Going Mobile: New Platforms to Promote Your Institution

Getting Mobile: New Platforms to Promote Your Institution ©Robert E. Johnson, Ph.D. 2011 Australian International Education Conference October 11-14, 2011 Adelaide, Australia Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Part I: Overview for 2011… and onward Strategy imperative… Remember the land-line telephone? Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Key Strategy Challenge:
Why should I put scarce resources into mobile marketing?
Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Helping or hurting your brand reputation…
Website experience shapes brand perception…

Growing expectation…
A “mobile friendly” web presence

25% smartphones world wide… http://bit.ly/grclDr Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Smartphone by country… 2011 http://bit.ly/oVj16y
Highest penetration per population density
Singapore... 62 percent
Australia… 37 percent
Japan, U.K., U.S. are all lower
80% of Australian businesses do not have mobile websites
Many believe having a mobile app = having a mobile strategy

Use of mobile for social media… http://bit.ly/grclDr Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Asia Pacific is “most exciting”… http://bit.ly/iUracN Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Major reason people go to any website…
Complete a task

Gerry McGovern:
“ You don’t have a mobile strategy, you have a top task strategy.”

Content strategy question:
How will 30+ home page links become 8 to 10 mobile links?

Top tasks for recruitment might be…
Find academic course list
Check enrollment profile
Get cost information
Inquire about enrollment
Apply online
Check application status
Get to campus

Mobile App or Mobile Website?
Mobile App
Different apps for different devices
How will people find your app?
Not easy to update
Higher performance possible/Easier use
Mobile Website
Access from any mobile device
Can find using “search”
Easy to update
Will perform as well as you build it

If you’re thinking about an app… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Prediction for 2015… http://bit.ly/mPtumX
Financial Times already has left App Store and created a HTML 5 mobile site.
App Store will follow AOL and “By 2015 we’ll all feel silly talking about apps.”
Counterpoint: “I think it’s a bit of a stretch to assume that it is going to go away that quickly.”

Part II: Basic Usability Issues
Slow, steady improvement but not yet equal to large screen mobile experience

Main mobile challenges… Jakob Nielsen at http://bit.ly/iqAv8
4 major problems
Small screens
Awkward input
Slow downloads
Poor design for mobile
Impact on task completion in 2010
80% success on regular websites from a PC
59% success from a mobile phone

Meet challenges and success grows…
Task success was higher at sites designed for mobile access…
64% task completion at “sites for mobile”
53% task completion at regular websites
Larger screen = more success
Regular cell phones… 38% success
Regular smartphones… 55% success
Touch screen phones… 75% success ◄

Mobile usability update… 26 Sept 2011 Jakob Nielsen Alertbox… http://bit.ly/aq2goa
“ Our new research shows that mobile sites and apps have been improving their usability , even though it's still far below that of regular websites accessed from a desktop computer .”

“ The current success rate for mobile Web use (62%) is about what we measured for desktop Web use in 1999 . The current desktop success rate is 84% ; unless mobile usability starts improving more rapidly, we'll have to wait until 2026 to reach that level.”

“ This leads to the first, and maybe most important, guideline for improving the mobile user experience: design a separate mobile site . Don't expect users to access the same site from both desktop and mobile browsers.”

“ A second key guideline… clear, explicit links from the full site to the mobile site and from the mobile site to the full site.”

“ As long as users don't need to navigate, they might actually be okay when they're dumped into a site that works poorly on their phone...
“ But if users want to know more than what that one page offers, they'll suffer if they're stuck on the full site. That's when the link to the mobile site will come in handy.”

How fast does your site load? http://bit.ly/bFHRP1 ... for Top 30 sites
Where do you fit among these examples?
Sears……. 3.59 seconds
Dell……. 5.23 seconds
Walgreen’s…… 6.29 seconds
Wal-Mart…… 6.32 seconds
Amazon.com…… 6.79 seconds
Barnes & Noble… 7.01 seconds
CVS….. 7.59 seconds
Lowe’s….. 7.66 seconds

Part III: Designing for mobile… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Basic design rule for mobile…
Keep things simple…

First impression… this? Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

First impression… or this? Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

The Golden Rule remains…
5 to 8 seconds to connect when a page opens

The holy grail… one website
One website for every access point

Dilemma at the start…
What do we do with content on “traditional” websites?

We have to solve the dilemma…
“ Short is too long. Ultra-short rules the day” in mobile content.
Jakob Nielsen
Alertbox: August 1, 2011 http:// bit.ly/pftKhp
How much of your content is “dead” & “useless” junk that impedes navigation & search results?
Gerry McGovern

Long necks and long tails…
“ Much of the long tail is a dead zone… full of dead and useless content.”
Gerry McGovern
Long tail content gets found in search and included in links
“ Mobile” can’t afford this

Can you answer this?
How will you reduce links on your home page to 8 to 10 for a mobile site?

How will you change this page… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

To this home page? Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Navigation by icons or… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Navigation by words… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Or give people a choice? Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

After the home page… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

3 approaches to a mobile site… http://bit.ly/nMPJSk
Tweak your present website
Automatic basic adjustments through a CMS
Adaptive layout
Changes your images and layout on your “traditional” site to fit a mobile screen
Works best if designed from the start to adapt
Dedicated mobile website…
Most expensive solution
Best experience for visitors

Beware the iPhone tech trap…
iPhone can display your traditional web pages
But in a size that nobody can read without finger flicking
Goal: no finger flicking

Keep graphics small & relevant…
No room (or need) on mobile pages for graphics not directly related to the content
Make sure key content areas are immediately visible

Long links = easier navigation…
3 to 5 word links are easier to touch
Avoid one word links
And especially a series of one word links one after another
On lists, leave enough space between words

The NY Times goal for mobile…
“ The Internet should work like it does on PC screens.”

Can we meet this challenge?
“ As you go to site XYZ it will automatically create a single-column, mobile-friendly view that has navigation scaled to produce videos or slideshows so users won’t have to pinch or scan or scroll or download an app for everything.”
Robert Z. Samuels, director of mobile product development, New York Times

The NY Times on mobile… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Accessibility issues…
Mobile web best practices from W3C
Mobile web guidelines at
http://www.w3.org/TR/mobile-bp/
SlideShare review at http://slidesha.re/aec8DY

Part IV: Mobile Marketing in Higher Education Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

1. Direct marketing focus…
One goal: get an inquiry

The first image… while it loads Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

If you are a student like this… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Very simple enrollment inquiry… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Immediate email response… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Email links to admissions page… http://www.kettering.edu/futurestudents/ Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

2. Task oriented home page…
Focus on internal & external users is a special challenge…

A task-oriented home page… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

No “finger flicking” here… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Easy to scan academic majors… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Clean, simple program page… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

3. Successful search outcomes Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Easy to enter search word… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Well presented content… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Another success example… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

A caveat on program presentation… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

3. Text messaging option
Find high interest inquiries early in the recruitment cycle……

High interest students: 2010…
% of inquiries opting for text updates…
3.9% (1,416 of 35,606)
% of applicants opting for text updates…
30.6% (1,140 of 3,720)
% of deposits opting for text updates…
46.5% (269 of 578)

High interest students: 2011…
% of inquiries opting for text updates…
4.8% (1,923 of 40,246)
% of applicants opting for text updates…
13.5% (593 of 4,387)
% of deposits opting for text updates…
55.6% (385 of 692)

Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC Percent who deposited Overall inquiries Inquiries who opted-in for text updates Yield: Inquiry to Deposit, 2010

Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC Percent who deposited Overall inquiries Inquiries who opted-in for text updates Yield: Inquiry to Deposit, 2011

Ongoing contact to increase conversion… Text messaging each month as the recruitment cycle unfolds… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Build internal opt-in database… http://www.stmarytx.edu/admission/?go=mobileupdates Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Not yet applied for admission…
“ Be early, catch the worm. Submit ur admission application by Jan 15 for priority consideration. Get info at www.stmarytx.edu/admission.”

Join our online community…
“ Cre8 a profile on the St Marys online community at www.BeARattler.com by Feb 1 to be entered to get ur $200 enrollment deposit waived!”

Register for Orientation…
“ Bob, R u ready 4 Orientation? Sign-up is now open. Go to https://gateway.stmarytx.edu. We R lookin 4ward to seeing u on campus!”

4. QR Codes
Using in print advertising, view books, printed recruitment pieces, college fair exhibits

Get started here… http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QR_code Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

QR codes in Australia… http://bit.ly/bztkDm
“ Stupid Question” in 2010…
“ Does anyone in Australia actually use QR codes?”
Answer in 2010…
“ Australians do use QR codes, but they aren’t a mainstream marketing tool yet. Time will tell whether they’re a fad or a genuinely useful addition to interactive media.”

QR code use in the U.S.… http://bit.ly/lpcggL
In February, 2011…
Get coupons…………… 53%
Access more information… 52%
Sign up for more info……. 26%
Access video….. 24%
Access social media site… 23%

Good advice in 2011… http://bit.ly/q2QWrW
Test the code with different readers
Be careful w/ text or it might break the code
Link to mobile pages
Don’t use where people can’t connect
Offer value at the destination

If you use QR codes…
Essential to create a mobile friendly landing page for quick scan…
2 Sky magazine May 2011 examples

Not-so-good landing page… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Mobile friendly landing page… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Experiment at “QR Stuff”… http://www.qrstuff.com/ Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

5. Online Mobile Application
University of the Pacific received 10% of undergraduate applications in 2010 from mobile phones

Online application can work… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Including international students… Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Part IV: Future Mobile Marketing Challenges
Legal
Technical
Management

Continuing provider challenges…
Multiple providers build “walled gardens”…
Apple
Google
Blackberry
Nokia
Multiple standards for ads, apps, displays
More cost to implement mobile program

Legal challenges in U.S.…
Must have consent for SMS messages
Even if someone has already signed for email
Visible “small print” cost disclosures
Verizon agreed to 12 pt. font settlement
Likely: easy to find, understand “stop sending” option

Technical challenges…
Usability…
Visitor experience will determine success
NY Times is right… “easy as access from a PC” is the goal
We are not there yet
But we are moving in that direction
Nielsen smartphone research is encouraging

Management challenges…
Content…
Content is added to websites, seldom removed
Most web content is irrelevant to most people
Silly to make all “traditional” website content “mobile friendly”… no resources for that
But what content to leave behind?
Will that question hinder mobile websites?

Video challenges…
An important element, but…
Data plane expense might limit use past “early adopters”
Video done for regular websites may not play well on smartphones
Video users will demand rapid play

Part IV: Sources of Information to Follow Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Mobile Marketing Association… http://mmaglobal.com/policies Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

mobiThinking for international… http://mobithinking.com/ Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Mobile Marketer… http://www.mobilemarketer.com/ Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

210 Design Guidelines… http://www.nngroup.com/reports/mobile/ Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Bob Johnson’s marketing blog… http://www.bobjohnsonblog.com/mobile-marketing/ Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Mobile in Higher Ed blog… http://www.dmolsen.com/mobile-in-higher-ed/ Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

MIT Open Source code for mobile… http://sourceforge.net/projects/mitmobileweb/ Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

U.S. government guide to top tasks… http://1.usa.gov/4kgbK8 Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Thank You! Bob Johnson, Ph.D. President Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC Marshall, MI 49068 248.766.6425 [email_address] Customer Carewords Website Research www.bobjohnsonconsulting.com Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC

Going Mobile: New Platforms to Promote Your Institution

by Bob Johnson on Oct 06, 2011

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Going Mobile: New Platforms to Promote Your Institution — Presentation Transcript