With all the conversations about mobile web sites (both for smart phones and for iPads), I think it is pretty clear that we are at a tipping point regarding accepting the need for mobile sites right now. It reminds me of two other big hurdles the market has had to leap over since marketing online really caught on so many years ago.
Remember when... in the days before high-speed Internet how everyone resisted the use of graphics because of downloading time? Of course now, that sounds silly but in the early days of web marketing, a vast majority resisted sites with graphics on the perception that they took too long to download. The ones that grabbed the advantage were the early adopters who recognized that attractive presentation counted and graphics made your site more attractive.
Remember when... in the early days of high speed Internet, how everyone resisted Flash animations on their web sites because Flash required the Flash browser plug-in? Again, this sounds ridiculous now because of the wide use (more than 99%) of the plug in browsers today. The ones that grabbed an advantage were the early adopters who recognized that added aesthetics portrayed a higher value and the smooth moving animations of Flash portrayed a higher aesthetic quality.
In both cases, we saw the tradition bell curve of adoption play out. The early adopters blazed ahead, gaining new advantages while the resisters or uninformed majority slowly adopted the changes, ultimately all climbing on the bandwagon at once. And, of course there is the lagging behind group who never gets it. In fact, every once in a while, I stumble on someone still resisting graphics... yes, they are still out there.
Now we are on the adoption bell curve for mobile sites. The early group jumped in the minute that Google started displaying mobile use stats on analytics. Many of them have had mobile sites for more than a year. Even as long as two years ago, it was a documented fact that more than 50% of Internet use was via mobile devices. So, for those paying attention, adding a mobile-friendly site only made sense.
Now we are climbing up the big middle of the bell curve. What is it that is causing the land rush now? The stats have been compelling for years now... so what has changed? Is it that the doctors have had enough experience as mobile users to understand the benefits? Is that that people offering advice like I am are finally getting through? Is it market peer pressure? I think it is all of the above but there is no doubt... it is here.
So, suffice it to say that a mass adoption is occurring. Business owners are beginning to realize that it is important to have a site version for smart phones and iPads. This late-arriving crowd is beginning to understand that when 20-25% of site users are viewing the site with mobile devices, that the market is changing and they need to change with it. Just like taking that risk that graphics will download... or that users will have that Flash plug-in... it’s time to jump in the pool on mobile sites. The market is there already.... so it’s time. I just saw a report that our first client breached the 30% mobile use mark. A big group just rounded 20% and is headed for 25%. There is no telling where the ceiling is on this.
If you are interested in adding or upgrading a smart phone site or an iPad site, please contact me today at donald@dogstarmedia.com. For years now, Dog Star Media has offered low-cost starter mobile sites with affordable upgrades for when your mobile traffic increases.
