Mobilizing sites could be the key in future

Mobile surfing, surfing the web on mobile phones, has been on the rise lately. It has been assessed that around 14% of mobile users surf the web regularly and this number will increase sharply over the next few years. Now, mobile internet is not an alien term to most of you guys and you’ve been hearing this quite often, right? But the issue I’m going to bring up is something different. It’s about the traffic generated by mobile surfing.

A recent report from Nielson says that a lot of companies have seen an increase in their website’s traffic on an average of 13% due to mobile surfing. This is an incredible number, to say the least.

The report also says that some websites had a pretty sharp increase in traffic as a lot of mobile users tend to surf those sites on the go very regularly. Can you guess what kind of websites they’re talking about? It’s a no-brainer. Weather sites and entertainment sites are the most accessed ones via mobile internet and the traffic to these sites increased by 22% due to mobile surfing.

In case of other websites, the increase in traffic has not been drastic, but noticeable nevertheless. However, the report says that this will change soon as more and more people are now accessing the net through their mobile phone.

In my opinion, this brings up the topic of mobile websites again. The question of whether or not a company should have a mobile website has been asked many a time, but there has not been any satisfactory answer. However, I’ve always claimed that mobile websites can change the way you connect with your customers and can actually help you interact with your core user base better. Now, this report reflects my thought too.

Just imagine, if you found out that more than 30% of your site’s traffic came from mobile phones, wouldn’t you be hard-pressed to mobilize your site to make it easier for them to access it through their mobile phones? Also, viewing a standard website on a mobile phone, as I’ve said many times before, can be a clumsy experience sometimes. A mobile site with a mobile-friendly interface which loads very quickly will make it easier for mobile users to access it via their mobile phone. This, in return, can result in an increase in your site’s overall traffic.

While this idea might be applicable for all websites, it’s absolutely necessary for some websites which are regularly surfed by mobile users. Entertainment, travel, weather, movies, maps, news, and banking sites are the most popular websites among mobile users and mobilizing these sites is a great idea.

The content of this report is not surprising for me at all, for there have already been instances where I could sense the immense potential of mobile sites. In case you’re new to this site, I urge you to read this, this, and this. In my opinion, this is a glimpse at the future. The question is, are you ready?

Categories: Cell Phone Advertising, All things mobile phones.

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NBC Universal enhances its mobile web presence

In a move to enhance its mobile web presence, NBC Universal has signed deals with Verizon Wireless, Research In Motion, and AT&T. So, from now on, mobile phone users will be able to access NBC Universal content through 60 WAP sites that cover a wide range of brands including NBC, NBC Sports, USA Network, Sci Fi Channel, Bravo, MSNBC, Astrology.com, Universal Pictures, and CNBC.

All these mobile sites from NBCU will be available on the application sites of Verizon Wireless, Research In Motion, and AT&T and mobile users can access these sites via their carriers’ menus. NBCU believes this move will drive a lot of traffic to its ad-funded mobile websites.

NBCU has joined hands with JumpTap, a leading mobile advertising company, to take care of its ad network. JumpTap will be in charge of mobile advertising campaigns on all the WAP sites under the NBCU network.

NBC Universal has been eyeing the mobile web market for quite some time now and by joining hands with such big names in the market, it has laid the foundation pretty well. It is also worth remembering that NBCU signed a similar deal with Alltel Wireless last year.

Categories: Cell Phone Advertising, All things mobile phones, Mobile Web.

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CBS joins hands with Loopt to bring location based mobile advertising

A few weeks back, CBS announced that it will experiment with location based mobile advertising and based on the results, will think about taking the advertising campaign to the next level.

It was announced that CBS Mobile unit will team up with Loopt, a famous social networking service, in this advertising campaign. The team has got two tailor-made mobile websites to run this advertising campaign – CBS Mobile News and CBS Mobile Sports.

As of now, these ads will appear on your mobile screen only if your phone has GPS capabilities and if you are a customer of Sprint Nextel or Boost Mobile, who have signed deals with Loopt. However, CBS is confident of getting more carriers sign a deal with them to reach out to a larger customer base.

Loopt’s GPS based technology will help advertisers send targeted ads based on the mobile users’ location. Now, to stay clear of controversies and privacy issues regarding location based advertising, CBS and Loopt have announced that this advertising service will be made available strictly on an opt-in/opt-out basis. Meaning, if you are interested in getting the ads, you can opt in and you can opt out of the same at any time. Also, they have announced that the mobile ads will be delivered anonymously and they will not store your location history.

Something that Cyriac Roeding of CBS said made a lot of sense to me. When asked further about the importance of adding value in mobile advertising, he said that this is a game in which the customer should win at the end of the day, for if he doesn’t, there is no game to be played. Spot on, I should say!

Categories: Cell Phone Advertising, All things mobile phones, Mobile Social Networking.

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Mobile analytic tools - Need of the hour

With mobile advertising industry growing by leaps and bounds, we need to understand that there are certain issues which need to be addressed in order to make it sustain its growth in the long run. One of the most important yet less-talked-about issues is the need of good analytic tools for mobile websites.

In the web, you have excellent analytic tools to gauge your site’s growth and traffic, to calculate the performance of a PPC campaign, and so on. Now, aren’t these things needed for mobile sites also? You have a mobile site and you definitely need to know how it has performed over a period of time, and most importantly, you have a variety of mobile advertising programs, whose performance you need to monitor constantly to be able to calculate your ROI and reach out to your target customers more effectively. But unfortunately, there are not many analytic tools available in the market today. So, this, undoubtedly, is one of the most important issues that mobile advertising enthusiasts need to take into consideration.

I’m confident, however, that with the growing awareness about mobile advertising around the world, issues like the one I’ve mentioned above will be solved soon. So, let’s wait.

Categories: Cell Phone Advertising, All things mobile phones.

1 comment.

What do you browse from your mobile phone?

I’ve been discussing a lot about mobile advertising and marketing with you guys for quite some time now. I was just wondering, how many of you guys actually check out mobile websites from your mobile phone on a regular basis? There are quite a few mobile sites out there and they provide good content/information for viewers. But do you regularly check out those sites? Talking about mobile sites, we don’t have to go too far. Let’s say for example; how many of you people check out Paypal (https://mobile.paypal.com) from your mobile phone?

There are a few sites which I regularly check out in my mobile. Gmail tops the list, as I check out my mail regularly through my mobile phone when I’m on the move. What about you guys? Do you have preferences when it comes to mobile sites as well? I’d like to hear from you. Please chip in with your info.

Categories: Cell Phone Advertising, Mobile Web.

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