Speed, accessibility and usability have all been issues in adoption to date. The rise of the iPhone, Blackberry, and now the Nexus one have already, and will continue to, speed up the growth of mobile Internet usage.

With more usage also comes a perceived need. Do you really need to check Facebook or Twitter 10 times a day? No, but you do because it only requires you to touch the icon on your phone.

Further advancements in accessibility through applications and bespoke service solutions will further drive growth.

I think mobile web is definitely “the future” it’s just how far in the future we are talking.

For now, I am going to stop typing and won’t be posting again from my phone for a while as my eyes ate hurting from squinting and my thumbs are aching from typing on this tiny keyboard!

Any typos are courtesy of my iPhone!

Now the same could be happening with the iPhone and iPhone applications as the world of adult content reaches their users for the first time.  Thanks to the iPhone’s new operating system which has the important inclusion of parental controls Apple has its first sanctioned app providing adult content.
The application in question is Hottest Girls which previously displayed photos of scantily-clad women. Since the new release, it now comes with fewer articles of clothing and according to the App Store “You must be at least 17 years old to download this game”.

So is this the beginning of something big?  Or the beginning of the end?
If history is anything to go by, the adult industry will undoubtedly speed iPhone application development and release more and more complex and innovative applications, this can only be good for the platform and the future of mobile technologies.  But without a system for filtering of monitoring these applications there is a risk the App Store could become over run with pornography and adult content.  Apple could obviously filter this content, but that would require a lot of work on their part.  The parental control system is surely not enough to keep these applications from reaching minors.
Econsultancy thinks the “question for Apple is how far it’s willing to go.”  And goes on to say it is a question of short term profit versus longevity of the product: “Adult content on the iPhone would almost certainly be a significant profit center but if Apple goes too far and the App Store becomes seen as the virtual equivalent of a filth peddler, all bets are off”.
Whichever way I look at it, it looks like adult content is going to become more prevalent on the iPhone. Apple therefore needs to decide how far it is willing to go, and consider the broader picture of filtering and longevity of their product.

Econsultancy article here

In the past I have been an advocate of having a WAP site built with clear navigation and easy path to mobile based conversion.  Simplifying the user journey is such a way made mobile Internet consumption a much more pleasant experience and from a business perspective would encourage conversion also.  But since getting my iPhone and realising how usable the Internet can be made on a mobile device I am starting to think we may have seen the end of WAP sites.

Apart from some initial SEO misgivings (Mobile SEO – Stuck in the Past!) I can’t see many reasons why a business would now choose to invest in a WAP site when the future is quite clearly full browser capabilities through mobile handsets.  There is still half an argument for building a specific WAP site based around commonly used mobile functions (such as a simplified interface for balance checking on a bank site for example) but I’m sure there is a simpler way of achieving this than building and maintaining a seperate WAP site.

And its not just WAP sites we are talking here, any technology built specifically for WAP ca[abilities is at risk, including the advertising channels.  There is little or no need for a seperate channel for mobile advertising when users are consuming standard Internet through their handsets.  The wise thing for publishers and networks is to follow Google’s lead and allow advertisers to opt in and out fo mobile traffic, but continue to use the same ads and format.

It may be too soon to say for sure if this is the way things are going to go, but I know id be sweating if I owned a mobile advertising business.  I’d be looking for a way to earn my crust in the new, and much improved, future of mobile Internet.

All campaigns are automatically opted in to the iPhone search results by default but to the intelligent search engine marketer this new functionality offers new opportunities for trial, refinement and maximisation of mobile search.

To the lazy or uneducated this box will remain ticked and the PPC campaign will continue to run on both standard web search and the new iPhone and advanced mobile search.  Using the same keywords, same ad text, and directing to the same website.  There is no harm in this as such given the volume and the way it follows standard search specifications.  But in many industries this would be massively missing an opportunity.  Location specific products such as hotels and national companies with regional branches could do so much more with this functionality if they put their minds to it.

Mobile campaigns need treating differently to standard web search campaigns because users interact with mobile Internet in a different way.  To realise the opportunity then there are a number of steps I would recommend;

Campaigns: deactivate iPhone search in your main campaign and set up a new campaign targeting ONLY THE NEW iPHONE SEARCH.  This will allow you to build a campaign aimed solely at the mobile users and mean you can make the necessary amends.

Keywords: build a keyword list based around mobile users.  This tends to mean simplifying your keyword list and using more broad keywords and dropping the long tail.  But make sure you include location specific keywords if your product fits with people using destinations in searches.  Most people using mobile search to find things want to find something nearby so will often include a town or area name in their search.

Ad Text: Obviously follow the standard Adwords guidelines of making it relevant the search phrase but also consider making it specific to mobile users.  If you are going to offer something special (see point below) then include it in the creative.  Also consider reaching out to mobile users in the creative, a message such as “welcome mobile Internet users!” might sound cheesy, but it’ll also make you stand out.

Website/Landing pages: It is still best practice to have a tailored site for mobile visitors even as mobile Internet advances.  But by splitting out the campaign so you can be sure the visitor is coming form a mobile device, why not send them to a page targeted at their needs?  Or even offer them something special? If you have local stores why not have a splash page offering a discount for all users who show the page in-store and make a purchase?  this would work great for hotels, coffee shops etc.  20% off if you show this page in store.

Tracking: Make sure you track it separately so that you can judge performance.  This probably wont be performance by way of conversions but it will certainly help to see bounce rates and site traffic stats.

Bid strategy: Use the fact you have split the campaign out to your advantage, use the tracking you have installed to judge keywords based on mobile search performance rather than web search performance.

Keep testing!: your unlikely to get this right first time but by trying different things you are bound to find some successes so don’t be afraid to try.  iPhone’s and other mobile devices with full browsers are set to revolutionise mobile Internet, it is better to make your mistakes now and learn from them, rather than in a couple of years when you are already behind the game!

Mobile strategy shouldn’t be something which gets lumped together in the general web pot, in the same way search shouldn’t.  Making sure you have a clear strategy and objective for mobile activity will ensure that as mobile Internet grows, you are best placed to take advantage.

The future of not just mobile search but mobile Internet intrigues me, it has been touted as the next big thing for a while now and I have blogged about it in the past (here, here and here) but it still isn’t at a critical mass level or even near for me at the moment.  As the article states, and I have noted in the past, the search terms people are using through their mobile handsets are not for the products and services people search for online.  The Reuters article notes mobile specific search as being the highest volume, typically music tracks or games, where as porn is also a large search term in the mobile world.

My prediction is that mobile search will become a part of the digital mix in the future but not in a way which will see it mirror standard search.  It will require a different model and a different strategy if mobile search is going to become part of a valid digital strategy.

Is it simply that the mobile allows an element of privacy not necessarily afforded by the home PC? Are people using their mobiles to bypass any firewalls or tracking software which could uncover their dirty little secrets? I can’t imagine (and obviously wouldn’t know!) that the mobile device, no matter how advanced, is the best for digesting this content.  Is it just people experimenting to see whether the content is available on mobiles or are these people actually consuming large amounts of content via their mobile phones?

One thing which could be linked to the volumes of searches for adult content is the trend in mobile Internet usage by time of day.  Some of the busiest times in the week are Thursday, Friday, Saturday evenings, post pub/night out.  It would be interesting to see if the searches for “sex” and “porn” which appear at the top of the most searched keywords list coincide with the activity at these times.  Intoxicated people either succumbing to their primal instincts or merry males having a joke whilst sat in the pub.  The digging I have done on this topic hasn’t managed to bring up any usage or sign up stats from the porn industry but it would be very interesting to see if these searches are resulting in business for the industry.

On the same day it was announced that five of the big mobile operators are joining forces to create a measurement system for mobile advertising. Vodafone, O2, T-Mobile, Orange and 3 have formed a working group aimed at “helping ensure that mobile advertising realises its potential for the benefit of all the players involved”. What exactly this means I am not sure but Im guessing they are plannign at setting some industry standards for advertising models and options but more importantly the technology behind it. Obviously each will have their way of implementing the models and will keep some of their ideas and technologies to themselves but from an advertisers point of view it can only be a good thing as it should speed up the developments in mobile and help it actually become the viable advertising channel it has been threatening to become for the last couple of years.

Google have announced that their Google maps tool will now be available on mobile handsets along with location pinpointing effectively making it a GPRS tool. The mobile version of maps will be able to pinpoint your location along with providing real time traffic reports, directions to a specified location, integrated search results (this is where the money is made!), and satellite imagery of a location. Depending on its usability this could be a big step forward for maps as it actually brings a bit more use and functionality to the product. It could be especially useful in central London when trying to navigate the capital on foot. It could also be the start of Google’s entry into the Sat Nav market with a little more advancement in the technology and the appropriate handset. Full details

Yahoo also announced today that the Panama platform (the latest incarnation of the advertising center) is to become integrated with mobile devices from January onwards, according to an article in NMA. This is another development in Yahoo’s aim to become a major player in the mobile advertising market and should allow them to pitch the integrated platform approach to advertisers. From an advertiser perspective if the platform truly does allow you to create and manage mobile campaigns it will significantly increase availability of this channel and enable more companies to begin trials.  I am predicting mobile to become more widespread in 2009 with more and more of the big brands embracing it as part of their digital strategy.  This means that publishers and agencies need to be preparing themselves so that they are in a position to make the most of it when it takes off.  This is exactly what Yahoo are doing with this launch.