It is always interesting to watch the way that innovations are driven through a society. What starts out as a simple idea builds and grows, morphs and is adapted … until finally we get something like the mobile phone. At first they were large and unwieldy, but as technology improved the batteries were reduced in size and no longer needed to be carried in a case.
Nowadays, we can pick up mobile phones so small that they are hard to hold. This makes them perfect for kids.
Meanwhile, the underlying technology and the supporting infrastructure has also improved, meaning that I can now watch TV episodes, listen to podcasts, play games and use eBay wherever I may be. For marketers this is gold … we are forever talking about "playing where our consumers play". We talk about using their words, hanging out in their MySpaces or getting up and into their Facebook. But for all the talk and for all the investment, there are few brands who realise the all-pervasive opportunities opening up through mobile networks. In fact, many brands simply do not see it.
And fair enough.
It is not actually about marketers and agencies and brands. It is not even about technology or telcos. It is about people. It is about the way that we are changing individually and collectively … thriving more on connection than isolation. So what started as a gadget has now become an accessory … a standard item in the utility belts of our lives. This, for us, has been a shift — but for the 8-10 year olds, or even the tweens and teens, this is status quo. In fact, it is almost OLD.
Should brands begin thinking about mobile digital strategies? Only if they want to remain relevant.
Japan is currently experiencing a skills shortage amongst recent uni graduates. Seems they have limited computer skills, because they access the internet with their phone, not a computer.
There are around 1.2 billion internet connections in the world… but over 3 billion mobile devices
Marketing on mobile devices will become more relevant / important than the internet is today
Mobile Browse, SMS, and downloading is only the beginning!