Enabling Mobile C-U-S-T-O-M-E-R Experiences
If you’re not using mobile marketing to attract new customers to your business, don’t worry—your competitors are already using it and are getting those customers instead.
—Jamie Turner, 60SecondMarketer.com
As the number of smartphones well exceeds 1 billion, it is not surprising that mobile has rapidly overtaking desktop access to the Internet. One obvious consequence of this trend is the growing number of online marketers embracing a “mobile-first” design philosophy. But more research is suggesting these intentions are not materializing into a distinct mobile-customer experience. Instead, efforts are often limited to screen optimizing and mobile-friendly interfacing.
The good news to marketers is that efforts to convert on online-marketing initiatives become more promising. The buying stage of a mobile user tends to be closer to the bottom of the funnel (e.g., shopping checkouts). And with mobile-message responses averaging around 15 minutes as compared to 48 hours for a desktop-delivered e-mail, marketers should have more opportunity to stay engaged throughout the buying cycle. This should translate into more personalized messaging, relevant mobile apps, and responsive mobile websites. But we are not seeing this.
A Vibes study, for example, found that 89 percent of consumers want personalization, but only 18 percent see it frequently from retailers. And the mainstream adoption of local context has yet to materialize, leaving a gap between what consumers have now come to expect and what mobile marketers are actually providing. The criticality of this gap in mobile attention becomes an even greater concern as trends support a predominantly mobile world in years to come.
Mobile Users Want Less and Expect More
So what is keeping marketers from addressing these mobile-experience demands? Experts attribute most of the sluggish response to the following:
1. a desktop first, “mobile-second” design philosophy;
2. a failure of marketers to adequately understand and map a mobile customer’s end-to-end journey; and
3. continuing technology maturing across mobile-payment apps, geo-fencing, and in-store shopping infrastructures.
What should be an alert to all mobile marketers is the damage done when consumers have a bad mobile experience. According to Compuware and IAB, an estimated 40–61 percent, respectively, will visit a competitor’s site when this happens.
Addressing Unique Experience Expectations
At the same time, consumers are clamoring for less functionality to accommodate their smaller screens and reduced attention span when on mobile devices. This often goes beyond the obvious reduction in links and text required for a mobile display. The more simple and direct end-to-end journey of a mobile user typically translates to far fewer navigation steps as well. Overall, the unique experience expectations of a mobile user can be defined in an acronym that spells C-U-S-T-O-M-E-R.
Convenience of Payments, Calls, and Directions
Consumers expect quick-and-easy mobile experiences. This includes having instant access to product and service research, locations triggers, and the ability to make mobile payments in hassle-free steps.
Mobile consumers expect far more in real-time research and context relevance in comparison to their desktop counterparts. And with a growing number of apps primarily aimed at simplifying the mobile experience, these expectations will become greater. Steps like linking local addresses into contact listings, or automatically mapping directions, will become commonplace as mobile users experience this elsewhere.
Mobile payment, in particular, is one area where users have been enamored with the convenience of merging coupons, loyalty cards, and credit cards into one Near Field Communication (NFC) swipe. And while Apple and Google work out the differences in their proposed payment technologies (e.g., Bluetooth LE/iBeacons vs NFC), mobile marketers need to gear up for some type of iWallet. At stake are the many pull-through loyalty perquisites and behavioral tracking that come with mobile wallets.
Utility for Real-Time Self-Help
In his book, Youtility, Jay Baer builds a strong case for utility as the future of marketing. Utility marketing is defined here as “putting content and information in your marketing material that your target audience can utilize.”1 One way to accomplish this is through mobile apps. By using apps to help consumers with useful problem solving in real time, mobile marketers stand to gain far more in brand loyalty.
Imagine, for example, an app offered by a grocery chain that provides free advice on dieting habits or by a bleach manufacturer helping you decide the best way to remove a wine stain. The key to applying this “friend-of-mine” marketing approach is having brand credibility in the area of advice offered to the mobile user.
Showrooming for Better Deals
Perhaps the most demanded mobile-user experience relates to showrooming or the practice of examining merchandise in a traditional brick and mortar retail store often with the intent to purchase the merchandise elsewhere. Mobile users can now get ample research in-store on competing prices as well as on ratings and review. It is at this point that retailers in particular should consider personalized offers as a way to thwart away any temptation to buy elsewhere.
According to a recent Vibes Study, the number of consumers who purchased a product from a competitor while in a retail store has increased 156 percent since 2012. The study further demonstrated that
1. 47 percent move onto complete a transaction;
2. 45 percent go elsewhere to purchase items; and
3. 7 percent do not make purchases.
But these timely offers apply to more than just showroomers. Mobile users “on the go” are far more prone to look elsewhere in dealing with any online task at hand. And with the average adult will now spending over 5 hours per day in mobile activities, expect an “instant response” mentality to become increasingly important.
The same applies to timely alerts outside of, but in proximity to, store shopping. Mobile users in close proximity to a marketer’s place of business often don’t benefit from local offers out of their reach. So timing becomes everything especially in light of the high number of users in shopping mode. And when done proactively, as in the case of reminding customers of upcoming events or appointments, mobile users will often credit the mobile marketer with a convenience benefit as well.
Special Offers and Rewards for Mobile Efforts
Much like the case of rewarding social-media fans for the privilege of accessing their news feeds or inbox, mobile users expect something for their efforts. After all, marketers are asking for time spend downloading apps. They are also asking to interrupt a mobile user’s journey with SMS messaging and other alerts often when the mobile user is in the mid of pressing business. So special compensation is should be expected in the form of exclusive mobile rewards.
The good news to mobile marketers is that 90 percent of users who enroll in an SMS loyalty program feel they gained value from it. Why? When you send timely, relevant, and useful information to them during the shopping stage of their buying cycle, you may be credited with expediting their decision. An even more surprising statistic is that 70 percent of them say they would actually like to receive offers on their mobile phones.
Mobility in Addition to Mobile
As the global workforce become more mobile, consumers and employees will count on devices like tablets and smartphones to do their work at the office, at home, and while traveling. Conceivable, more workplace information will be transferred from desktops to tablets as portability becomes critical to workplace efficiency. This same portability is also gaining favor among mothers needing to multitask when on the run. And when packed with photo-messaging apps, mobile devices provide them more real-time social networking as well.
Ease of Use for Shorter Attention Spans
In his podcast interview with Amy Porterfield, Greg Hickman shares some startling statistics on mobile-user intolerance for unresponsive web designs. For example, he points out that 74 percent of consumers will wait 5 seconds for a web page to load on their mobile device before abandoning the site. Perhaps even more startling is that 46 percent of them are unlikely to return to a mobile site if it didn’t work properly during their last visit. Among the ways to optimize mobile sites for friendly user interfacing are the following:
1. touch interaction that avoids “fat thumb syndrome”;
2. video and other imagery that replaces text; and
3. shorter route “calls to action.”
Relevance for Space, Time, and Opportunity
On a more positive note, retailers, brands, and even small businesses have made strides in developing mobile-friendly websites compatible with the multitude of smartphone and tablet configurations. Progress is also being made with mobile wallet solutions that expedite in-store shopping experiences while enabling cross-device loyalty programs. And with more advanced audience targeting and cross-platform retargeting underway, mobile users are rarely greeted as “Dear Valued Customer.”
Fulfilling customer experiences on smart devices, however, goes well beyond loyalty programs and personal greetings. Mobile users expect far greater context relevance that taps into who they are, where they are, what they are doing, and when they need help. This is why the role of native ads has become even more important to mobile users than to desktop users. And if marketers know why they need help, the mobile user can further benefit from anticipated needs as well.
The mad dash toward mobilizing our marketing efforts is well justified. Mobile has traditionally taken a back seat to desktop Internet marketing. But as mobile access surpasses desktop access, marketers seem to be dragging their feet in designing customer experiences that are meaningful to a mobile consumer’s journey. Statistics show that many marketers still see mobile simply as an optimization exercise. Some are indeed stepping up to responsive web designs as a top priority. But missing from many mobile-marketing strategies is a very different customer experience that extends beyond the demands of a desktop user.
As SoLoMo matures to SoLoMoNative and SoLoMoVideo, don’t be surprised if mobile-web access becomes the de facto standard for Internet access in retail, at home, and in workplace settings. Those who embrace this “mobile-first” philosophy have a significant advantage in light of the higher receptivity of mobile users to personalized messaging and offers. The key to implementing a responsive mobile strategy is a recognition of the distinct customer experiences expected by mobile users.
Geo-Fencing and Location-Based Mobile Marketing
Almost every year since 2012, social-media marketing predictors say this is the year of context marketing. How real is this trend toward context-based mobile marketing? For starters, consider that consumers allocate more than 25 percent of their mobile time to social-networking apps, each of which has some local element. The notion of context-based marketing itself is not new; it’s just not meaningful enough without including location in the context.
Consider how behavioral marketing currently works. Through a browser cookie, we can be presented with ads that fit our browsing history and essentially represent our lifestyle interests. Now imagine adding location to that “context.” You can now approach some geo-fence and be informed of nearby deals that suit your taste and buying preference. Only instead of your profile data coming from a browser cookie, the background information may be integrated from a multitude of social-media sources.
For some time we have been familiar with location-based services (LBS), where geo-fencing allowed Apple Passbook, Foursquare, SCVNGR, and others to promote local establishments by encouraging check-ins, offering incentives for reviews, and building engagement on their Facebook Pages. Foursquare, in particular, was known for their tips and their algorithm of things that might interest us in an area of interest.
But many believe that the original intent to award badges and engage us in social gaming has caused LBS to likely run its course. Or has it? Apple’s Passbook has become a major player in the mobile-commerce space. And with continued development in geo-fencing and low-energy Bluetooth, many predict hyperlocal technology to take hold with retailers. More than some ego-driven badge of gamification (e.g., mayorship titles for repeat check-ins), however, this new era of LBS is likely to use “context” that allow us to market smarter For example, by incorporating reward programs with check-ins, social currency, and real value (e.g., search efficiency) to our targets, we improve our target’s experience while still capturing a lot of data.
With LBS, we more than likely enrich this experience by providing real-time (more like “right-time”) useful information in the proximity of where our target is ready to buy (i.e., BoFu content). But this experience will quickly erode if it does not bring real value to our target audience.
But consider how such value is provided by some major brands today. Dunkin’ Donuts, for example, describes their “Runner” program where multiemployees can assemble their donut orders through a runner. Imagine the data gathered at Dunkin’ Donuts with follow-ups like “we have fresh blueberry bagels” to the patron who normally orders that item.
Similarly, Subway teamed with O2 Media to launch their “You Are Here” campaign using a scannable smartphone discount voucher. Consumers, in this case, are able to redeem the MMS discount vouchers by scanning their smartphones or tablet devices in Subway stores. The technology works using “geo-fences” that are set up around Subway outlets. That is, when a customer enters the O2 More target area, they automatically receive an MMS.
American Express has perhaps the most innovative use of them all. With their “My Offers” program, they blend LMS and preference-based context marketing. For example, they recommend and rank merchant offers based on your spending history and location. Much of this data is gathered from Twitter, Facebook, and Foursquare.
A real challenge for marketers in this field will be the optimizing of your context-based mobile marketing for “search, engagement, and discovery” at the local level. Lee Odden stresses this concept throughout his book, Optimize.2 In the case of mobile LMS, you can encourage your target audience to engage with your locations through check-ins, recommendations, and likes while also maximizing the opportunities for discovery.
The concept here is that your target audience engagement not only enhances your profile, it will ultimately drive more folks to your business. Think of this as a direct “BoFu” offer. Hopefully, your trail of ToFu content has earned the trust of your target. Your MoFu content then collects enough data to serve this target with personalized offers (BoFu content) at the “right time.”
Many believe this is why Instagram became so successful (e.g., second to only Facebook on time spent in apps). With the release of Instagram 3.0, they are now putting location at the center of the experience. And by using Foursquare’s venue data, place-tagged Instagram photos went up by 50 percent. Now consider what can happen with the addition of WhatsApp to Facebook’s crowned jewels.
Notes
1. Jay Baer. Youtility. New York: Portfolio/Penguin. 2013.
2. Lee Odden. Optimize. New Jersey: Wiley. 2012.