Mobile is where the future is for customer interaction, according to a study by Forrester Research. Evidence cited to support the conclusions of the study include 36% of persons surveyed access the Web daily from their mobile devices, and 25% use their mobile devices to research products. The trend toward increased mobile device usage further challenges marketers that are struggling to keep pace with other trends such as greater broadband access and the explosion of social network participation. According to another Forrester study, only about 1/3 of marketers believe they are capable of delivering a consistent customer experience across all marketing channels.
Unfortunately, it is possible that too many marketers view mobile marketing as a fad used by only a small percentage of the population. The Forrester numbers on Web access via mobile devices suggest otherwise. As smartphones such as the Motorola Droid and Blackberry Storm 2 hit the market, it will likely fuel interest in a category already stoked by the Apple iPhone. Another reason that marketers may be holding back on mobile marketing efforts is that if their scope of operations is a local geographic market, they may feel the impact or ROI of mobile marketing would be too small to matter. This rationale is similar to what many small businesses expressed 10 years ago about web sites and more recently, a branded presence on social networking sites.
Embrace mobile marketing, not because it could lead to incremental sales (although it could), but because it is where more customers are conducting their business! You would not open a store in a location that draws very little traffic- you would locate where the customers are. The approach to channel strategy should be no different.
Online Media Daily – “Forrester: Mobile Will Become the Hub of Multichannel Customer Relationships”
