Today, almost everyone has their own mobile phone, and they use it in many different ways. Therefore, companies are now obligated to have greater customization for their market segments.
Most users, especially youth, view data as too expensive. This is why many people are not using the mobile web. There may be other reasons for that, which is they use their mobile phones to communicate with their friends, not to entertain themselves. That might be why so many young people use SMS more than other services. Even on the street, young people check their phones and text each other constantly.
Some people might call this social networking, but it seems quite different from online social networking. On the web, social networking is more about showing off what they have and how many friends they have, etc. With mobile, showing off happens with the device itself, not how they use it. People might be proud of their iPhones, but not their monthly fee.
In the mobile world, it is all about communication and socialization, not content. For example, yes, young people might check mobile Youtube. But why? Well, look at what happens after. First, if the person thought that the content was funny, amazing, important… then they text the URL to their friends. The main purpose is to share. Essentially, users are doing the marketing FOR companies, spreading “endorsed impressions.”
The market in this area will grow no matter what, however brands should understand how significant this is. And why is that? Well, if companies make better environments or content based on the fact that mobile users are more focused on actual communication, it can lead people to use more data. The more data people use, the more money the market has.
The point is this: the mobile phone is the device that you carry to communicate. So, to grow the the market, companies should find out the way to make youth mobile users feel that they are “communicating,” not “using data.” It’s all about leveraging the behavior and shaping perception. For any of this to happen, though, data needs to be affordable. Carriers are getting their with new all-you-can-eat plans, but price still needs to come down a bit before youth really embrace it.
- Jain Koo
