful male early adopter. A recent article by eMarketer discussed the findings of a recent Harris Interactive and Ask.com survey which reported that 74 percent of male smartphone owners downloaded apps in October 2010 compared to only 62 percent of females. Age and income were significant factors in proclivity to download apps. Mobile app usage tails off significantly among those ages 45 and above. Similarly, those who earn more than $75,000 annually were significantly more likely to download apps than those who earned less.

@NeilAndrewJames

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Addicted to Clicks: A Marketing Intervention

Posted by: Neil James // January 20th, 2011

The vast majority of digital campaigns center on clicks. How many clicks did the paid search campaign generate? How many visits have resulted from SEO and social media initiatives? How many clicks arrived via banner ads? Yet, for centuries, television and print commercials were evaluated not by the immediate snapshot of the stimuli they aroused but their long-term impact at the cash register. In an article for Adweek, Clicks and Mortar, Zephrin Lasker argues that measuring campaign effectiveness solely by clicks is not only detrimental to the marketer, but ultimately, the medium as well. As Internet usage becomes more sophisticated, particularly in the mobile realm, Lasker states that clicks alone are simply an unreliable metric in determining how users engage with in-app ads.  Lasker cites models such as Apple’s iAd platform which keeps the user within the app rather than booting them to an external landing page and Brisk Mobile which monetizes apps via sign-up offers as examples of which mobile marketing measurement must evolve towards.

@NeilAndrewJames

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Mobile Barcodes and the Great Retail Paradox

Posted by: Mark Palony // January 19th, 2011

On December 17, I wrote a post responding to a MarketingProfs article (found here) about the dangers of emphasizing price as a way of getting customers in your door.  Little did I know that the Wall Street Journal Online had – just a couple of days earlier – published a story about the increasing use of smartphone apps that scan barcodes in search of the best price on all manner of goods.

So, what’s a retailer to do when faced with the don’t-lead-with-price-while-your-customers-are-scanning-barcodes paradox? That’s a great question, and one that has many answers depending on the strategy of the individual retailers.

People who take advantage of the ability to comparison shop while in a store are indicating that price will likely play a major role in their purchasing decision. Therefore it is incumbent upon retailers to reach price-conscious shoppers in new ways.

For example, Econsultancy, citing the same WSJ article, points out that Best Buy is using the technology of The Find (an iPhone app) to return advertisements to shoppers who are using it to search best prices from within other retailers. The ads may not be for the exact product, but it is another way of getting the Best Buy name – and brand – in front of a consumer who’s “in the market”.

As a contrast to this approach, some retailers have gone so far as to implement policies that prohibit customers from scanning barcodes.

Advances in technology have always presented retailers with new challenges for winning and keeping customers. Those who come out on top are usually the ones who recognize those challenges for what they really are: opportunities to engage their market in a way that is meaningful and valuable and will keep them coming back.

@MarkPalony

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Relevance Radio #4 – Mobile Without Integration is Like a Sail Without a Ship

Posted by: Neil James // December 27th, 2010

The sail is a centuries-old marvel that allows ships to harness the earth’s natural winds for traversing the seas and the oceans. But without a boat, a sail by itself is worth little more than the material it’s made from. In our latest marketing podcast, Russell Herder digital analyst, Neil James, talks about how mobile marketing without integration is much like a sail without a boat. Citing real life examples from Harley Davidson, Adidas and Domino’s Pizza, James discusses how integrating mobile marketing tactics with other marketing channels serves as the foundation for a finely-tuned, seaworthy vessel, capable of sailing marketers anywhere they want to go.

@NeilAndrewJames

 
 Relevance Radio #4 - Mobile Without Integration Is Like a Sail Without a Ship [9:06m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (133)

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If You’re Going to Build a Mobile App, Do It Right

Posted by: Neil James // December 6th, 2010

When it comes to mobile apps, consumers expect the simultaneous consumption and possession of the proverbial cake. As chronicled by a recent eMarketer article, Don’t Create an App for Apps’ Sake, while three-quarters of mobile app users expected major brands to have a mobile app, nearly as many expected said app to be easier to use than the company’s website. Worse, nearly the same percentage said their perception of a brand would be negatively affected by an app that was poorly designed – a quality experienced by 38 percent of branded mobile app users. Brands wishing to avoid the dreaded “useless” connotation with their mobile app should focus on functionality. Sharing product information with friends and the ability to check order status were identified as the most preferred functions for mobile apps.

@NeilAndrewJames

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