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Are Mobile Applications Taking The Place Of Mobi Sites?

By Sam Hallahan


Mobile has fast become a medium for a vast array of marketing tools. Banking, shopping, ticketing, the list seems never ending, and now with Smartphone's increasing in use, the use of mobile applications is making its way up as a mobile innovation. Mobile applications almost seem as important to mobile campaigns as mobisites these days, and whilst the use of both for a marketing campaign may seem appealing, it is highly impractical. So, are mobile applications taking the place of mobisites?

Although one might initially presume this question can be answered with statistical analysis, the answer is in fact far simpler to come by. By looking at various aspects vital to mobile marketing, we can better answer the question by not only suggesting where the current status quo lies, but also the likelihood of it changing. One of the major steps at the very heart of any successful mobile campaign is clearly determining a target demographic. Specifying a specific target audience is vital for the entire design aspect of a mobile marketing campaign and is heavily influenced by the receptiveness of mobile users and their devices. If marketers wish to embrace a sleek and fresh user experience for their audience, then they need look no further than mobile applications. Their platform specific design allows for smooth use and some mind blowing features.

However, because the applications are designed specifically for a single platform, i.e. iPhone, Blackberry, Android, marketers run the risk of excluding a large percentage of their target audiences. Designing the application for each of the major Smart-devices also poses inefficient cost effectiveness for a single campaign and so applications present a bit of a problem in terms of scope. On the other hand, mobisites can be accessed via any mobile device allowing marketers to design the site with their focus solely on engaging their audience and not on specific platform capabilities.

Mobisites avoid this discrimination by allowing companies to centre their mobile strategy around a mobisite that can be accessed on any device from iPad, to iPhone, Android, Blackberry and even the most basic of prepaid mobiles. The whole functionality of mobile marketing rests on accessibility and usability across platforms, which already tips favour heavily towards mobisites. Analysts suspect that as the use of the mobile web increases, so too will the emphases on functionality. This means that in only a few years mobile applications may become obsolete for successful mobile campaigns.

The answer then is simple; mobisites possess a much higher level of functionality and practicality for a mobile marketing campaign. So much so that analysts predict that as mobile increases focus on functionality, mobile applications will become increasingly obsolete. Mobisites offer the convenience and reach that both marketers and customers look for in their mobile use and so applications are in no way taking the place of mobisites.




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