Oftentimes for companies with tight IT budgets a choice must be made between optimizing a website for mobile devices or developing an app. Google’s made the decision a little easier by incorporating apps in its mobile search results. Consumers that search for, say, banks, will pull up relevant apps along with the standard search results - app that they can download for their iPhone or iPod Touch.
This is a clever move on Google’s part, says the Register, as it has effectively inserted itself between iTunes and the customer. Google is positioning itself “as the portal through which all online services are accessed, even if they're run by a competitor.”
Growing Importance
Mobile search is becoming an increasingly important function to both consumers and the companies that want to reach them. To reach them the ideal strategy would be for companies to build a website and marketing campaign optimized for the mobile device alongside their online campaigns. Cost and resource constraints, though, are a factor for many companies.
Eventually brands and marketers will have enough of a knowledge base and practical experience to optimize campaigns for both channels with little additional effort. In the meanwhile, Christopher Carfi, CEO of Cerado suggests four cost-effective and cost-conscious ways for companies to reach out to their mobile customers:
- Before you even begin to think about your own website, make sure your company can be located on such sites as Google Maps, FourSquare and Gowalla.
- Keep a close eye on review sites aimed at mobile and/or hyper local audience and encourage happy customers to post about their experiences. Also, don't limit your efforts to such well known names as Yelp or TripAdvisor - keep your eye on local sites that cover reviews in your industry and target those as well.
- Limit the use of "heavy" content - Flash or long-to-download videos - for mobile users.
- Don’t forget about including phone numbers, email and SMS contact information in easy-to-find places on your mobile website.
