The Importance of Putting Mobile First

Advertising on mobile has recently become a key component of marketing for many reasons. The digital era has evolved, and consequently various applications and websites are being optimized to adapt to an increased shift in mobile use. People are not just talking on their smartphones; they are relying on their devices to make decisions and purchases.

We now live in a digital world, so for marketers, taking advantage of the trend toward mobile is critical in advancing marketing strategies and reaching desired targets. Consumers are online for a significant part of their day, and mobile phone usage has increased in the last few years exponentially. The convenience of these devices is changing the way the world communicates and interacts. Marketers need to be where their audience is. Making sure your campaigns and online presence are optimized for mobile is the best way to engage with and impress consumers.

Putting mobile first requires a comprehensive strategy. It demands that marketing departments think how their tactics will appear and be effective on mobile devices before they consider other digital devices, such as desktops. Mobile devices are used for a variety of reasons, whether for work or for pleasure. Marketers cannot ignore this new mobile reality. In fact, they can use it to their advantage.

What Is a Mobile-First Strategy?

A mobile-first strategy is an approach that involves reshaping marketing tactics to suit the popularity and prevalence of mobile search. It alters how customers receive information and connect with a brand.

Consumers spend a lot of time on their phones. Whether they are researching information, shopping online, navigating the internet, watching videos, or perusing social media, users now regard phones as an essential component of everyday life. Statistics indicate that 91% of mobile users want to be able to easily access content on mobile sites. Therefore, if your website or social media accounts are not optimized for mobile users, you can anticipate near immediate dismissal and a spike in your bounce rate. For this reason, 68% of companies have completely integrated mobile marketing into their advertising strategies.

Overall media consumption is at a high. Did you know that American adults spend 11 hours a day interacting with media? Whether they are watching TV or movies, or using computers, tablets, smartphones or anything else that has a screen, people are devoting a great deal of time to media consumption. However, although all forms of media are important to your reach as a brand, mobile is one of the most widely consumed sources of media.

Research has also indicated that 4 out of 5 smartphone users check their phones within 15 minutes of getting up. For some, this happens before they even brush their teeth! So it is clear that mobile usage is a critical element of how customers connect and relate to your brand. People are on their phones, ready to receive your message, any time of the day.

Many digital forecasters predict mobile usage will further increase in the future. It is expected that there will be 271 million mobile users in the US by 2022. Incorporating mobile marketing strategies will be fundamental in keeping up with other companies and keeping consumers engaged. If mobile interaction is non-existent in the brand and consumer relationship, your company is at a serious disadvantage now and into the future.

Search Marketing (Website Design)

When it comes to researching information online, more people are relying on their mobile devices to find what they need. Smartphones are easy to use and can provide access to a vast amount of information. When people are on their phones most of the time, it’s extremely convenient for them to open Google and research the newest product or service that interests them. For this reason, Google has moved forward with mobile-first indexing, which ranks companies with more mobile-friendly websites first. Desktop websites are not completely dismissed, but if your website caters to both types of users successfully, your site is ranked accordingly. 

So, ensure that your website is designed well and is mobile-friendly. You need to make sure your website data, whether it’s text, pictures or video, is high-quality and tagged appropriately. Metadata, server capacity, app indexing, and other technical considerations should be taken into account. You also need to have a quick load time to avoid the risk of customers bouncing away, never to return.

Google has been recognized as the leading search engine for mobile users. Did you know that Google is responsible for 96% of all smartphone search traffic?  Not having a mobile-friendly website that properly responds to the habits or interests of mobile users is damaging to businesses. Also, in accordance with new ranking stipulations, a site that’s not mobile-optimized is likely to get fewer visits because of its mobile website quality and poor search rankings.

Content Marketing

Engage people as soon as they find your brand! Whether they searched and found your website or they saw a picture on social media, you need content that stirs interest and responds to a consumer need. Considering the amount of time spent on mobile, mobile-optimized content will capture and retain the attention of today’s consumer. Make sure your website is intuitive, loads quickly, and directs searchers to the most important information.

Content marketing includes blogging, videos, whitepapers, infographics, and many other formats. According to information provided by HubSpot, 82% of marketers who blog see a return on investment from inbound marketing. Blogs and videos are easily consumable pieces of content. If your blog or video archive is easy to see and navigate on a mobile website, then a mobile user can read or watch your content on the go or in a short period of time. When the content is valuable and entertaining, they will be even more impressed and likely to return or recommend you.

One of the reasons for the high return with good, mobile-friendly content marketing, especially blogging, is that it has permanence. If the right strategies are implemented, and you create well-written and targeted content, your content won’t become outdated for a long time, converting new prospects and mobile users all the time.

Social Media

Social media is one of the main online platforms for mobile users. Individuals will spend five years of their life on social media, which equates to 116 minutes being spent on various social sites daily. For teens, this factor is incredibly high, with many of them spending nine hours a day on social media!

Overall, all demographics spend a lot of time on various social media accounts using their phones. For marketers expecting to put mobile interactions at the forefront of their marketing plan, social media remains central. The amount of time that consumers spend accessing social media platforms will help advertisers to reach their intended targets through social media campaigns, as long as the campaigns are mobile-optimized, relevant, and interesting. 

According to a recent survey from Curalate, 76% of consumers spend money on products they have discovered across social media channels. Additionally, 125 million US consumers own smartphones, and 62% of smartphone users make purchases using their mobile device. These findings reaffirm the importance of optimizing to suit the mobile customer experience and growing habits of shopping online. You must use social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, and others to reach targeted customers.

Email Marketing

The purpose of email marketing is to promote products and services by connecting with customers. Sending emails is a great option because they are delivered directly to consumers’ personal inboxes, which are often accessible via smartphones. Emails can also contain a lot more information and allow for personalization options.

Based on information provided by HubSpot, mobile users check their email three times more than non-mobile users. Emails that don’t display correctly on mobile devices are likely to be deleted within three seconds, so it is important to avoid losing engagement by ensuring that your content is mobile-optimized. If a recipient checks your email while on the go, and it’s not optimized for mobile, they will likely forget to re-open it on a desktop later. Email marketing has a high ROI when implemented effectively, so going mobile is a step you can’t afford to skip.

Final Thoughts

Mobile usage continues to increase yearly, as more people spend time online. For marketers, optimizing content with the objective of it being viewed on mobile devices is extremely important when devising digital marketing strategies and campaigns. Understanding how to create high-quality, straightforward, well-designed content that connects with mobile users is crucial to the success of any business, especially in this digital era.