US Mobile internet users Mobile Search users and Mobile Search Advertising Revenues 20062011
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Mobile internet users 27.0 31.1 36,0 42.9 52.3 64.8
Mobile search users 20.3 23.3 28.8 35.1 43.9 55.8
Mobile search ad revenues* $2.1 $13.5 $48.1 $155.7 $307.4 $713.7 Note: *earned from sale of display or text listings alongside mobile search
Figure 14.5 Mobile users and revenue in the United States. Chart courtesy of eMarkerter.
Although the United States currently leads in mobile traffic and in ad spending, it is significantly behind European countries such as Italy and Spain in terms of 3G penetration. In recent years, the number of Americans accessing the Internet from their phones has grown significantly, as has the number of people performing Internet searches from their mobile phones. Mobile search was already important in 2008, when all U.S. carriers began offering flat-rate, unlimited mobile data packages. The United States represents 68% of the worldwide mobile searching, and with flat-rate data pricing, there is no disincentive to search when information is needed. It will be crucial for mobile marketers working in North America to learn how to leverage mobile search and mobile search engines.
Carrier decks and carrier search still play some role in shaping the Web activity of mobile users in the United States, but this trend is likely on its way out. The percent of U.S. on-deck traffic went from 53.4% in the fourth quarter of 2007 to 36.91% in the fourth quarter of 2008, but until recently, some carriers made it difficult or impossible for their subscribers to access content on the off-deck Web. Instead, they kept them on their deck, where they could potentially make money from partner advertising.
Despite the relatively advanced nature of the mobile landscape in the United States, not all mobile marketing will be well received. Americans have a deeper concern for privacy, which makes the idea of mobile marketing unappealing to many. The younger demographics are less likely to be offended by mobile marketing messages, but to avoid ostracizing potential customers, you should keep your messages highly targeted and short. Mobile marketing is largely unregulated in the United States, but advertisers are expected to follow guidelines set forth by the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA).
There is a variety of legislation currently being debated in the United States that might soon create more clear guidelines and expectations for mobile marketers. The most notable is them is the m-SPAM act of 2009, which is actually an amendment to the CAN SPAM Act of 1993. While the CAN SPAM Act of 1993 set forth expectations for email marketing, the m-SPAM Act creates rules preventing unsolicited text messages, and outlining how text message marketing can be legally conducted in the United States.
It is usually best to gauge the tolerance and level of mobile engagement that your North American audience will have by launching first with a mobile call to action from a traditional marketing channel such as TV, radio, or print. When people opt in, you can better identify the people who will be most willing to accept marketing messages on their phone, so you can avoid simply sending a marketing message to everyone in your customer database. Despite privacy concerns, 32% of mobile data users reported that they would be willing to receive mobile advertising if it traded off with a lower cell phone bill or the capability to receive more rich content on their phone.
Similar to the cultural difference regarding privacy, North Americans have a slightly different take on sexuality in marketing. Although Americans have gotten a bad rap for the commoditization of sexuality, internationally (especially in Europe, Asia, and South America), sexually explicit marketing is less taboo. Sex sells anywhere, but if you are marketing sexually explicit content, initially you must be a bit more discrete and understated in North America.
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