It's been over a decade since the world has been introduced to the smartphone, which has disrupted our lives on all fronts; from how businesses interact with customers, to how we spend our most intimate moments together.
In 2016, we started to talk about creating micro-moments, which was mostly driven by Facebook’s launch of stories and Instagram Stories. This year we will be focusing on how to engage your audience during these micro-moments to successfully create business opportunities.
Mobile statistics at a glance
- Internet usage is still dominated by millenials with over 90% spending time online daily.
- 75% of millennials use their smartphones to go online as often as their computers.
- Meanwhile, smartphone ownership is reaching its peak, and has peaked in the millennials sector with ownership at 95%, as reported by Deloitte Mobile Consumer Survey 2017.
- The current smartphone ownership by Australians is 88%, up 4% from the previous year, with the older generations being the key drivers to growth.
1. Rethinking the omni-channel experience
Australians are connecting to more devices per person at the same time. According to Consumer Barometer with Google, close to 50% of users are using 3 screens (computer, smartphone and tablet) with an average of 4 devices connected per person.
90% users are using multi-screens sequentially to complete a task, and 67% will start shopping from one device, usually mobile, and complete the purchase on another.
What does this mean?
We’ve seen how brands have integrated their in-store experience with the online experience. To take it to the next level, brands will have to ensure users get a seamless experience when they move from one device to another. Not only is making your website mobile-friendly a must, brands must also be aware of the gaps between devices and leverage social media to optimise marketing across all devices.
2. Delivering personalised content
Users expect you to know what they want and to meet their needs on demand. In 2015, Think with Google announced that location searches e.g. “nearby or near me” grew 2x but fast forward a few years, those search terms have dropped. This is not because location searches are irrelevant, but on the contrary, thanks to smartphones, results are now automatically location relevant.
What does this mean?
Be proactive in understanding your users and personalise a customer’s experience by leveraging social context data, beacon technology and proximity data to help understand how, when, and where they are engaging with your brand.
3. Video content is a leading source of information
60% of Australians watch internet videos daily and 36% of those are on smartphones according to Consumer Barometer with Google. Overall, 23% of internet users watch online videos to learn something new and of those, 53% are how-to videos.
What does this mean?
Invest in creating videos that are informative and educational. Audiences are becoming more savvy and they want to know the ins-and-outs of products before making a purchase decision. Videos are effective in being persuasive and showing authenticity which can create a loyal following for your brand.
4. Conversing with your customers
While influencer marketing is still the fastest channel for customer acquisition, it is becoming more and more important for brands to also participate in conversations with their audience. Over 50% of users surveyed for Sensis’ Social Media Report 2017 expressed they were more likely to trust brands if they interact positively with customers on social media.
What does this mean?
Brands should facilitate or join social community conversations to encourage user-generated content around their brands, which can be effective in creating brand awareness and loyalty. Adopt an authentic tone of voice instead of sounding like a robot or reading from a script.
5. Delivering 24/7 customer service
This year we saw Google Duplex - its AI smart assistant is capable of making a real phone call that can actually understand the nuances of a conversation. While this technology might not be fully available for awhile, we can still leverage artificial intelligence to deliver customer service. Business Insider reports Chatbots can potentially save up to USD$23 billion for businesses.
What does this mean?
Chatbots can deliver round-the-clock customer services where and when users need. Especially in this day and age when speed is everything, chatbots can solve user’s problems as it arises without human temperaments, deliver user-specific content and get smarter the more they talk to users. Take ABC News’ Messenger bot for instance, which is delivering news relevant to readers, when they want to read it.
6. Driving marketing with technology
Last year Google released its smart home assistant to Australia with Amazon’s Alexa and Apple’s Homepod closely following in early 2018. While it is too early to say what is going to be the full impact of these smart home assistants, it’s forecasted that by 2022, most households will be run by these smart home speakers. In the more developed American market, Fluent’s Devices and Demographics Survey reports close to 30% have made a purchase through their smart home device and shopping is the 5th most performed task by these devices.
What does this mean?
It’s not too early to start thinking about voice marketing and how to leverage the emergence of smart home devices to boost your brand. Many international brands like Johnny Walker and Uber have already launched collaborations with smart home devices. Our advice is to get in the game and get creative for an early slice of the pie.
About the Authors
Yump is an award-winning team of strategists, designers and engineers who are passionate about creating user-centred digital experiences. We've been tracking Australian mobile statistics every year, with a biennial report on mobile trends in Australia. Sign up below to get our quarterly trends in your inbox!
