Archive for July, 2011
Farnborough, UK, 25 July 2011. bemoko (http://bemoko.com), the leading mobile web experts, have helped Macmillan Cancer Support (http://m.macmillan.org.uk) develop their new mobile web presence; enabling their visitors to access vital cancer support and information via their mobile devices.
Like all brands and enterprises Macmillan found a fast growing shift towards content being accessed via mobile devices, but unlike many brands, Macmillan’s customers do not fit neatly into a demographic, so it was vital all mobiles were able to access the site. An additional challenge is the sheer size of the content that needed to be delivered and the diversity of sources where the content needed to be drawn.
Andy Nash, Digital Project Manager (Mobile Channel) of Macmillan Cancer Support comments, “We were aware that we needed a mobile presence but we also knew we needed help to determine what shape that presence should take and which devices we would need to target. We knew it was going to be a challenge, so we decided to put out a tender so that we could compare the capabilities of different suppliers. bemoko was chosen as the ideal solution partner to meet our needs, because of their experience in the market, the mobile learning they were willing to pass on to us and their delivery platform – bemokoLIve.”
Partnered with bemoko, Macmillan was able to develop a long-term strategy for their mobile site that would work seamlessly with their web site. Content for their mobile site can now be managed via their existing CMS in a way that allows them to share content between mobile pages and their desktop equivalent pages, as well as the ability to create completely separate content for each.
“We were thrilled to be awarded the contract to deliver the Macmillan Cancer Support mobile website – this is the perfect case study to really demonstrate the advanced delivery tools in our platform” commented Phillip Clement, Sales and Marketing Director at bemoko.
Andy Nash adds “Not only were bemoko able to deliver a live prototype in 6 weeks, and a comprehensive solution thereafter, they have also delivered a platform that will enable us to grow our mobile services way into the future. We have the potential to pull content from other sources, provide clear practical support information and geo-location features to enable users to search for local Macmillan services, and an option to allow people to freely donate to our charity.”
bemoko, the leading multichannel web framework experts, welcome Google’s recent announcement of their Mobilize tool for small businesses.
The introduction of Google’s Mobilize service, bringing mobile web to small businesses, is fantastic news – delivering better mobile web experiences for mobile users.
The ability of small companies, boutique shops, pubs, restaurants and online businesses to quickly and cheaply deliver a simple mobile site from a range of templates will spur on the larger brands to ‘become fully mobile’. While the Google product will not support the complex and transactional sites that large companies will want to deliver, for small businesses it’s a perfect first step on the ladder.
Smartphones and ‘eat as much as you can’ data bundles have whetted the appetite of consumers to surf the web on their mobile handsets, however, in reality, the experiences that consumers receive is far from a good one. bemoko have been working with top brands and enterprises since 2007, bringing mobile web apps and complex multichannel mobile experiences to their customers.
Amazingly, many big brands are still sitting on the fence when it comes to mobile or have perhaps dipped their toe in the water with an iPhone app, which have been a phenomenal success albeit only giving mobile experiences to those consumers with an iPhone.
With only 17% of businesses possessing mobile ready sites and ownership of smartphones up 38% year on year in the UK, bemoko’s Sales and Marketing Director Phillip Clement comments, “Clients need to realise that the web experience must be seamless for users, no matter what channel. bemoko has been helping global agencies and brands to build complex mobile websites that connect into external content and internal systems, delivering seamless customer experiences as they move from channel to channel. The Mobilize tool is a perfect opportunity for smaller businesses and clubs to gain a basic mobile presence. ”
bemoko’s suite of services delivers feature rich, fully cross platform web apps and transactional sites in the fastest time possible time, and because they are managed in one place they are simple and efficient to maintain.
I have been in mobile for years. It’s in my DNA. I was there when Vodafone connected its 20,000th customer. And we thought this was big. It’s hard to believe now when you realise that there are billions of mobile devices connected across the globe!
I can safely say that mobile is MY business, I love it and it is important to me that I keep up to date with the trends, and advancements, technology, and adoption. Not only are these metrics of interest to me, they are core to my business success.
So it is odd to me to suddenly see big articles in ‘marketing’ and ‘retail’ press about mobile handset penetration. I mean, while I might take notice of a retail brand doing well on the high street, I am not at all interested in getting down and dirty with their specific numbers, and if I did, it would have no effect on helping me run my business! So why is anyone other than in the mobile industry interested in getting the full low-down on iOS, Google Android, RIM and Symbian and how they are doing, country by country? What relevance does it have to a Fashion Retailer for example or a marketing agency?
I guess it must be because it’s important to them. Important to know where to put all their web ‘eggs’ i.e. what platform to host an App on in order to get best penetration, or which device to target their mobile website at.
What a nightmare! These figures are changing almost by the minute. Last month iOS was top of the pile. Now all of a sudden it’s Android, who knows who will be at the top in a few months? Windows perhaps? Or will Apple release some new phone on a ridiculous tariff with one of the operators in order to gain back some market share? Whatever the landscape will be, one thing is for certain; none of us have any control over it – so in my view it’s futile trying to predict or manage campaigns based on mobile penetration. No one would run a campaign or write a website based on which PC manufacturer is number one. Or run a TV ad campaign aimed at LG TVs because they are the top selling brand. Why? Because it doesn’t matter!
So how cool would it be then, if mobile handset or operating system figures were of no relevance? What if they could just do ‘mobile’ – all devices, tablets, smartphones…everything! Then it really wouldn’t make a blind bit of difference which mobile OS or handset model had biggest penetration!
Well they can. The problem is, they are so focused on someone else’s business, that they are not looking at the bigger picture. And that’s getting the right technology in place that will make them agnostic to all the variances across the mobile landscape.
So I would urge, if you find yourself poring over mobile figures (and mobile is not your core business) then stop. You are wasting your time! It will be far better spent implementing a single cross platform web and app development tool that handles all devices for you.
Then you can get back to the things that really matter to your business.
I am the Alpha Male! For my whole life I have got up at 6am, gone out into the big wide world and toiled hard to bring home a living for my family! At weekends I cut the grass with large machinery and use an array of complicated power tools to do DIY around the house. When I am done from all this masculine activity I sit in my chair, drink beer and watch sport i.e. other manly men exerting energy and generally being aggressive with each other. Yes…I wear the trousers in my house …the ones that my wife has chosen for me that is!
And this got me thinking, how much control Senior Executives actually have over their businesses? Especially when it comes to IT! For at least 5 years, things in the IT world have been pretty benign, technology has not really altered much, sure desktops, and some software has improved and there has been the usual software upgrades from the usual suspects and decisions surrounding these issues has been either operational or financial so no great shakes or big decisions to be made.
So it’s been a long time since we have seen business impact decisions that need to be made, decisions that affect every part of an organisation right through to the foundations of its business model, including the delivery of its products or services to its customers. I am of course talking about mobile!
Currently like other “big” decisions, like “going green” we are in the information gathering stage – what is it? How will it affect us? What is the competition doing? And so on, the big difference with mobile is that it’s moving so fast many companies are already so far behind the curve, their business models so out-dated and cash so depleted they will not survive. Their fastest remedy is to follow those that are embracing online shopping, mobile commerce and engaging directly with customers on a one-to-one basis. But this strategy is also fraught with danger mainly, how to tell the difference between those with the “right” methodology and technology.
In this new landscape of mobile marketing and mobile commerce, we are seeing the “wash” marketers jumping on the wagon in order to try and gain some competitive advantage. The trouble with ‘wash’ is that eventually people find out! Like ‘green wash’, ‘mobile wash’ is rife! Mobile apps, and poorly delivered mobile websites that deliver poor customer experiences, simply to get column inches, are fast losing pace and with it, customer interest! Many of the so called early adopters or industry leaders are just papering over the cracks, those that know it will be fine, and those however that believe that their “app” constitutes a mobile strategy are almost in the same boat as the enterprises that have done nothing at all.
But who’s making the decisions? The Senior Teams must be sitting in their glass and steel offices pouring over endless figures, trying to figure out how to move into the new digital and mobile economy. So naturally they are looking to their current web providers and internal teams expecting them to have the answers – unfortunately these teams have no reference points, no mobile experience and certainly few have the technical expertise to be able to make valued and informed decisions. And so will fumble their way into mobile.
Those businesses that understand that their existing IT teams have not been exposed to mobile are busy recruiting from the mobile industry, and using vendors that have mobile pedigrees. They understand that they need to look to technical and commercial experts who have grown up with mobile over a period of ten or more years, have been close to the action, understand the opportunities and challenges ahead and have a far better chance of getting it right.
So who is the boss? If the senior team has reviewed the skills and expertise of their technical teams and vendors and secured the services of mobile experts then they are certainly in control. If however companies’ Boards are simply relying on the advice of technical teams that have no specific mobile knowledge then they are not in control of some of the most important decisions their businesses will ever have to make.
In my house, while I am happy to let my wife choose my trousers, I can genuinely say that she is the best person to do it!
If you’d like our expert opinion on your mobile web strategy and the technology available to you… we’re here to assist!