Editorial Articles

Mobile will be a key catalyst for digital growth in 2010 and the development of mobile services, applications and consumer demand that we’ve seen over the last twelve months will only continue. Perhaps the most interesting element in this growth will be the emerging relationship between digital content and the ‘real’ world

Apple and BlackBerry have driven market growth to no small degree, as users quickly adapt to being able to access the mobile internet wherever they go. Smartphones are now accounting for a growing proportion of all handset sales and 16% of sales in the first quarter alone were BlackBerry and iPhone models.

With handset churn over the next 3-5 years resulting in wide scale smart phone penetration, mobile will become an indispensible platform within any brand’s marketing strategy. Even today, on Auto Trader Mobile, over 75% of traffic is Smartphone based. Our users are early adopters, realising the quality of experience smart phones can deliver in mobile internet, but where they lead others will soon follow.

Nielsen’s recent survey estimated that in the third quarter of 2009, more than 10.4 million people accessed the internet through their mobile phones – an increase of 18% in just three months. For the automotive sector, research conducted by AutoTrader.co.uk found that a fifth* of car owners already access the internet through their mobile on a daily basis, and with 73%* having handsets that supported internet access, the opportunity for growth in this sector over the next year is great.

Auto Trader Mobile was re-launched in 2009 and the site experienced huge year on year growth in line with the wider mobile market. During this time we have been tracking emerging behaviours to understand the value mobile can deliver and follow consumer trends. The most interesting findings show that 60% of Auto Trader Mobile users are already using the site to research their next car purchase, while 40% have used the site on a dealer forecourt to find out more information. We expect this behaviour will become increasingly the norm as mobile brings digital content to the fingertips of buyers planning their next purchase while out and about.

These emerging behaviours create a new level of engagement for advertisers who are now able to reach customers at a critical moment in the car buying cycle. The process of buying and selling a car becomes more informed and transparent than ever before. As a result, marketing communication will also have to become more relevant and better targeted, to recognise the fact that customers are now using mobile for research, comparison and advice on the go. A consumer may browse through a magazine and use the internet for search, but mobile is the medium where they are ready to act. This behaviour is at the heart of our mobile strategy for 2010 across consumer and B2B product development and marketing.

Mobile is a key pillar in Auto Trader’s long term digital strategy and we have developed a product roadmap for both car sellers and buyers that will embed mobile as an indispensible part of the car purchase cycle.

In the same way that no company today would be without its website, mobile will become a must-have for brands looking to reach the consumer in 2010 and beyond. Whatever market segment a brand sits in mobile will be an unavoidable platform. I would encourage brands to take the leap to engage their consumer in this emerging and compelling medium.

(*Source: AutoTrader.co.uk Mobile User Survey, 1,523 respondents, July 2009).

Author: Sebastian Baldwin, Mobile Director for Trader Media Group