EFFECTIVE BUSINESS USERS AND THEIR WIRELESS DEVICES
Business users are the bread and butter of 4G wireless providers. These users pay high monthly bills in the interest of staying connected to work, family, friends, personal finances and entertainment on a single device. And, as advertisers, these users are just the sort that you want to target through your mobile advertising campaigns. Let’s take a look at the most common applications used by mobile business users.
Like previous users of traditional PDA’s, the 4G wireless user likely has his work/home email sending alerts to his mobile phone. An notification alert may be delivered via a text or short message indicating when new email has arrived. In addition, via web browsing, users may access their inbox on any web based email account, such as yahoo, hotmail and G mail. Finally, many carriers support email directly to the mobile device using the mobile number as the email address. These “email messages” are actually converted to text messages via the carrier.
The business user checks his primary email multiple times daily, and may even have an alert sound when new email arrives. This feature allows users to respond to emails quickly, as they arrive, without waiting until they are back in the office to “catch up”. These users typically spend a significant amount of time out of their office and using their mobile device as a “mobile office” helps them avoid backlog and makes them more productive.
This same business user looks to the internet as their primary source of research and information – whether at home or on the go. They view web pages to gain information, including researching their clie nts and their competition. They may also use their mobile device to gain access to web based email, as mentioned above.
Finally, these users enjoy having the internet at their fingertips for personal reasons, too. They’re likely to use their mobile web to find out information such as movie times at their local theater, and to make dinner reservations through websites like Open Table or via the restaurant’s direct website.
When economic times are tough, businesses look to cut costs. One of the areas that always takes a hit is travel. There’s no doubt that video conferencing is an important business tool for keeping meetings personal when budget cuts won’t always allow you to travel to a meeting. Video over your wireless device not only means you don’t have to travel out of town, but you don’t even have to travel to your local office to make a video conference. Tools like these allow executives to be available for important meetings even on vacation. Though not widely available today, many developers are working on these applications today, and they are coming to our mobile phones very soon.
While business users typically do not use text messaging as much as teenage users, they are likely to use this feature for short questions and answers ( Q&A ) and status updates. While they may not initiate many text messages, they are likely to respond to messages they receive.
There are thousand of applications available for 4G technology phones, from 3D games to weather information customized to your local area to networking applications. Business users will typically use applications that help their business, increase their productivity or pertain to their particular personal interests. Their use of applications may not be as heavy as the casual user, but they will have a few applications that are important to them.
Voice
Let’s not forget just how much we use our cell phones for their original purpose. In today’s world, waiting until we reach our destination so that we can use a landline phone is unthinkable. And, many people have even foregone the traditional home landline phone because they seem inefficient for the way we live. While programs like email are a slightly less intrusive way of getting in touch now, the ability to talk to someone in person immediately cannot be diminished. Voice usage is and will continue to be an indispensable communication method for the business user.
It’s important to realize just how much mobile devices, particularly smart phones and their counterparts have changed the way we do business. Today’s business has more options and can be more productive and more flexible at the same time. Meshing business life and personal life is easier than ever, because the world office is your palm of your hands
Gone are the days when the executive reports to the corner office everyday with his secretary planning his every move. Today’s executive reads and writes his own email, makes changes to his calendar while watching his son play soccer and works from home in his pajamas once a week. Today’s executive is selling a multi-million dollar contract in a customer’s office while ordering a cake for her daughter’s birthday party over the web during meeting breaks. Business and personal life is mobile, and today’s mobile devices are more critical than ever
USE THE HOTTEST APPLICATION TO YOUR ADVERTISING ADVANTAGE
Now that we’ve established that there is a very large group of consumers using 4G wireless devices on a daily basis, it’s time to talk about how you, as a business owner and advertiser can get to these consumers through their ever present wireless devices.
Mobile phone advertising may be one of the most important advertising vehicles in the coming years. Wireless usage and applications are only expected to grow and smart business owners will take advantage of this trend. There are a number of ways you can get your message out to mobile users today; and you can be sure that each year will bring a variety of new applications and marketing possibilities.
IBM conducted a survey with mobile phone users asking if they would be willing to receive ads on their mobile phones in order to receive free digital content. Most responders indicated that they would be interested in such an option. In addition, responders said that they would be willing to share their personal information with mobile advertisers in order to receive incentives, such as discounts, coupons and air or hotel rewards points.
Advertising to the mobile device user scan be quite simple, and most businesses can begin quickly, using tools you already have. You may be able to make some simple adjustments to immediately give you more visibility. Then, over time, you can apply new techniques and use new applications to increase your visibility even further. First, we’re going to talk about your most obvious advertising vehicle.
