Another quick reminder: We’ll be reporting live from SXSW Interactive next week. Be sure to follow Upshot on Twitter to keep up with the latest news!
Speaking of SXSW Interactive, we’re very intrigued to see how folks there will be adjusting to the reality of our After the App trend. Don’t get us wrong; we expect to hear about a ton of hot new smartphone apps, and expect to be bowled over by many. Still, we’ll no doubt see a number of companies examining other ways to activate their brands via the mobile web (perhaps through location based services?) as app clutter continues to grow.
For instance, Continental Airlines recently revealed that their basic mobile web ads delivered significantly more click throughs (and more importantly, sold 80% more airline tickets) than the company’s branded app. Considering that mobile web ads, to paraphrase Steve Jobs, still “suck,” that’s some pretty dire news for your average smartphone app. Moreover, the fact that many brands need to spend in the ballpark of $50,000 on mobile ads to promote their mobile apps turns the whole value equation on its head. If you need to work that hard for your app to be seen, how essential can it really be to the consumer?
Then again, this news comes as little surprise to anyone who’s been tracking our After the App trend. With the average iPhone owner using only 5-10 apps on a regular basis, we’d expect little usage of apps that have such limited applications. Sure, an exceptionally frequent flyer might benefit greatly from the Continental app, but the rest of us would only use this a handful of times per year (and that’s assuming you’re flying the same airline every time). So, while that app isn’t a waste of effort from the brand’s standpoint, it also can’t be expected to serve as the brand’s sole strategy for mobile marketing.
In fact, the Times article linked above has a very telling bit of information surrounding the 5-10 apps stat. When asked why they weren’t downloading more apps, a number of iPhone owners mentioned that they didn’t have time to use them. Well, there’s the first question your brand needs to be asking itself before rolling out a smartphone app: how do we make this worth our consumer’s time? Are you providing an enormous convenience? Gripping entertainment? Something the consumer really needs in the palm of their hand? If not, you simply aren’t going to break into that coveted 5-10, and it’s time to start thinking of other ways to break through in the mobile channel.
