Mobile marketing is a massive opportunity for marketing property. Smartphones and tablets often have high-resolution displays that simply show photography and video in the best possible light. The devices go beyond the office and content aimed at this format has the potential to reach the audience 24 hours a day. But does this mean desktop should be ditched entirely? This blog investigates just that.
We all know that mobile is king. People access the internet through their mobile far more than they do desktop. In fact, mobile accounts for 51% of digital media usage (versus 42% for desktop), and a massive 80% of Twitter and Facebook traffic is through a mobile device. Desktop, on the other hand, is lagging behind and seen more of a work device than something people actually choose to use.
But while a focus on mobile is absolutely essential. For marketers, especially property marketers, it is worth considering the benefits of targeting people who are using a desktop. To explain why we need to look at how and why people use desktop computing. Just take a look at the chart below to see the differences.
Perhaps the focus on the headline stat, that people are using mobile more than desktop, is misleading. The chart highlights that it really depends on the activity people are performing as to which device they use. In the case of shopping (retail), entertainment news, business / finance, news, health information and portals – desktop is actually used more often than mobile.
Why is this so? There may be a few reasons. Firstly, portals are the lowest on the list as it gains the most desktop use – the likely reason is due to the low user experience (UX) delivered on mobile devices for portals and intranets. But it isn’t always just about UX. Health information, news and business / finance are rather serious topics, that will often include long reads. And how about time of day? Surely we use the desktop more for work? The below chart certainly suggests this is true.
Of course, the above chart is based on data from 2011, so this may have changed. However, it does certainly make sense that the desktop sees more use between work hours because it is still the dominant screen within an office. For intensive work on apps such as those included in the Microsoft Office suite or Adobe Creative Cloud, a desktop simply gets things done better.
So what can we learn from this? Well, mobile is huge. Your website and online presence should most certainly be mobile friendly, if not mobile first. But take into account the type of content and reader you’re aiming for. As a property marketer, you’re likely aiming for an audience who will be interested during work hours, and who may be looking for depth of content. The research shows that desktop, in this case, is hugely important. It is your social, blog and video content, on the other hand, that should be entirely mobile orientated.
Still confused? I don’t blame you. It takes much more than a 500-word blog to develop a mobile marketing strategy. So why not get in touch and have a deeper conversation around what is best for you and your needs? Contact us here.