How much longer can your company afford to believe that mobile is a thing of the future, and not immediately affecting your bottom line? Today’s user is different than those of years prior, and Google recognizes that the mobile user is much more aggressive.
Most notably, Google has added Mobile Tags to search results coming from a mobile device. You may or may not have seen these just yet, as they have not been implemented on all browsers, however they should be universal by year’s end. These icons next to search results act as a badge of usability for a mobile user looking for relevant, mobile optimized results. Fresh off his speaking stint with Google’s “Adsense in Your City” tour, mobile monetization expert, and Life in Mobile CEO John Lim explains the implications of Google’s new mobile tags.
“Marking a search result with a mobile tag lets a mobile user know that when they click through the can continue to have the quality experience started in that initial search. Nothing is more frustrating to a user than reaching a non-mobilized result after coming from a mobilized site. These new Mobile Tags are intended to prevent a Google user from wasting precious time guessing which site will work correctly at the same time it will reward those who have gone mobile”
Since the iPhone’s debut on June 29, 2007, Google has given markets ample time to mobilize their brand, and all the links that consumers can access your company from on the go. With the release of Mobile Search Tags on the iPhone 4s and iPhone5 that will be unveiled today, Google has essentially stated that they have waited long enough for your company to go mobile. In the early growth of the smartphone, Google, and other manufacturers have tried to compensate for those brands that were late to mobilizing. Apple’s mobile web “Reader” was the most direct way to make content mobile-friendly, as it bypassed any offers on sites and simply displayed readable text. Now, Mobile tags (literally) mark an end to these companies covering for non-mobilized sites.
The user data collected my mobile researchers suggests and undeniable move to mobile web – however this transition extends to Google, manufacturers, and mobile carriers who are investing in the future of mobile. Mobile web has been established as the backbone of a mobile presence, and Mobile Tags in searches may just be the beginning. Lim explains that, “You may have had excellent SEO in the past and reached the top of Google desktop, however, the game has changed and if you are not properly mobilizing results you are losing huge monetization opportunities.”
Finally, Lim weighed in on the topic of monetizing mobile, as it has become a hot-button issue in the months following Facebook’s IPO. “We can offer real, tangible solutions to monetize mobile, especially with these new mobile-first search initiatives like our Dynamic Intelligent Profiling™ (DIP) technology, which provides companies with the ability to deliver highly targeted content and offers to their customers based on real-world conditions affecting the consumer, such as time and weather, as well as past user behavioral data.
Seth Kaplan is president of Mobile Real Estate ID. For more information, please visit www.mobilerealestateid.com.
