BII MOBILE INSIGHTS: A Guide To Mobile Web Design Best Practices

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Mobile Web Design Best Practices (Mobify via TechVibes)
From smartphones to desktop computers, people are using more devices more often to access the web. The shift to mobile web browsing has happened rapidly, and comScore predicts that mobile web users will surpass fixed web users by 2014. Mobify, an open mobile platform, has been been wrestling with how to best design adaptive sites for the mobile web since 2007 and they're quite good at it. They have built the platform that powers some of the world’s most popular adaptive websites: Starbucks, Bosch, Beyond the Rack, Threadless, among others. They've compiled their experiences into a new eBook which you can download here, entitled 50 Ways To Please Your Customers: A Guide To Mobile Web Design Best Practices. In parallel with the eBook, the Vancouver startup rolled out a dedicated site called Now Make It Mobile which serves up the tips one at a time.

ComScore Trying To Rank Web, Mobile And App Eyeballs For First Time (All Things Digital)
Web publishers are going to start getting credit for mobile eyeballs, via a new scoring system from comScore. How much that credit is worth is an open and important question because right now most of them have to offer advertisers a very steep discount on mobile eyeballs; as much as 80% off of desktop rates. Addressing that problem will take some time, but at the very least this is an important first step. And for some sites and services that exist predominantly on mobile sites, the new ratings are going to be a big help to justify their pitch. It’s also a nice reality check for the many app start-ups that are happy to tell you how many downloads they have, but don’t want to talk about how many people use them. On to the new rankings, which comScore is calling its Multi Platform listings. They attempt to track visitors to web sites, mobile sites and mobile apps, and then combine those tallies without duplicating visits, for a true sense of a publisher’s monthly traffic.

Microsoft Faces ‘Year of Reckoning’ In Mobile Software (IDC via The New York Times)
In its top 10 predictions for 2013, IDC declares that next year will be high noon for Microsoft‘s mobile software. It makes that prediction based on data and a point of view. A crucial constituency, IDC says, is developer support for a company’s technology. "Mobile platforms that fail to crack the 50 percent barrier of developers who are 'very interested' in developing apps for them," the IDC report states, "will be on a gradual track to demise." So IDC declares next year will be "a year of reckoning in mobile software." So what platforms die? Microsoft has its work cut out for it. Frank Gens, IDC’s chief analyst, noted that with Microsoft’s new Surface tablet, the company had an impressive piece of hardware to show off its tablet software. And its partnership with Nokia means Microsoft has a committed ally in the smartphone market. "Now the pieces are together," Mr. Gens said. "But will the developers come?" They'd better hope so.

Mobile-Friendly Websites: Why And How For Your Small Business (435 Digital)
More and more, people are out and about, and they pull out their web-enabled phones and search. One in three mobile searches have local intent, and 59% of consumers visit a local store after searching for it on the mobile web. When those consumers are searching, do they find you? Are you there to be found? When someone searches for your business or type of business, it is critical to have a mobile-friendly website that makes your information easy to access and your phone an easy touch to call. Creating a mobile-friendly site can seem overwhelming, of course. You have a business you know and love, and it needs your attention. So how can you go about getting an effective web presence while maintaining focus on the core of what you do? Here are five steps to help drive more customers to your business:

Identify the goal
Create a solution
Design and write
Develop the site
Launch your site

Always remember your customers. They want to find you and to quickly understand what you offer. You can already provide excellent customer service just by having a mobile-friendly website that is there for people at the moment they need it.

A Simple Guide To Mobile App Marketing (Marketing Land)
Is it even possible to get your app noticed any more? The mobile app industry is booming, and since the one-million-app mark was reached in late 2011, the competition to get your app noticed in the marketplace is fierce. However, there is space for your app, and, if marketed correctly, your app can and will succeed. Marketing planning should start at the very beginning of app development, well before it is launched. There are a number of factors that you must consider in the early stages of your app development, including:

Branding
Keywords
Competition

Once you have launched your app, the second stage of mobile app marketing takes over; connect to an apps store analytic program to enable you to view the progress of your app.

How Content Is Being Consumed On Mobile Devices (BI Intelligence)
The growth of smartphones and tablets has boosted content consumption dramatically. Importantly, mobile media consumption appears to be an additive activity. Consumers access more media than they otherwise would. Here's a breakdown of how mobile is impacting content consumption:

Tablets have fueled the continued rise of eBooks
One of the primary attractions of smartphones is their dual capacity as MP3 players
News consumption is growing enormously
And mobile has helped drive an enormous amount of video consumption

In a special report from BI Intelligence, we analyze how users are consuming content on their mobile devices, and take a look at the most popular mobile activities, how people use their phones to shop, and the growth of the mobile web.

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