Think about how attached to your phone you are. Chances are that your phone has become an indispensable part of your day-to-day life.
The cell phone is rapidly taking over digital traffic from desktop, and it’s scarcely surprising. You’re never more than an arm’s length away from being connected to the world, and that’s not only incredible, but something we are largely now taking for granted.
But what does this mean from a user’s point of view? It’s one thing to spout stats about how mobile is staking a claim on global digital traffic, but what does it mean for the end users?
What is a Micro-Moment?
There is a new buzzword in town. I can hear the groans already, but this one might be different. Compared to most industry-specific buzzwords, this one has ramifications for you.
Google has coined the term ‘Micro-Moments’ to describe the way modern life is lived. “Life is lived in moments” Google says, and as far as they’re concerned, those moments are largely defined by your cell phone.
For example, do you need to know how to make risotto? You look up a recipe on your phone. Looking to buy a new car? What do you do? Check the internet for reviews of multiple cars before making a final decision.
Micro-Moments occur when people need to learn something, do something, discover something, watch something, or buy something. And increasingly marketers are looking to capture you, the consumer, in that moment, because that is where consumer “decisions are made and where preferences are shaped.”
How Does This Affect Me?
So besides being used as a marketing tool, how does the rise of the Micro-Moment benefit the consumer?
Service
You’ll get better quality service from brands that realise that mobile experiences are charging ahead of desktop experiences. People have grown accustomed to getting what they are looking for, and getting it right away.
Brands of tomorrow know that money is won (or lost) in those Micro-Moments. And that means they should have a strategy in place to meet the needs of consumers. Which should mean faster and better quality services.
Cross-Device Support
Recent research that Google conducted yielded the following findings:
- 91% of smart phone users look up information while in the middle of a task.
- 82% of smart phone users consult their phones while standing in a store deciding which product to buy.
- 1 in 10 of those people end up buying a different product than they had planned.
Clearly, people are looking to their mobile devices when making decisions on what they want to buy.
Forward-thinking brands will be trying to capitalise on that, so as the consumer, you can look forward to having increasingly easy and seamless mobile experiences.
From providing relevant and useful information about a product, giving price and review comparisons, or providing the ability to save an item to be purchased later on your desktop, mobile integration with your everyday life, whether through a dedicated app, or a mobile-responsive site, is only going to increase.
User Experience
What all of this essentially comes down to is user experience. Mobile has shaped the way we consume media, and how we access information. We demand instantaneousness in more areas than ever before. Our usual daily online sessions have become fragmented and unpredictable, and as a result, there has been a massive shift in how brands are regarding you, the consumer.
Brands will fight to appease the consumer in those moments in an attempt to build brand loyalty through a great and unified service offering, rather than through ambiguous and sometimes dubious messaging.
It is fast becoming apparent to businesses that user experience is the future of digital. And to a large extent, it’s because mobile devices and indeed, Micro-Moments, are an incredibly personal experience.
If a brand can reach, and deliver messaging to, a consumer in such a personalised space, they have already won half the battle.
Final Thoughts
As mobile devices become more ubiquitous, so too will brands seek to continue to encroach on us in every-day life. Industry leaders know that the future of their business may depend on mobile to a certain extent, and these brands are working on getting to you in ‘the moment.’
This may seem like corporates trying to invade your personal space, to get money out of you. But it is entirely the opposite. Successful brands understand that concern, and are choosing to build first-rate experiences tailored for you.
What they’re doing is attempting to give you what you want, exactly when you need it. And in the long run, this shift in mind-set should only serve to benefit you.