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Gallup poll: People connecting more through mobile tech 0

The results of a new Gallup poll is shedding light on how mobile technology substantially affects many aspects of our lives.

mobilecontentFor one, we’re in contact with friends and family more. Sixty-two percent of Americans polled say the use of smartphones and tablets has increased interpersonal communication a lot, with another 27 percent saying it has increased it a little.

We’re also working a bit more because of mobile devices. Gallup finds that two-thirds of U.S. workers say the amount of work they are doing outside of working hours has gone up a little.

The same cannot be said, however, about political activity. Even as candidates and elected officials pursue more effective ways to connect with voters and campaign contributors, more than half of those polled by Gallup say their involvement in political campaigns and similar activity has not increased because of mobile technology, although 17 percent say it has increased a lot.

Gallup polled 1,505 Americans 18 and older from March 21-23 to assess how mobile technology has affected their behavior in the personal, political and work areas.

The results are from a March 21-23 Gallup poll designed to assess how much mobile technology has affected Americans’ behavior in the personal, political, and work areas. The poll finds that seven in 10 Americans use either a smartphone or tablet.

The poll finds that mobile technology has increased Americans’ opportunities to stay in touch with each other. Those ages 30 to 49 are just as likely to use mobile devices more to communicate as adults 18 to 29. Americans older than 50, particularly those 65 and older, are less likely to be affected to a large degree.

It is likely, Gallup says, that mobile technology will foster even greater activity in the areas of communication, work and political activity in the future.

 

We are MyMobileLyfe and we can help your company develop a content marketing strategy to reach people on the go. Click here to contact us.

Why people like educational apps 0

Why do people buy educational apps for their mobile devices?

For kids and their parents, educational apps offer fun and creative ways to learn. Apps like Sprout Games and Videos for the iPad and First Words with Phonics for Windows motivate kids to work on their reading, math and other classroom skills, often using a familiar character like Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat.

A study by global trade organization MEF finds that 17 percent of mobile device users worldwide download an educational app. In its recently released report analyzing regional and global trends for mobile education products and services, MEF finds that educational apps rank ninth among all app categories.

But learning is not the prime motivation for people downloading education apps. Many users see them as playful or fun; the MEF study finds that 47 percent of people who buy an app from an educational site cited the entertainment value.

You can read more about MEF’s study in the infographic below.

educationapps_art

We are MyMobileLyfe and we can help your company develop a content marketing strategy to reach people on the go. Click here to contact us.

 

Infographic: Printing on the move 0

More than a third of the workforce worldwide will be mobile by 2015, and among the tasks workers in the “bring your own device” environment will find themselves doing is printing.

They’re using smartphones and tablets to connect to wireless printers with increasing frequency. By 2015, 50 percent of smartphone users will use the devices for printing tasks, and 58 percent of tablet users will do the tasks,

This infographic by IDC explains this further.

idcmobileprint_art

 

 

Older Americans favor tablets, e-book readers 0

olderadults1_artA new study says older adults are favoring tablets and e-book readers over smartphones, even as smartphone ownership among Americans has exceeded 50 percent.

Only 18 percent of Americans 65 and older own a smartphone, up from 11 percent in 2011, the Pew Internet Research Project says in its study released today.

They are gravitating to tablet computers and e-book readers. Some 18% of seniors own an e-book reader, and an identical 18% own a tablet computer. Taken together, 27% of older adults own a tablet, an e-book reader, or both.

This is even as older people consider them primarily “elite” devices, according to Pew. Older consumers who graduated from college and have annual incomes of $75,000 or more are three times as likely to own a tablet or e-book reader as those without college degrees and substantially lower incomes.

Still, e-book reader ownership among seniors remains lower than the national average — 24 percent of all U.S. adults own the devices. Tablet ownership among older users is about half the national average of 34 percent.

Older Americans also continue to stay relatively detached from online and mobile life, according to Pew — 41 percent do not use the Internet at all, 53 percent do not have broadband access at home, and 23 percent do not use cell phones of any kind.

The voracious digital omnivores 0

The number of consumers with more than one digital device continues to grow, and they are hungry for content.

mobilecontentDeloitte recently released the findings of its eighth Digital Democracy Survey, which show that over a third of U.S. consumers – 37 percent – are digital omnivores, consumers who own tablets, smartphones and laptops. That’s a 42 percent increase from the previous year.

The growth is primarily driven by continued tablet usage and increased smartphone ownership. Tablet ownership rose from 13 percent in  2011 to 48 percent last year, according to Deloitte.

In addition, women, who made up 35 percent of digital omnivores a year ago, now comprise 45 percent of the group.

As the usage of tablets and smartphones as content devices grows, owners are craving more content. Interest in streaming content has nearly doubled, from 17 percent in 2012 to 32 percent in 2013, with interest in digital formats outpacing demand for physical media.

But Deloitte’s survey also found that consumers remain content with pay TV subscriptions, with only 6 percent saying they would give up their paid TV services next year.  Also, a majority of consumers said they still prefer to rent movies and television programming rather than purchase it.

With ownership of multiple devices on the rise, so is multitasking. According to Deloitte’s survey, 86 percent of consumers continue to be distracted by another device with watching TV, up from 72 percent in 2011. Yet only 22 percent of those involved in multitasking are doing activities directly related to the programs they are watching.

Millennials, those in the 14-to-24 demographic, are the most active of multitaskers, doing four activities while watching TV.

You can read more about Deloitte’s Digital Democracy Survey here. Feel free to tell us what you think.

deloitte_infografic_one

 

Tablets still popular, but move from PCs slowing 0

The transition from PC to tablet computers is beginning to slow, even as sales of mobile devices continues to move upward.

Worldwide shipments of PCs, tablets, smartphones and other mobile devices, an indicator of popular interest, is projected to reach 2.5 billion units in 2014, up 6.9 percent from the previous year, Gartner Inc. says in a new report.

Shipments of PCs continue to tumble, down about 6.6 percent from 2013. Gartner says sales of traditional PCs will continue to hamper the overall growth of devices, and the transition to tablets as the primary computer for users will decline, even as tablet shipments rose 38 percent from 2013. Consumers and businesses are taking the time to pair the right device with the right job – for example, whether a tablet computer is more effective than a laptop in the business environment.

Consumers will also increasingly look for other tablet features beyond the price, such as smaller screens, greater portability and better connectivity in their replacement tablets.

Smartphones and other mobile phones represent the largest segment of the overall device market, with shipments expected to hit 1.9 billion this year, up 4.9 percent from 2013. Growth in this segment is projected to come from less expensive premium phones and higher-end basic phones.

 

 

 

Content writing for the small screen 0

Longer can sometimes be better when it comes to writing digital content, unless the content is for a mobile device.

When it comes to content that appears on the smartphone or tablet, there are differences of opinion as to the ideal written length. A blog post of, say, 1,500 words may be okay to leisurely digest on a laptop, or even on an iPad, but is less than optimal for a smartphone.

Producing quality marketing content takes time and effort, not to mention the right keywords.

These general tips can help in writing more effective content for the small screen:

 

  • Headlines are the first words someone sees. Make them strong and eye-catching to draw interest to the content.
  • Be concise. Pare down the word count as much as possible.
  • Write for your audience. Jargon is dull, whether for a corporate CEO or someone who comes across the content while surfing the Web. Don’t dumb down the content, but keep it interesting and lively, without superfluous text.
  • Make it easy to scan. Mobile device users with other tasks on their minds are likely to give the article a quick read before deciding if it is worth their time. Short sentences make the scanning easy.

Writing for the mobile device can be a challenge, but one that can be met. Effective written content is an easy way to give your corporate brand a digital boost.

Study: Giving up Internet not easy 0

mobilecontentIf you own a smartphone or tablet, you are likely using it to surf the Internet.

You’re looking for the best shopping deals, checking out the latest news, watching video content, interacting with others via social media. Let’s face it, the Internet has become essential when it comes to using our mobile devices like smartphones, iPads and tablets.

How essential is it? According to the Pew Research Internet Project, more than half of those surveyed say they cannot give up the Internet. Pew’s research finds that 53 percent of users would find it difficult to give up the Internet, compared with 38 percent in 2006.

It’s even harder to give up a cellphone or smartphone, especially if it has online access. According to Pew, 49 percent of cell phone and smartphone owners say it would be, at a minimum, very hard to give up their device, compared with 43 percent in 2006. Pew found that, among those earning $75,000 or more a year, 59 percent say it would be very hard to give up the smartphone or cell phone.

Pew also found that 1 in 10 users of the Internet would find social media very hard to give up. Think about that when you’re connecting with Facebook on your tablet or smartphone.

Not all of the results are tilted toward a mobile focus. Pew found that fewer people are more likely to give up their landline phones. The study revealed that 28 percent of landline owners say their phone would be very hard to give up, a major drop from 48 percent in 2006.

 

The viewing habits of millennials 0

Millennials are voracious viewers of video. They’re just not watching videos on TV.

Mobile ContentThe video advertising technology company YuMe tracked the media viewing habits of millennials, defined as the 18-to-34 demographic. This is an age group that makes prolific and sustained use of smartphones and tablets; 18 percent of all millennials were mobile-only users in November 2013.

The study reveals that millennials watch more video content than their predecessors from Generation X and the much older baby boomers. Those movies, TV shows, user generated and sponsored videos, however, are being viewed on devices other than the flat-screen television set.

Smartphones are the most popular device for millennials to view video in most places, though tablets are more popular at home and while on vacation, YuMe’s study finds. Among those who watch, 13 percent say they watch video content at work or while shopping. Another 9 percent say they do while commuting to work or visiting someone’s home.

Also, 94 percent of millennials multitask (and are likely distracted) while viewing content.

YuMe’s downloadable research report is here.

 

 

Mobile potential for small business 0

Major retailers are embracing the potential of mobile devices to bring in customers and drive business. Now, small businesses are focusing on mobile access to customers to boost their bottom line.

Mobile devices, particularly smartphones, are becoming the main channel for customers to interact with businesses. That means opportunities for merchants, from restaurants to car repair services to banks.

While social media like Twitter and Facebook are an effective form of social engagement for small businesses, a mobile-friendly website and payment options for smartphones and tablets can tilt long-term success in their favor.

The market is there for the taking: smartphone ownership in the U.S. is expected to more than triple by 2016.

Here are a few areas small businesses and entrepreneurs can focus on if they want to maintain, or expand, their mobile presence:

  • Make the company website accessible to mobile devices
  • Add a mobile payment option
  • Make smartphones, tablets and other mobile tools available to the sales force
  • Use virtual meeting apps like GroupMe to communicate with staff.