November 30, 2011

Why Advertise on a Mobile Device?

Google has released a series of statistics highlighting exactly how passionate they are about the influence of mobile devices on last minute shopping this year, stating 44 percent of total searches for last minute gifts and store locator terms will be from mobile devices.¹

Certainly an impressive statistic, when you consider the massive number of people who have a tendency to put off their shopping (including yours truly). However the story behind the numbers isn’t quite as shocking – you are running out of days to find a gift for the last few people on your list, so you may do one of the following:

• Search on your phone for some ideas over your lunch break
• Find the closest toy store on your way home from work
• Check prices online and see if you can purchase online and pick up in-store

Plus, keep in mind most mobile shoppers aren’t intentionally shopping on their mobile, but rather just naturally using a device that happens to be with them when the mood strikes. According to Google, the growth of mobile searches is dramatic at 400 percent in the last year.

Source: Google, 2011, “Its Going to be a Mobile Holiday”

Not only are overall mobile searches growing, but Google also notes that shopping-specific searches experience a traffic spike during the holiday season.

Source: Google, 2011, “Its Going to be a Mobile Holiday”

Thankfully, mobile advertising has also evolved to a point where brands and their locations can quickly take advantage of the surge in mobile shoppers. Here are some quick tips for making sure you’ll be there when consumers are searching:

• Mobile searches are heavy for branded- and location-based terms, so make sure your website and store locator functions work on a wide variety of mobile devices
• Make sure you’re on the top of search results for your products and services. Because of the small screen of a smartphone, the top listings are critical.  If you’re not above the fold, run a mobile-only pay-per-click search campaign.
• Searchers using a mobile device are often in a car or will be soon, so double check all of your Google Places accounts to make sure they are appearing properly, even in apps
• Use holiday-specific or time-sensitive offer keywords on your blog and in your paid search campaigns

Other key highlights from the Google study:

• 59 percent of smartphone users used their phones for holiday shopping in Q4 2010
• 41 percent of holiday smartphone shoppers made a purchase on their smartphone
• One in five of all shopping queries are now on mobile
• 40 percent of all mobile shopping queries occur in Q4

¹http://googlemobileads.blogspot.com/2011/09/holiday-retail-mobile-insights.html