Mobile Experience

People have experiences... devices have interfaces

Two review articles -- Wireless Business Forecast (Vol.3; Issue 3) and MediaPost.com -- illustrate the reality of the long-tail digital media market.  While there may be a diversity of tastes and opinions with respect to content appeal, there is one thing on which all reviewers agree -- the consumer experience must dramatically improve to catalyze the mobile digital media market. 

Most reviewers however, seem to think of the individual as a user of a device. While I agree that user interface elements are very important -- e.g. search ease and accuracy; content structure and packaging; the intuitiveness and appropriateness of the device-user interface -- these are merely the tip of the iceberg when one thinks from the perspective of the individual's holistic experience.  It's the experience for the person in the context of their on-the-run life that seldom gets reviewed. 

Experience is the key to opening the walled garden

Restrictions rarely lead to revenue, particularly in an early consumer choice-centric environment.  This same truth will likely apply to the walled gardens of the mobile operators. 

The Third Screen blog, "Are Ads the Key to the Walled Garden", proposes that ad-funded services may open walled gardens to others, thereby providing a better mobile experience to the consumer.  Enabling consumer choice is indeed the key for unlocking any proprietary mentality, particularly in a consumer-controlled world.  Advertiser funding and sponsorship will also probably stimulate uptake and growth for some period of time, for some group of individuals.  But will it unlock value?  What has yet to be proven is how to sustain continuous profitable relationships between consumers, advertisers and digital content service providers, particularly when the initial novelty of getting free content and services in exchange for viewing ads wears off. 

Remote Control or Retail Channel?

Not only is there more technology, but there are more solutions and more customer purchase and digital behavior data available at marketers' fingertips than ever before (DM News).  Now we are adding continuously available mobile devices to the mix.  With all of this technology and with the published statistic that up to 80% of our purchases potentially are done on impulse (Abrahams, Marketing, Mar 1997; Smith, National Petroleum News Supplement, Feb 1988), one would think that serving customers would be getting easier. 

Consumer Trust ... The Real ROI

As we embark on a brand new year, I am again struck by the number of emerging initiatives in the mobile content services arena. 

In 2006, on-the-run music access was pervasive and almost commonplace.  We received streaming or downloadable tunes from a variety of sources -- online music services direct to our MP3's, streaming Sirius and XM satellite radio through our wireless carriers, downloadable full-tracks and all of their various derivatives for our mobile phones through most mobile operator portals, MTV direct from MTVN, or streaming live concerts through a number of early-adopter wireless carriers. 

It's the Whole Experience

Part 4 of the Wireless Business Forecast 2007 Predictions, "The Lingering Challenges" reminded me of my early eBusiness days, reminding young e-commerce companies that the web interface is only  a piece of the whole customer experience.  We all have experienced this partial experience design.  For instance, why did it take so long for the e-tailing groups inside established physical retailers to understand that a customer who bought something from them on the website should be able to return the merchandise to the store? Or similarly, when we saw something interesting on our bank's website, why did the bank's customer service reps know nothing about it when we inquired on the telephone?