Mobile can better loyalty and customer service

This article originally appeared on Mobile Commerce Daily by Alex Romanov, CEO of iSIGN Media on 05/10/12.

It has been said that where Google goes these days, people follow. So when Ian Carrington, Google’s director of mobile marketing, told an audience during the Changing Media Summit in London last year, “If you don’t have a mobile strategy, you don’t have a future strategy,” marketers paid attention.

Fast-forward the clock to 2012 and a Marketing Magazine interview and it is clear his opinion has not wavered: “Advertisers … have to grow up and realize the mobile Web is just as important to their business [as apps] and should very much be a consideration for what their mobile strategy should be.”

Mr. Carrington’s recent comments come at a time where mobile, specifically smartphones and tablets, are enjoying high adoption rates and even higher popularity.

Year year
Media research firm Nielsen may have called 2011 “The Year of the Mobile,” but in only a few short months, it is amazing how antiquated that label seems.

Considering that the company’s latest research shows that smarphones made up nearly half of all United States mobile phones in February 2012 suggests that going forward, christening years with tech titles might be a bit premature.

Like no other marketing tool before it mobile is the ideal medium to improve customer service and, through heightened customer feedback and shopper metrics, instill greater loyalty.

Today’s North American Internet-using population stands at 273,067,546 and smartphones already comprise around 30 percent of worldwide mobile phone subscribers and is rising daily.

More than half of the U.S. mobile market is already dominated by customers relying on 3G access, while globally one in five mobile subscribers are running on 3G speeds and faster.

With data indicating that today’s Web-accessible mobile phone users spend nearly three hours per day on their wireless devices, there is a continuing incentive for companies to ramp up their mobile customer services.

In other words: relying solely on traditional short message services (SMS – or what has long been considered the backbone of mobile strategy) will shortchange both you and your customer.

Instead, expanding into new wireless channels such as QR codes, advanced augmented reality apps or multichannel techniques, for instance, is another way to make the rest of 2012 and beyond more mobile still while improving customer service and driving loyalty.

And speaking of multichannel techniques, there is also the burgeoning arena of digital signage and its mobile phone importance.

Unlike static standalone signs, digital signs are increasingly linked to mobile devices via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi connectivity and can deliver a wealth of customer-specific promotions, coupons and redemptions, and all of it based in real-time and location-aware.

When it comes to driving loyalty, nothing is more valuable than delivering to customers relevant and timely messages and information that they can act on immediately.

For the marketer, instant feedback helps paint a metrics picture that can be used to create an even more tailored experience during the next engagement.

Room for improvement
To be sure, for all the excitement and “mobile has reached a tipping point” chatter in the first quarter of 2012, it is important to remember that 2011 was already very mobile. And so was 2012.

After essentially putting the power of mobile on the map, companies continue expanding their mobile efforts and have taken them far beyond a basic SMS blitz incorporating location-aware campaigns and engaging rich media experiences.

Despite that momentum, many companies have yet to jump on board the mobile bandwagon or have yet to use it to its full potential.

In a 2011 survey from King Fish Media for instance we learned that 62 percent of survey respondents planned to launch a mobile marketing campaign within the next year, while only a third of companies already had a mobile communications strategy in place.

And since 2012 still has a long way to go, it is likely that many marketers still have not gotten the mobile message. And like any New Year’s resolution, they are easy to make and even easier to break – either by not following through on their mobile campaign plans or by launching those plans incorrectly.

But many of the ones that succeed will do so in part because they established loyalty using great customer service.

Think of loyalty and mobile customer service like an equation. Improved customer service, plus improved customer feedback equals greater loyalty.

Focusing on the positive, what follows is a look at ways in which businesses can build brand loyalty through the fusion of mobile and customer service.

Streamlining customer experience with mobile
Think that your customer service practices and your mobile customer service programs are fully integrated with one another? You might be mistaken.

Last year, a TeaLeaf study called mobile “the worst channel for customer experience,” stated that 83 percent of customers surveyed in Britain reported that they have encountered a problem when using mobile checkout.

While no comparable study was completed in the U.S., the results are telling.

Mobile has far to go in providing high quality customer service, particularly with many company mobile initiatives struggling to take shape in such a fast-paced environment.

Marketers responding to rising consumer smartphone adoption, however, have an opportunity to deliver tailored programs and technology that ultimately drive loyalty.

What makes up the ideal customer experience?

The best mobile experiences are the ones that use best practice and keep important demographics in mind. These are the areas most important to fine-tuning an agreeable customer experience via mobile, the type that builds loyalty through ease of use and intelligent design.

Letting the customer guide the experience. Before making changes, ask yourself how each change affects customer interaction with your company. How will the changes you make to your customer service affect the customer experience?

Maximize the multichannel map. Customer service levels should be consistent across all channels, with the ability for customers to easily interact with representatives as needed. The customer should be able to transition between channels without difficulty.

In an SMS or mobile app message, for instance, include a link to your company Web site and phone number for customers to speak with live help.

Nothing speaks like the voice of authenticity, so the saying goes, and sometimes even the most mobile-savvy customers welcome the opportunity to sort out a problem with a real person.

Even if a consumer is left dissatisfied by a specific experience, quality customer service, both traditional and mobile, increase the odds of loyalty purchases at a later date.

Offering valuable mobile additions. Listening to customer response is a vital part in the creation or revamping of the mobile medium.

Since reviews and feedback shape the customer and repeat customer experience, this data can be used to formulate mobile strategy. This is particularly important in healthcare and service providers’ cases, as they often provide lower-rated customer service experiences.

Making service a priority. Quality customer service benefits companies greatly, and as its importance is realized more widely, this should become a top priority.

In today’s ultra-competitive marketplace it is hard enough finding customers, let alone keeping them. All it takes is one ill-timed message before a potential buyer tunes your message out and goes elsewhere.

But once you have gained that loyalty, the strategies above can be used to boost your competitive advantage.

Loyal customers buy more and shop more often, making them more profitable than new ones.

If we can simply use appropriate customer service strategies to attract and retain the customers we want – the ones who are most valuable to us – then we will soon see retention numbers rise accordingly.

THE BOTTOM LINE: be aware of your customers’ needs. By understanding what they want, you can arm new mobile services with plans for top support and consistency.

As we continue through the rest of 2012 there is no doubt that many companies – even the majority – are at least in some formative stage of building and expanding their mobile outreach.

Others have gone well beyond their beta versions.

Mary Meeker, a partner at the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, told us back in October 2011 that the number of Fortune 1000 companies that are launching mobile ad campaigns grew from 203 in July 2011 to 250 this past September, a 23 percent increase – and the trend is upward.

Regardless of what stage they are in, however, there is always some aspect of mobile marketing and customer service that can be improved upon to attract and retain customers.

Loyalty boosted by mobile is an ideal way to forge ahead, because with mobile use growing and changing, we can expect grand returns – and soon.

If Nielsen termed 2011 “The Year of the Mobile,” and a Google Guru continued to hammer home the importance of mobile this year, it is clear that any business without a mobile strategy, and certainly one that integrates with building customer loyalty, is going to be left behind.

Alex Romanov is founder/CEO of iSign, a Toronto-based interactive marketing company specializing in mobile and digital out of home and digital signage. Reach him at alex@isignmedia.com.

This article originally appeared on Mobile Commerce Daily by Alex Romanov, CEO of iSIGN Media on 05/10/12.

How a year in the life of mobile can equal a lifetime

The following article by Vanessa Horwell, Chief Visibility Officer of ThinkInk, originally appeared on Mobile Marketer on 03/26/2012. 

Call it a miracle.

It has only been a few short weeks since you have brought home your twinkling little wonder and already it is doing things – great things – that surprise you.

Day by day, hour by hour, you can almost watch its intricate wiring make vital connections and, in so doing, learn about the world through their and your eyes. Its life-changing potential on day one is no comparison to what your little “miracle of evolution” can do 365 days later.

The “miracle” I am talking about is not your child, but rather your mobile device.

No kidding

But some of the parallels between mobile technological developments and infants are striking.

Both are “born” with great potential to grow and expand their capabilities. Tapping into that potential, however, requires the right combination of experiences and environmental nurturing. For smartphones, that translates into using all of its smart features.

Very often, excited parents will sit by and watch their children hit cognitive mile marker after cognitive mile marker: a child’s recognition of a parent, his first steps, and his first words all signal that “things are on track.”

What parents do not do is extrapolate from 12 months of data and experience the full-on adult potential of their children.

Are some predictions critical? Absolutely.

But parents and pediatricians are quick to counsel a slower approach, letting the child explore his world at his own pace and in his own time.

In other words, parents are advised to sit back and watch their miracle unfold, focusing more on helping their children achieve goals – rather than just setting them.

As human beings we are also the collective parents of mobile devices.

And like infants, their worlds can change radically in the 31,536,000 seconds that make up a year as their “brain power” – computer data storage capacity and processing speed – steadily increases.

While data like Moore’s Law – the predicted two-year doubling, or more like 18 months, of the number of transistors that can fit on a microchip – is helpful at the macro-level in estimating the power of computing, it is of very little guidance when it comes down to tech trends, overnight sensations, and predictions in our always-connected society.

The bottom line is that smartphones and tablets have infiltrated nearly every aspect of life – just like wide-eyed and mostly smiling children.

While becoming a successful parent involves getting up to speed with and nurturing their potential, it remains to be seen if mobile marketers are truly keeping pace with theirs.

It’s still a feature phone world? Not for long

The above subhead underscores the rate of change taking place and the foolishness of making year-long, or even quarter-long predictions.

“It’s Still a Feature Phone World” was the headline of a Techcrunch article that was posted on Nov. 28, 2011.

In it, the article spoke about how despite all the hoopla surrounding the technology, smartphones remained a gadget still on hold for the majority of people.

Industry officials – and admittedly some of my clients – repeatedly reminded my company that in the race for mobile adoption, that standard mobile phones not be left out of the mix. The article estimated North American smartphone adoption rate at 63 percent.

But a just a 100 or so days later, that headline sounds decidedly antiquated. Why?

Because earlier this month the Pew Research Center’s Internet and American Life Project released its findings that in the United States alone, smartphone adoption rates had jumped 11 percent – 35 percent to 46 percent – from May 2011 to February 2012.

And with 88 percent of U.S. consumers owning a smartphone or standard phone, the percentage of smartphone-touting Americans rose to 53 percent.

With this kind of short-term jump in ownership, it is likely that the 63 percent North American smartphone adoption average from only a few months ago needs some serious updating.

Prices too, have also come down and, in many cases, have come down faster than had been predicted.

Earlier this month, NPD Group estimated that of those U.S. consumers who considered buying a smartphone for $200 to $250, 64 percent ended up buying the device for less than $200, averaging $135 in the third quarter of 2011.

But prices and adoption rates are only the beginning of these speed-of-light changes.

The amount of mobile Web traffic has surged beyond anyone’s wildest expectations.

A study by Chitika found that from July 2011 to until the last week of February 2012, mobile Web traffic surged 35 percent.

It also showed for every hour that mobile users accessed the mobile Web, the amount of time they spent accessing the Web on PCs continued to fall.

The conclusion?

It is Armageddon time: the post-PC – and post-feature-phone – world is fast approaching.

“Misunderestimating” other things, too: Data gridlock and the tablet flock

Finally, the world’s rapid uptake of mobile devices – particularly smartphones – has led carriers to revamp their data plans long before individual contract renewals.

The Big Three in North America – Verizon Wireless, AT&T and T-Mobile – all now employ a system called “throttling” where if users are in the upper percentages of data usage, their download speeds will be “throttled back” to help clear congestion on the mobile network.

Think of it like 45 miles per hour speed limits in places on 65mph highways that never had them before.

Of course, slowing down data speeds enough will inspire – some would say force – customers to spend more money for larger data plans.

For many, their data plans may be still be unlimited, but try driving 65mph in bumper-to-bumper traffic. Not so easy. Who would have thought that in a few short years – and to some extent, only within the past year – that our digital skies would become as congested as our roadways?

And if you thought the challenges are smartphone-centric, think again.

While they tend to receive less notoriety, the relatively infant-like tablets – only in terms of their age, mind you – are rapidly learning how to play the mobile game too.

In Australia, a recent study by Telsyte found that about half of all Australians will be using a tablet by 2016.

Another study by Cisco Systems estimates that by that same year 2016 the number of mobile-Internet-connected devices will reach 10 billion with mobile traffic data of 10.8 exabytes a month, or a billion gigabytes.

Think about that.

In less than 1,500 days, these staggering data usage estimates could be facts – or, as has been shown repeatedly in the realm of mobile, low-balling what actually comes to pass.

So where do mobile marketers go from here? 

It is clear that mobile is lightning fast – minus the throttling – and getting cheaper all the time, again minus finicky data plans. It is changing the way we consume media, socialize and, for all intents and purposes, live.

But for all the talk of mobile’s march on humanity, how many mobile marketing campaigns have we seen that are truly turning heads and fully capitalizing on these trends?

The answer is not too many.

And marketers, it is not easy.

As evidenced by the rapid changes facing all of us in the digital realm, it would be unfair to throw all marketers under the proverbial bus.

Just think how much a small child grows and matures in those first precious years of life? Mobile, it seems, is not really different. But, like any good parent, it never hurts to offer a few reminders.

Successful marketing campaigns generate conversation, connect people to brands and help them establish an emotional connection. And that is before we even start talking about the monetization.

When compared to with traditional mediums, mobile is uniquely able to integrate multiple types of marketing campaigns including promotional, experiential, sponsorship and others, and do so across multiple platforms.

But in each of those cases, the mobile device is key in linking back to the other outlets.

Learning to crawl versus learning to walk

With three quarters of 2012 remaining, it is very likely that mobile marketers –and the rest of us – will experience more miracles from smart device.

It is also a forgone conclusion that prices will continue to drop, data networks will continue to fill, and adoption rates will soar.

In these exciting years of rapid mobile device development and industry maturity – even if predictions will be difficult – mobile marketers would be wise to invest in the time, money and staff requirements necessary to keep pace with our increasingly everywhere and anywhere devices, lifestyles and expectations.

Mobile marketers may be fast crawlers, but like world-exploring youngsters, the difference between infant and toddler is that miraculous moment where a child successfully braces him or herself against a solid object, stands tall, and takes his or her halting first steps.

For mobile marketers, perhaps the remaining months of 2012 will be the needed transition period where an industry finds its stride. And it is about time, too.

The following article by Vanessa Horwell, Chief Visibility Officer of ThinkInk, originally appeared on Mobile Marketer on 03/26/2012. 

Mobilizing and Monetizing The Lobby Experience

The following article by Vanessa Horwell, Chief Visibility Officer of ThinkInk, originally appeared on Hotel Executive.

Jackpot!

That’s the exclamation (not to mention double entendre) that’s likely doing cartwheels inside the heads of corporate higher ups and casino/hotel bookkeepers that are busy tallying their property’s profits. It’s a joy especially potent considering that a large portion of the green in their piggy banks stems from those very same gaming additions.

It may seem obvious to any Las Vegas traveler who’s ever stepped foot in the MGM Grand, The Bellagio, or Mandalay Bay, but it’s important to remember that at sometime, at some point, hotel designers reached this no-brainer conclusion: Instead of building casinos and hotels as separate structures, why not build them as single entities? Better still, why not pair the hotel and casino branding? That way, room rates, the mainstay for a hotel’s revenue, can be partnered with an entirely new income stream: gambling money. Everybody knows tourists are coming to cities like Las Vegas to try their hand (and luck) at the one-armed bandit. Why not give hotel guests what they want right in the lobby, and monetize the experience?

A simple idea, for sure, but it’s the aesthetic and business success at the root of the world-famous Las Vegas strip. And when it comes to creating revenue opportunities in common spaces, the burgeoning world of mobile, digital signage and location-aware technologies could learn a thing or two. Like the resort-casino model, mobile’s next frontier – or certainly a frontier as it relates to hotels, is the lobby. It’s a potential revenue, entertainment and loyalty source so significant that hoteliers who choose to mobilize their lobbies should be shouting “jackpot” too.

Mobile’s Winning Combination: Engage, Entertain, Enjoy

Of all the places mobile technology has reached, (through smartphones or tablets) it’s surprising that the hotel lobby has yet to be tapped – even less so than the hotel room, which is beginning, finally, to find its digital footing.

And as an “always on” technology, with penetration rates exceeding 95% for standard phones and upward of 64% for smartphones (in the 25-34 age group within the United States), a central and social meeting place like a hotel lobby is the ideal location to further engage guests throughout the booking and hotel stay process. But also through that same technology, sow the seed for future visits through the technology’s entertainment value allowing guests to download games or video content and continue the mobile hotel marketing experience well beyond the lobby’s main entrance, furthering the customer connection.

In fact, some 82% of business travelers polled in a 2011 Travelport survey said that they expect every hotel room they visit to be WiFi accessible by 2016, no, ifs, ands or buts. Travelport also found that already 56% of business travelers search and book their stays via their mobile device. Google, too, has reached similar conclusions, finding that nearly 60% of personal travelers have looked for travel-related information through their phone or tablet. In other words, travelers of both sets, expect hotels services and amenities to go where they’re already leading.

Hotel Lobby 1.0 versus Hotel Lobby 2.0

Think about a hotel’s loyalty and ROI possibilities and imagine the following scenario. A customer walks into a hotel lobby exhausted from their late-night travels and delayed flight. The last thing on their mind is having to put on that obligatory smile for the front desk and begin the check-in process.

It goes something like this: a hotel guest fishes for their credit card in a cluttered wallet, obtains a magnetic card room key, learns about check-out times, the continental breakfast, and collects a smattering of printed material –some of which might be out of date – and all of it, decidedly so last century in terms of paper and ink technology. Then there’s the added hotel expense of having to pay employees to staff on what can be graveyard shifts. None of this is a recipe for revenue or loyalty success.

Now consider this. A mobile lobby has the potential to radically change this scenario. Imagine instead a tech-centric experience where that same travel-weary customer walks in. But this time, instead of the traditional static entranceway, the guest is surrounded by a collection of interactive digital “smart” signs. Using Bluetooth technology that detects a phone’s proximity to the sign, (and for privacy reasons, not the guest’s exact location) the sign immediately sends the guest’s phone a timely relevant message about their stay. Upon a guest’s opt-in response, the sign can begin sending the guest coupons to the hotel’s restaurant or bar, upgrade packages, or it can even send the phone an augmented reality map of directions to the guest’s room, the fitness center or the pool. Need to find what’s around town? No worries there either as the digital sign-phone partnership all but does away with the need for the concierge. And no need for pen and paper in this scenario either.

And with companies like Orbitz, (which launched its Orbitz-Hotels app for iPad last summer), and Priceline, (that added a “Tonight-Only Deals” to its iPad app in October), estimating upward of 60% to 65% of mobile users book their trips the same day of their stay, finding new ways to engage the traveler both before and after their trip has never been more important. Even if a trip is booked within 24-hours of a stay, that doesn’t mean the proverbial wheels start turning long before that.

The Future (Is Almost) Here: Hotels Mobilizing their Mobile Effort

Little by little hotel chains and technology solution providers are starting to get digital sign’s mobile message. And like the hotel-casino model, they are starting to cash in. In spring 2011 Canada-based iSIGN Media, a provider of location-aware mobile advertising partnered with RTown Communications, also of Canada, to yield the perfect duo: iSIGN supplied the “smart” software and RTown, a digital media marketer, supplied the digital signs within hotel properties. Distributed through a system of some 27,000 hotel rooms in 346 locations throughout Canada, the network effectively delivers a host of branded content, special offers, coupons, discounts, loyalty program messages and other rich-media offerings of guests’ choosing. And by opening up a digital signage network to outside advertising, hotels can accept ads from companies looking to sell to travelers. In addition to delivering real-time content via in-room TV, hotels took the added step of delivering their content via digital signage in hotel commerce areas and even outdoors.

In a related digital move, Wyndham Hotel Group, in conjunction with the MCG, in summer 2011 launched a text to win campaign linked to the PGA FedEx Cup. The hotel chain was looking to increase interaction with hotel guests and through the campaign, offer rewards. Additional community outreach was achieved by donations, issued through Wyndham’s charity arm, Wishes By Wyndham. While the campaign did not rely on lobby-based digital signage, it’s the unique kind of guest engagement that such signs in the future might be able to better promote. Rather than just receiving a simple text, imagine if a rich-media image of a 3-D golf ball had come off a digital screen, offering some discount at a nearby golf course? Along with the appropriate text to connect the image to the cause or promotion, greater redemption rates seem likely. It’s also the type of social experience that, if launched in a lobby setting, might set the stage for further in-lobby and social media-driven conversation.

But more on that in the section that follows…

From the Jetway to the Jetsons: Welcome to the Kinder, Gentler Lobby

Ultimately lobby 2.0 won’t just be about the technology. In an ironic twist, it’ll be about how the technology is bringing people together in more genuine ways. As mentioned above, the ability to connect guests to each other in meaningful ways, (say for example, guests looking to organize a hotel-based tour group for the city they’re visiting and an offering from the tour group incentivizing its use via smartphone and digital signs) will help drive both online and offline conversations.

Increasingly, the linked, synched and wired lobby will take a more living room-like or Starbucks approach where guest spend more time hanging out and interacting with their mobile gadgets and other guests who are using them as well, rather than using the lobby as an austere “waiting area” before embarking on the next part of their day. Hotels like A-Loft, Hyatt, Hyatt Place, Marriott Courtyards, and Hilton’s Home2 Suites extended stay brands have already begun installing mega-sized touch-screen TVs that display information like the weather and day-trip excursion information. While that’s a first step, imagine if those touch screen TVs, like digital signs, began offering branded content?

The A-Loft hotel brand is also testing its “smart check in” technology. Starwood Preferred Guest program members are sent a radio frequency identification (RFID) keycard in the mail. On the day of a guest’s arrival, a text message is sent to their mobile device with a room number, allowing the guest to bypass the front desk entirely. And according to David Strom, writing for ReadWrite Enterprise, the technology is in place at A-Lofts in New York, Massachusetts, Texas, Florida, and London. Also, the Oslo Comfort Xpress hotel has automated lobby kiosks that dispense RFID room cards. Admittedly, these technological advancements risk bypassing the lobby altogether. But it’s incumbent on the next generation of interactive digital sign designers to find ways to the keep the digital conversation in the lobby.

Continuing this look into the future, next generation digital signage, as seen by Samsung’s Transparent Smart Window at the recent 2012 Consumer Electronics Show, will merge the aesthetic of real windows with the virtual world. With advanced touch-screen technology, the 4-inch thick screens will allow up to 50 simultaneous “points of contact” or users.

Revenue Per Square Foot: From Slots to Signs

Anyone who’s been to a Las Vegas casino, or any gaming establishment from California to Monte Carlo, knows that it’s the slot machine – not the table game games – that generate the most revenue per square foot. About to turn 117, slot machines have for decades proven their worth to the hotels who’ve turned their lobbies into gaming halls, giving guests what they want, when they want it and in close proximity to their hotel rooms.

The parallels with in-lobby digital signage are striking. Both technologies – one from the 19th century and another from the 21st – engage the guest, build loyalty, and of course, improve return on investment.

Maybe the next generation of a casino-hotel’s digital signage will feature interactive images of slot machines where through contactless data transfer (NFC or Bluetooth connectivity) guests play the slots through their mobile devices? Instead of winning cash, players might receive coupons, discounts and loyalty rewards redeemable at the hotel.

Whether it is casinos, hotels, motels, or any lodging establishment in between, mobilizing the lobby is the revenue and loyalty way forward. Tech-savvy and mobile-equipped travelers continue to lead the way. It’s time for hoteliers to gather their resources and mobilize their lobbies today and hit the digital signage jackpot today.

The following article by Vanessa Horwell, Chief Visibility Officer of ThinkInk, originally appeared on Hotel Executive.

Staking a Claim in Mobile Travel: Not Just Popular, Pragmatic and Profitable

The following article by Vanessa Horwell, Chief Visibility Officer of TravelInkd’, originally appeared on Hotel Executive on 1/18/12. 

Mobile a Must: Pragmatic trumps popular

If 2011 for hotel owners was all about learning from and joining the mobile masses simply because it was the “in” thing to do for our tech-savvy patrons, 2012 is rapidly shaping up to be the year where mobile becomes a must. In other words, the mobile marketing landscape has rapidly matured and the training wheels are coming off. This coming of age can mean only one thing: The time for hotels to launch their mobile presence is now. Not after the post-holidays’ travel slow down, and not in the run-up to Valentines Day or the season’s first spring breakers.

Right now.

From Training Wheels to Two-Wheeler: Mobile Matures

As with other trends in the hotel industry, it is customers who are driving mobile’s niche-to-need changes. Today’s on-the-go traveler expects to be connected wherever they are throughout their trip experience and that connectivity is expanding at a staggering rate. Earlier this year, more than half of all mobile phone sales (56%) were smartphones, and the total number of US smartphone owners jumped to 82.2 million people this summer – that is 35% percent of the 234 million Americans who use mobile devices 13 and up. Think about that statistic for a few moments…

Even a lighthearted (but with serious implications) October 2010 survey by Mashable highlights just how connected consumers have become. When asked what they would give up to keep their mobile phones for a week:

• 70% said they would give up alcohol;
• 63% said goodbye to chocolate;
• And a combined 63% said they would consider doing without their toothbrush, shoes, or computers.

Considering those (rather shocking) expectations, it’s critical that hotels deliver. Hotels, as with other businesses, must go where their customers are going. Why? For one thing, the booking window, once a lengthy time frame where travelers corresponded with travel agents, business travel managers, and the like, has now shrunk considerably. Smartphones can literally book travel itineraries, price hunt, and check-in to a given hotel – assuming it has a sophisticated mobile platform.

But it’s more than just smartphone adoption rates. A recent survey by Greystripe, a mobile marketing company, found that 47% of iPad users who were considered frequent travelers (defined as a person who traveled at least twice a year) booked hotels via their mobile device, and were the most common mobile platform to do so, beating out both iPhone users and Android phones, the study found. So when I talk about the mobile channel, I am talking about tablets too.

And not to be outdone, TripAdvisor, a travel website and now travel app provider, announced in November a collection of 20 free Mobile City Guide apps (for 20 cities) that, in addition to point-by-point directions and general tourist information, includes hotel reviews. Some of the most downloaded cities include: Beijing, Chicago, San Francisco, Boston, and New York. If potential customers are relying on the these mobile apps to determine their booking choice, (even if they’re not booking through the app directly) it’s important hoteliers and their staffs get on board too, monitoring reviewer activity and having a system in place that incentivizes its customers to use said apps and write positive reviews, assuming they’ve had a superior experience.

Facebook, too, both in its mobile and desktop iterations, is becoming a vital space for digital commentary on travelers’ hotel experiences, which ultimately drive bookings and revenue. Some 30% of travelers who booked their hotel online said they would use the social networking site (as well as Twitter and LinkedIn) to comment on their hotel and trip. The study, by Milestone, a hotel marketing company, also showed that each social message posted by a guest drove five to six unique visitors to a hotel website.

Whether it’s apps, mobile websites, social media, or even the implementation of mobile phone-based digital room keys, (Open Ways, a mobile-based access management and security company, announced its launching of “Mobile Key 4 All,” a software and hardware solution) where hotel guests simply point or swipe their phone through a type of digital reader, all three outlets fall into the mobile sphere.

Driving home the point, Ian Carrington, Google’s mobile advertising and sales director, made his opinions on the mobile revolution clear: “Mobile isn’t ‘the next big thing’ – it is already very much upon us,” he said. Or, staying closer to the hotel industry, consider what Tom O’Rourke, founder and CEO of O’Rourke Hospitality Marketing, had to say: “[Apps are] an opportunity through a mobile channel to connect with a guest before, during, and after his stay.” Enough said.

Airborne Perspective: What we can learn

Considering the close ties that the hotel and airline industries share, (one relies on a large share of their customers from the other for business) it’s incumbent on hoteliers to take a page from the recent past and consider their future.

It’s hard to over state the impact mobile communications has had on airlines, especially as it relates to ancillary revenues. Ancillary revenues, or ways in which airlines unbundle specific services and monetize and customize the traveler experience, has largely emerged in concert with the mobile platform. Today more than 2,000 aircraft crossing the world’s oceans and continents are Wi-Fi enabled. Innovations like this have helped airlines offset rising fuel costs and generally prosper in a still-challenging economic climate. Unlike the hotel industry, which has been slow to adopt mobile, most airlines have already established the basics: allowing for mobile check-in, 2D bar code boarding passes, and many have mobile booking capability. Going forward, industry analysts predict additional mobile services like being able to select premium seating, club access, or the pre-purchasing of meals. Further down the road, (or runway), airlines will consider adding location based services, which provide travelers with location sensitive advertisements and promotions, as well as monitoring social media for commentary on the entire travel experience. Finally, the burgeoning field of NFC, or Near Field Communications, is also seen as a significant game changer going forward, allowing travelers to simply swipe their NFC-enabled mobile devices and perform a host of activities like check-in, pay for goods, (mobile wallet), and even exchange vital travel information, like last-minute itinerary changes, with other travelers, family or friends. Imagine having that type of capability at the check-in desk?

The Mobile Concierge: Booking (and banking on) future success

Boarding passes aside, nearly every mobile avenue airlines are pursuing has relevancy for the hotel industry too. In a competitive marketplace where OTAs (online travel agencies) are vying for an increasing piece of the booking revenue pie, mobile can be a way for hoteliers to once again directly connect with their loyal, returning customers, and attract new ones as well. For all the industry’s booking efforts, (OTAs included) global occupancy rates remain at roughly 60 percent. In other words, there’s plenty more the industry can and should do to attract more guests. Mobile booking, mobile check-in and check-out, cardless key systems, even mobile hotel restaurant reservations, gift shop rewards points, and in-room food and media selections, are exactly the types of services travelers are beginning to expect. If many similar services are already being offered by airlines for travelers in transit, why should these mobile amenities end when they get off the plane?

They shouldn’t.

From work, to travel, to recreation, mobile and smart mobile devices are remaking every facet of our collective lives. And in so doing, the technology is reshaping the way in which hoteliers must interact with and connect with their customers. Before long, hotels that fail to adopt these changes will look like antiques and will be losing revenue and guests. There’s no need to discard the leather-bound guest book just yet. Just remember the rapidly maturing mobile landscape is where the majority of today’s travelers are looking to sign in next.

In every touch point of travel lifecycle, from booking to check-in and home again, mobile has become a must.

The following article by Vanessa Horwell, Chief Visibility Officer of TravelInkd’, originally appeared on Hotel Executive on 1/18/12. 

When Big Brother Watches YouTube With the Rest of Us: Digital Divide 2.0

Ahhhh, technophobia! No, I didn’t make this term up nor is it an irrational fear of a certain musical genre that will remain nameless (though obvious). Technophobia as defined by dictionary.com is “an abnormal fear of or anxiety about the effects of advanced technology.”

With this definition in mind, tech journalist Bill Robinson, a friend and colleague of mine, in his recent Huffington Post column, raised alarm over what he calls the new “digital divide.” No longer is the digital divide over the technological haves and have nots – those who have computers and Internet access versus those who don’t – but rather between those who have become outright addicted to our anywhere and everywhere gadget-gorged world and in so doing, are dividing themselves from the shrinking percentage of those who are living slightly off the digital grid, achieving that increasingly lost something we used to call: balance.

While some might say Bill is off his digital rocker, a real-life “Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel,” (Google that, if you don’t know what I’m referencing) I do not. Besides, anyone who was a true technophobe in keeping with the spirit of the definition that framed this piece, would not be posting their thoughts on the Huffington Post.

That said, Bill’s concerns that just maybe we’re all a little too linked, synched and wired is more than a just his conclusion. To buttress his argument, Robinson sites a recent survey by Morgan Stanley that found that 91 percent of Americans have their cell phones within reach at every moment of the day. Just to clarify, that means every 86,400 seconds that make up a 24-hour day. (And yes, I used a Blackberry app to calculate that) The study also found that our collective time spent with our glowing gadgets is outpacing the time we spend asleep.

What a sad bunch of folks we are.

Bill isn’t a technophobe any more than I am. We’re both realists. As a public relations professional and journalist, we interface with the latest and greatest technology on a daily basis. Not only that, but very often communications technology, increasingly in the form of mobile and smartphone adoption, is at the core of what we do.

Navigating this new digital divide successfully doesn’t require an online search engine. All it requires is a dose of common sense, and the recognition that being a hopeless technophile – the opposite of the definition that opened this piece, is just as detrimental as the technophobic response.

To be sure, changing habits takes time and marketers from every corner continue to promote technology’s hyperactive presence. But tonight, when you’re finished reading this post off what will still likely be your Blackberry, Android, iOS device or laptop, remember to power down, turn off, or put your gadgets to sleep and join the remaining 9 percent of Americans that presumably do not have their mobile phone in constant reach. I have a sneaking suspicion that doing so will not only recharge their batteries, but it’ll recharge yours as well.

Sweet dreams.

98 Percent of Statistics Are Made Up – And Then Some

“A [person] may have six meals one day and none the next, making an average of three meals a day, but that is not a good way to live.”

Nor is it a good way to use statistics.

The above words, attributed to US Supreme Court Associate Justice, Louis Brandeis, underscore the age-old trouble with this black sheep cousin of fully respected mathematics; a discipline we call statistics. For as much as statistics attempt to illuminate an issue, address a concern, highlight a trend, or flesh out a public opinion, statistics are as ambiguous as they are helpful. As a public relations professional, I estimate that 40% of my workweek (sorry, I couldn’t resist) is spent awash in statistics, some good, some bad, and many that leave me wondering “huh?!”

A new study by marketing company, Ifbyphone, has me doing just that. In its 2011 State of Marketing Measuring Report, the company found that while 82% of marketing executive managers expect all marketing channels, (print, TV, radio, mobile, online, email) to have a measurable return on investment, (ROI) only a paltry 29% of respondents said they understood how to measure and achieve that aim across all channels, with offline platforms being the most difficult to measure.

So does that mean the other 71% who admit to not having a clue deserves to go back to statistics 101?

Not necessarily.

For as earthshaking as pronouncements such as these sound, when you dig a little deeper, the gap really isn’t that surprising after all. Besides, don’t most effective bosses set the bar high and on occasion, leave their staffers scrambling to rise to the challenge at hand? It’s also not surprising since measuring ROI has long been marketers Holy Grail. How exactly does one measure word-of-mouth? Where is the hard money guarantee that a multichannel public relations campaign was any more successful than performing a mass emailing or any other type of initiative for that matter? In economics that’s called opportunity cost.

But in marketing, opportunity cost is a lot harder to measure.

The good news is that with the exception of social media – the online world’s digital word-of-mouth – 59% of respondent said offline media was the hardest metric to track. Why is that the good news you ask? Because as we begin 2012, Internet and mobile web marketing continues to gobble up a greater percentage of the marketing mix. Not in a cannibalistic manner, but in a complimentary one to traditional channels. Feature and mobile smartphones, with a combined penetration rate of 95%, (if you believe that statistic) offer some of the best marketing metric tracking ability including click and redemption rates, surveys, opt-in, and others. Already, it is estimated that US companies spend 30% of their marketing budgets online.

So while I wouldn’t dismiss a report like this and cry statistical BS, I’d be sure to keep an open mind whenever the topic of statistics comes up.

Or, to personalize it some more think about it like this:

I could tell you that statistically speaking; I recently placed my 2.59 children on board a plane back to England following the holiday break. I could tell you that because that’s the average size of an American family.

I could tell you that. But when it comes to my family I’d be telling a nearly six-tenths lie.

Go figure. (Pun intended)

The following article by Vanessa Horwell, Chief Visibility Offirce of ThinkInk, originally appeared on eHotelier on 12/14/11. 

Shhhhhh. Listen. Can you hear them?

It’s the sound of millions of consumers, leisure travelers, hotel guests and on-business patrons alike, across all demographics, adding to the mobile phone bandwidth super highway by jumping on the mobile phone bandwagon.

Roughly a quarter century into mobile phones’ mainstream release, the technology – and its uses – has sure come a far piece.  Mobile phones and their increasingly “intelligent” smartphone cousins have morphed into the ultimate digital Swiss Army Knife -marrying the best of computer-based processing power with the ease, simplicity and functionality of a 5-ounce pocket-sized device. Not bad, huh?

For hotel managers looking to capitalize on these rapid and profound changes there are only two words: Game on.

Without doubt, the mobile phone has become ubiquitous: 77% of the world’s population (5.3 billion people) owns at least a basic mobile phone, capable of receiving SMS messages. Not to be outdone, though, the smartphone is playing some Major League catch-up ball, making up anywhere from 17% to as much as 63% of the global marketplace in some regions. Today the average global smartphone penetration rate hovers at around 27%, but is growing rapidly.

Increasingly mobile phone users see their devices as “always on” extensions of their everyday lives. From so-called “couch commerce,” to mobile couponing, to booking airline flights while sitting at a traffic light (hands free of course), the mobile phone and the opportunities presented by the channel are just too great for hoteliers to ignore.

With this background picture in your mind right now, it’s surprising, then, that the hospitality industry, specifically hotels, has been relatively slow at embracing the mobile platform. While the challenges to embrace mobile are real, ranging from hiring the necessary tech-savvy staff, to ensuring data security, guarding against errors, and incorporating an ability for users to book their stays on the go, and even choosing which mobile operating system to embrace, none of these obstacles  should relegate hotels to the mobile sidelines.  Surveys indicating a strong desire for hotels to adopt mobile (92%) don’t seem to be enough, however.

In many cases, actions can speak louder than words, so let’s see some action in the mobile game please hotels!  That said, “action” without a game plan or playbook is equally foolish. For hotels, going mobile isn’t simply a catch-all phrase or something that screams, “hey, we have an app too.” It’s about knowing your customers’ wants, desires, and mobile habits: today’s hotel booker is no longer tied to the home or office computer – but is mobilized with mobile in hand, capable of searching, comparing and booking from anywhere, at anytime.

So here are my five recommendations for hotel managers to consider when launching their mobile programs:

#5 KNOW THE DIFFERENCE between web surfers and web hunters. Here’s the deal: laptop and desktop Internet users tend to “surf” the web, casually scanning data, comparing prices, and toggling between multiple sites. In other words, they take their time. Mobile customers lack this luxury. Instead, due in part to a smaller screen size and limited ability to multitask, (or multitask as effortlessly) mobile users are said to be “hunters,” carefully picking and choosing exactly what they want from the website’s they’ve visited or the app they’ve accessed. For hotel managers that means designing a mobile website that contains less superfluous data. Leave the “About Us” section for the web and instead have engaging, lively pictures and video of your hotel and current guests (with their permission). Consider thumbnails, though, and don’t overwhelm a mobile users viewing space. Interactive maps, too, help zero-in on what your hotel is trying to promote in terms of neighborhood and curbside appeal – all of which a mobile user would like to know.

#4 DUE TO MOBILE USERS’ hunting nature, they tend to book their trips in an even narrower window than their laptop or desktop counterparts – a tech sector that has also seen a closing of the booking widow. Earlier this fall, for instance, when New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut were hit with an intense power line-collapsing snowstorm, mobile bookings for hotel stays onPriceline.com jumped 270%. Although mobile booking on hotel sites directly remains a small part of the marketplace, there’s every indication that if hotels build it, customers will come.

#3 APPS ARE NOT ALL THAT. Rely on what works: Here’s the caveat to the above. Mobile bookers, regardless of whether they use a meta-search engine or an online travel agency, (OTA) want simplicity. It may not be necessary to have both a mobile-formatted website and an app. Choose which one works best. The time, money, and effort that goes into designing an app could, perhaps, be spent better elsewhere. With more than 500,000 apps in the iTunes App Store alone, it’s incredibly easy for a hotel app – even a great one – to become buried in the digital noise.

#2 MOBILE GUESTS WANT TO TALK… about you: Mobile users increasingly expect and demand an ability to post their thoughts and opinions (good or bad) about their travel stay and booking experience. This is already being done through aggregator and OTA sites, as well as through Facebook and Twitter. Why not shift that buzz back to your hotels’ mobile site?

#1 USE MOBILE TO WELCOME YOUR GUEST - long before they step foot in your lobby: Mobile patrons are often tech-savvy, out-of-the-box thinkers. Hoteliers can use this to their advantage, as customers are increasingly receptive to purchasing in-hotel amenities like movies and room service, or securing hotel conference space, gym and spa time – all while on the go.

Considering that smartphone penetration rates are likely to increase, it’s fair to say -as many already have – that a critical mass of public interest and user engagement is being reached. Whether or not 2012 is the year that crosses that threshold is anyone’s guess.

But like the airline and retail industries before them, the hotel industry, armed with the above knowledge, needs to fully embrace the mobile channel and all its capabilities while understanding the unique characteristics of their users, their potential guests. Is your hotel in the mobile game yet, or still sitting out on the sidelines?

The following article by Vanessa Horwell, Chief Visibility Offirce of ThinkInk, originally appeared on eHotelier on 12/14/11. 

Message Not Sent: Public Eager to Adopt Mobile Buying; Businesses Not So Much

For a three-word sentence, “Message not sent,” does a pretty good job at frustrating text messagers from completing and sending their digital thoughts. And when it comes to m-commerce, ‘M’ for mobile, businesses it seems, haven’t gotten the message either.

A new survey compiled by Empirix reveals a mixed message: 91 percent of American shoppers believed mobile buying for anything from airline tickets, to department store purchases, to all items in between by text message, email or smart phone app, will generally benefit their shopping experience, while nearly two-thirds of respondents expected an improvement in customer service via their mobile outlet.

But like a garbled message trapped in the Internet ether, fewer than half of businesses surveyed in several countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, France and Germany, said they’d be investing money toward establishing m-commerce networks. The US, which often plays second fiddle (or third, or fourth) to tech-savvy Europe, was a relative “winner,” with 41 percent of businesses saying they would. Better still; more than half of US businesses said they at least had a mobile strategy in place. By contrast only 14 percent of UK businesses were game for upgrading from ‘E’ to m-commerce.

Dealing with the digital disconnect

That’s where PR companies come into play. Playing the watchdog role for our clients means it’s our job to inform them when it’s time to enhance their business and marketing models, offering concrete mobile marketing suggestions and strategy. In short, just having a web page is so last decade. As seen on airlines, mobile onboard buying campaigns have really taken off. (Pardon the pun)

If airlines can be persuaded to the see the benefits of turning a jumbo jet’s cabin into a touch and click sky mall, then why not other businesses?

To be sure, an m-commerce-embracing public and a plugged in communications industry are only the first steps toward success. But they’re not bad starts. In Empirix’s press release on the study, Tim Moynihan, VP of Marketing cautioned companies against quantity of mobile initiative versus quality of effort.

“As more businesses deliver m-commerce applications to an increasing number of consumers, the risk of poor service increases dramatically,” he said. “Investing in an end-to-end service assurance program at the start of this journey will separate the winners from the losers.”

An “end to end service assurance program,” huh.

Sounds like the perfect job for us.

“Gearing up for the holidays: more retailers integrating mobile this year”

While it’s a little early for sleigh bells and cheesy holiday tunes, there is a sound of anticipation going on in the retail industry as merchants start ramping up their 2011 holiday season campaigns. But instead of relying on in-store displays and traditional holiday campaigns, many merchants this year are turning to mobile for to help boost multi-channel campaigns. They are also using the holiday season to start developing mobile databases that will perform year around –not just until December 31^st.

An upcoming webinar from SoundBite called Mobilizing Retailers: Leveraging Mobile Marketing to Connect with Shoppers this Holiday Season will explore some of the challenges facing retailers this holiday season.

Part of a series of mobile education programs from SoundBite , the webinar will demonstrate the ways in which mobile marketing can be leveraged across retail campaigns and provide a practical guide on how to integrate strategies from express consent to mobile databases.  It will also provide key takeaways from national retailer Stage Stores on how these solutions can be applied to increase profits using strategic approaches to consumer communications that will grow loyalty and sales beyond 2011.

To register for Mobilizing Retailers: Leveraging Mobile Marketing to Connect with Shoppers this Holiday Season on Wednesday, September 21, 2011 at 2pm ET/11am PT, please click here.

Enhancing Attendee Engagement with the Mobile Channel

By Vanessa Horwell, Founder & Chief Visibility Officer, ThinkInk & TravelInk’d

(This article originally appeared in Hotel Executive.com, where Vanessa is a contributor)

For traditional marketing and advertising promotions, the mobile channel is opening up a slew of new opportunities: everything from retail coupons to loyalty reward programs are being enhanced through mobile interactions. The immense convenience and “always connected” benefits of smartphones and other mobile devices (not to mention the intimate nature of these devices) make them a very appealing vehicle for consumer advertising, but what about the trade segments—specifically, what can the mobile channel do for trade shows and conventions? With mobile’s vast capabilities and ever-growing adoption, the channel can increase the effectiveness of conventions by becoming an integral tool for all phases of the event: pre-convention, during, and post-convention.

There’s no denying the reach of the mobile channel: by the end of 2011, it’s estimated that over 90 percent of Americans will own mobile phones, with over 50 percent of these being smartphones. Of course, in most business professions, the concentration of these numbers is far higher, making mobile one of the most effective tools to communicate with on-the-go professionals. Considering the professional playing field these days, who isn’t on-the-go?

Logically, these factors extend into the convention and trade show environment. Whether convention planners are looking to create an event-specific app or utilize optimized mobile websites to communicate with attendees, there are a number of mobile techniques that can be applied to ensure a successful event—and provide more opportunities to create value for convention goers. Following are a number of approaches for organizers to engage more attendees and optimize the convention experience through the mobile channel.

The Mobile Channel: Pre-Convention

Let’s face it: the majority of convention-goers aren’t all that excited about attending an upcoming convention or trade show. While there’s nothing that can change this fact, planners can use the mobile channel to make preparations for these (rather unwilling) attendees much easier, thereby eliminating some of usual problems associated with RSVP “checkpoints” (hotel reservations, individual event reservations, etc.) prior to the convention.

• Notification – Before any major checkpoint is reached, convention planners can offer pre-registration (which, if applicable, could include downloading the convention’s app) that provides each attendee with a mobile notification that gives instant linkage to the specific RSVP site. Think of it as a direct landing page for each event, sent via text, mobile email, or app. For example, convention attendees can sign up at pre-registration to receive notification via a downloadable convention application. The result is that, prior to the RSVP deadline for each event, the attendee will receive a message:

  Dear Mr. Smith, please find a link below that will either confirm or cancel your attendance of the workshop: “Using the Mobile Channel Effectively at Conventions.” Click on the link that represents your preference. We look forward to seeing you on July 23rd!

• Communication – Through mobile applications or devices that offer web communication (48 percent of business travellers’ phones have web access), convention planners can provide a congregation/meeting forum for attendees. By providing “meet and greet” events through mobile devices, planners can eliminate and/or shorten the need and length of these events at the live convention. In addition, such forums can generate more excitement for the events, as long as each forum provides a moderator that gives detailed information about each event.

The Mobile Channel During the Convention

Convention planners grapple with the unexpected during convention execution, and it’s not unusual that a professional wonders why didn’t someone just tell me? when in attendance. With some smart moves, the mobile channel can be calibrated to enhance participation by offering immediate information, engagement, and connection with others on the floor, or even with social networks. Issues that used to slip through the cracks can be addressed with smoother, simpler communication while on-site to ease immediate handling.

• Information – No longer do convention planners need to design, print, and distribute information packets and brochures. Through mobile applications and optimized browsing, convention planners can offer maps and detailed event information such as exhibit locations, sponsor products, agenda items, and event location/times. In addition to its practicality, it helps provide an eco-friendly feel to events, and may even be used as an additional marketing tool.
• Engagement – Mobile offers instant interaction and instant results. Speakers and event managers can keep the audience engaged in events by asking questions, taking polls, and displaying results in real-time. Not only will the audience maintain a closer connection with presenting professionals, but the event organization in general can be streamlined for the benefit of all parties. Relevant questions received after speakers’ presentations can be collected and answered to continue the interactive mindset.
• Connection – The mobile channel gives instant connection to event sponsors, planners, and fellow attendees. Implementation can also involve linking convention communications to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and other popular social networking connections. With regular updates from attendees, event buzz can grow exponentially in real-time, and without increasing cost.

The Mobile Channel Post-Convention

Another essential convention component doesn’t even happen on location. When the presentations are over, the business cards are collected, and the bags are packed, it’s all about the take-away benefits of a professional thinktank. On the attendees’ side, the mobile channel facilitates cross-communication and the forging of partnerships, but it also enhances future conventions in the following ways.

• Feedback – Because it can be used to gather immediate feedback, mobile takes advantage of “fresh” data (information and opinions that are gathered while impressions are fresh on attendees’ minds) that will give planners an edge for the next “big event.” In the case of closely-scheduled or even back-to-back events, this information is considered vital. With so many organizations joining forces at a convention, communication between these separate entities can become streamlined.
• Maintaining Connections – Like all forms of electronic communications, mobile provides an open link between all convention participants long after the event comes to a close. However, unlike other forms, mobile gives instant connectivity regardless of the participant’s location—convention sponsors, advertisers, planners, and attendees can communicate on-the-go. As all too often, these communications might be shuffled to a “to-do” list, never to been seen again because there was no immediate access to a computer. Mobile ensures that such ideas and thoughts are communicated whenever, wherever.

Challenges for Mobile Channel App Adoption

Convention planners can’t move into the mobile channel without caveats. Participants can experience a streamlined event for networking and building their businesses, but only if provided with intuitive options for their needs, which can vary depending on industry. Building on app adoption in the first half of 2011, current mobile channel incorporation can avoid the disappointments and pitfalls of earlier trial runs.

• Poor App Availability – Some early apps intended for conventions and trade shows this year were only available for iPhone users. Nielson Company’s March 2011 mobile survey indicated that 31.1 percent of respondents wanted to purchase an Android as their next phone, while 30 percent wanted an iPhone—a close split that wouldn’t be favored by an iPhone-only app offering. Apps also need to be planned for hybrids or mobile web to blanket the widest group of attendees as possible.
• Incomplete Offerings – There’s no point in offering an app for participants if it doesn’t have a draw. Instead of repackaged content or a series of maps, original content paired with event FAQs and directions is more likely to increase engagement. Some might argue that an inferior or “worthless” app could even damage the reputation of a convention or trade show, and the cost of development certainly wouldn’t be worth the investment.
• Skewed Intention – Every quality app has its place in a convention if it is marketed properly and, if highly specialized, offered in conjunction with complementary apps. If offering an app to aid social networking, for example, it might be advantageous to additionally offer help-based, information-focused apps.
• Poor Design – Poor usability can hurt convention app use. Anything from hard-to-find information due to layout to untested designs can hurt the reputation of those offering “bonus features” to participants. Since many convention-goers ask a series of location-based questions upon arrival, for example, it would be advantageous to have that information positioned accordingly.

It’s not just the traditional consumer target that benefits from the “always connected” feature of the mobile channel; trade segments can also be successfully targeted in the convention atmosphere. Since the mobile channel is based on two-way communication, apps that allow feedback and commentary can improve more than just an industry event, but issues and product development discussions in the following year. Throughout all phases, convention planners and participants can take advantage of the convenience and effectiveness of the mobile channel.

Who knows? By making it easier to attend and participate (and even have fun) via the mobile channel, maybe everyone could even have a good enough time to enjoy it. Wouldn’t that be the ultimate type of engagement with convention attendees?

Chief Visibility Offer, ThinkInk & TravelInk’d Vanessa Horwell is the founder and Chief Visibility Officer of ThinkInk & TravelInk’d, a public relations and visibility firm that shuns press releases in favor of storytelling. She has spent the past 18 years working with companies in the US, UK and Europe, developing successful campaigns and strategies for their brands. Ms. Horwell is a senior level strategist who works with companies in North America, EMEA and Asia-Pac in developing winning media campaigns, building relationships with influencers, and improving visibility through a unique style of public relations. Ms. Horwell can be contacted at 305-749-5342 or vanessa@thinkinkpr.com Extended Bio…

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