Your App is Not a Mobile Strategy

Google Analytics installed on this blog tells me that about 8% of you are reading this post from a mobile device right now. How many of your customers are completing purchases on their mobile devices today? Do you know how many are looking for driving directions to your store right now? Whatever that number is, expect it to continue increasing as a percentage of your total traffic, and for there to be significant incremental query demand in your keywords from mobile devices over time.

As usage of mobile devices for both digital and physical commerce grows, so does the number of touch points for reaching your customers on the portable web. Mobile devices are not just used for communication anymore; in fact, only 27% of time spent on smart phones are devoted to communication (calls, texts, skype), while 60% of time is web-based, including web apps, games, social, search, maps, and other activities. So, how many touch points are you covering in your mobile strategy?

If you have a mobile application out there, great! (I hope you’re promoting it and not just letting it sit in the marketplace and collect dust at rank #128,395). Don’t think you have all your bases covered with that app, though. Mobile app markets are just one of the many touch points where your customers may be expecting to find you. The number one place they are expecting to find you is on your own domain. In addition, they expect that you have thought through and developed an excellent experience catering to their small screen and mobile network speeds. Here are five reasons why you should develop a mobile optimized version of your site in addition to your mobile app:

1. 63% of all online adults said they would be less likely to buy from the same company via other purchase channels if they experienced a problem conducting a mobile transaction
2. 68% - Users prefer mobile sites to apps for browsing for products (eMarketer October 2010) 
3. 40% of mobile users would visit a competitors site if they are dissatisfied with the performance of the mobile site
4. 58% expect websites on your phone to load almost as quickly or faster than desktop sites
5. Mobile phones will overtake PCs as the most common Web access devices worldwide by 2013, which means very soon, more views of your site will be from mobile devices than on desktops (Gartner)

So it’s not just what you could gain by taking action, it’s also what you could lose if you don’t. Also, if 2013 sounds pretty far away when you already have a to-do list that’s miles long, just remember that Mobile web adoption is ramping up about 8x faster than desktop web adoption did in the mid '90s. So, before your customers head over to a competitior’s mobile-friendly site instead, get a comprehensive strategy together and mobilize your website!

Posted by Tiffany Lin, The Google Retail Team