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8/6/2019 Mobile Playbook
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
CONTENTS
4How to create a mobile news ormagazine site
85 things your iPhone developer
wants you to know
12In frenzy over mobile apps, dontforget the mobile web
15Scribd reaches out to publishers withfree HTML5 conversion
18Mobile contentlike writing for theweb, only more so
23Mobile advertisings moving targets
28Which mobile platform should youfocus on?
32Mobile web resources
The iPhone and other mobile platformsoffer a great opportunity for media
brands to engage with their audience
and deliver a personalized experience.
But deciding on the right approach
for design, content development and
delivery is no easy task. Here are some
resources to help you gure it all out.
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Statistics are indicating that audiences are now more than ever choosing smart phones as
the way to experience content on the Web. As Harald Neidhardt, co-founder and CMO of
mobile agency Smaato said, If you dont have a mobile presence in 18 months, youre out of
business. Thats why a mobile strategy should be on the forefront of every publishers mind.
But navigating (nevermind proting from) this new terrain can be intimidating to publishers
who do not have the tools and information necessary to get their brand mobile ready.
Thats why weve created the Publishers Playbook to Mobile. Smart phones, like the iPhone and
the Android, offer platforms that deliver the experience everyone is seeking: a personalized one.
So how can you translate your publication to the little screen with a big impact? Well guide you
through the necessary steps for making your brand mobile friendly, give you an inside scoop in
to the mind of an application developer, examine the benets of going beyond the app and
creating a mobile site, and study the companies who seem to be doing it right.
As with all the changes the publishing industry is undergoing, there is no exact formula
to success in the mobile environment. But considering the personalized content audiences
are looking for, a personalized approach to your mobile ventures is a smart way to begin
thinking about your new investment. While reading this guide, think about what makes
your publication stand apart from its competitors and start brainstorming about the ways
you can make that specialized experience convenient for your mobile users.
We hope you nd this content valuable and invite you to share your own Mobile intelligence
with your peers.
CEOS MESSAGE
Prescott Shibles
CEO
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
With such an explosion of growth due to the rise of the iPhone, iPad and other smart phones,
media companies face a multitude of questions about their position on the little screen. Does
your site live up to your brands reputation when being viewed on a mobile phone? Does it
have the necessary components to help you execute your paid content or advertising strategies?
If your site renders the same way on a mobile phone as it does on a desktop, the answerto both of these questions is NO and you need to begin developing a more robust mobile
offering. Here are the basics behind developing a mobile version of your site.
Use subdomain instead o .mobi
One of the problems with registering a separate domain name for your mobile site is that you
might not be able to register the same letter combination of your Web site (emediavitals.com
vs. emediavitals.mobi). Someone may have already bought it already, etc. However, using asubdomain (mobile.emediavitals.com) maintains brand continuity while still helping users nd
your mobile content easily.
Browser detection
Most users will type in your regular sites URL into their browser. So, its important that
whatever solution you come up with addresses this user behavior instead of trying to
HOW TO CREATE A MOBILE NEWS
OR MAGAZINE SITEBY PRESCOTT SHIBLES
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
change it. Many sites use advanced browser detection capabilities such as those provided
by Browscap to redirect users to their mobile offering or serve up a mobile skin in lieu oftheir standard design.
Homepage content
With the mechanics now out of the way, lets talk about how the user interacts with your
site. First off, remember that while 3G technologies have increased the browsing speeds
of mobile phones, they remain signicantly slower than DSL, cable, or T1 connections. So,
you need to limit the amount of content on the homepage while still making it easy to ndwhat a reader is looking for:
Recent articles (CNN)
Navigation to topic/category areas (ESPN)
Coupons / Discounts (Daily Candy)
Mobile design
Remember that the mobile world is still a bit of the Wild, Wild, West when compared
to the Web proper. There are tons of mobile operating systems, browsers, and other
variables that need to be considered before developing a design. Smashing magazine has
a great piece on designing for mobile devices. Rather than re-hash their points here, Id
recommend heading over there to read up on design.
HOW TO CREATE A MOBILE NEWS
OR MAGAZINE SITE contd
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Measuring your mobile trafc
While you can use your standard Web analytics package to track the standard metrics,
there are some other more specialized offerings that you might want to consider:
AdMob: Gain greater insight into the phones and browsers used to access your
mobile site.
PercentMobile: Create mashups of data that you get from your mobile usage.
Management buy-in and getting started
One of the challenges youll face is managements mandate to keep expenses in line
and limit projects to key initiatives. Theyll likely look at this project and question
its validity. Develop specic goals for the project that are tangible and reachable.
Arm yourself with the numbers, understand your strategy, and talk to your users and
readers. Listen to how Variety incorporated user feedback to develop and then improve
their mobile presence. Then tie all of that together into a few scenarios:
1. Get the ideal mobile site up with the bells and whistles. Youve got a paid content
game plan and an advertising game plan. This is a straw man to basically get ripped
apart by the execs so that they dont immediately trash the more realistic option.
If they actually green light it, then you know you have some good ideas that are
worth pursuing.
HOW TO CREATE A MOBILE NEWS
OR MAGAZINE SITE contd
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
2. Get some type o mobile site up. They theory here is to get something up that requires
little development expense but positions your brand to grow its reader engagement
on mobile devices. Maybe you sell some ads, maybe you dont. Maybe you get some
feedback on the pricing of your app.
3. No mobile initiative. Show the downside of missing this opportunity. The growth in
this sector cannot be ignored. Make it specic to your brand and your industry.
Develop a prototype using outside technology such as MobiSiteGalore. It doesnt require
development skills, and it can easily provide a proof of concept. Take this prototype tomanagement to demonstrate that the project doesnt require much investment and to your
readers to get their feedback before your offering goes live.
Finally, look at your stats and continuously identify areas for improvement. The nice thing
about an initiative like this is that it isnt labor-intensive post-launch, which means you
are free to invest your time in improving the product by monitoring user behavior. As you
monitor your performance, report up to management how you are doing relative to the
goals that you set out. In addition, point out other unanticipated benets and factor those
into the ROI analysis that you do.
HOW TO CREATE A MOBILE NEWS
OR MAGAZINE SITE contd
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
In the burgeoning world of iPhone application development, Socialbomb can be
considered a veteran.
The studios cofounder, Scott Varland, has been knee-deep in iPhone app development
since 2008 when SocialBomb was one of the rst developers accepted into the companys
SDK program, which makes Socialbomb about as experienced as one studio can be in theiPhone space.
We asked Varland, 31, who constantly receives pitches for new apps, about the nitty-gritty
of iPhone app development and how media companies can better work with independent
contractors. Here was his advice:
Do you really need an iPhone app?
The rst thing you need to ask, said Varland, is do you even need an iPhone app?
Would a mobile website sufce?
The iPhone is a unique platform featuring a touch-interface, a gyroscope, a compass and
GPS. If your application doesnt take advantage of some or all of those features, then
the better, more cost-efcient route is to optimize existing content to be viewed on the
iPhones web browser (or, at the very least, create an iPhone-friendly icon).
5 THINGS YOUR IPHONE DEVELOPER
WANTS YOU TO KNOWBY SEAN BLANDA
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Serious iPhone application development can reach the mid-ve gures and take months.
Unless you are willing to invest in something useful and innovative, stay clear.
Do one thing well and fgure it out early.
Early in the planning stage for your app, identify one feature that you would like to focus
on and carry that throughout the process.
The most popular iPhone apps typically have a single purpose. The New York Times
app, for example, simplifies the process of reading the paper online. Flashlight turnsyour phone into an emergency light. I am T-Pain, well, makes you sound like the
rapper T-Pain.
Your interaction with your iPhone is maybe 30 seconds, tops, said Varland The more you
bury information with your app, the less likely people are to use it.
While your website may have dozens of features that can be translated to mobile, do not
try to pack them all into a single app. Trying to do it all can place unnecessary stress on the
development team and make it difcult for users to see the value in your product.
If you cant easily state the usefulness of your application to the user, it may be time to go
back to the drawing board.
5 THINGS YOUR IPHONE DEVELOPER
WANTS YOU TO KNOW contd
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Leverage your existing data
If you have any existing databases, your iPhone application may already be halfway completed.
For example, the Weather application on the iPhone searches Yahoos database of
weather forecasts. The application just optimizes the data for the iPhone.
Dig through your publication. Do you already have some sort of content database that can
fuel your application in a similar fashion?
To streamline the process, be sure to provide your developer with all of the
databases you plan on using and demonstrate how they can access the information
stored there.
Be aware o the size o the team you are working with
In most cases, studios accepting client work will likely be one- to two-person teams that will
be focused on coding the application.
To speed the process, Varland recommends producing a function specication document
that plots your application in as much detail as possible.
Utilize your Web team to produce wire frames, the goal for the application and the source
of all of the applications data. You can even owchart the navigation and design some
rough images.
5 THINGS YOUR IPHONE DEVELOPER
WANTS YOU TO KNOW contd
If you have anyexisting databases,
your iPhone application
may already be
halfway completed
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Document what the interface does. What is the user experience? What does each button
do? What does data does it connect to? Varland said.
If you are dealing with a larger studio with more staff, you may be able to ofoad some of
the spec development to them.
Determine i you even need an outside team
For those seeking iPhone developers, there is a bit of a catch-22. Most top talent will
either prefer to pursue their own ideas, or will be snapped up by larger companies forin-house staff.
If youre making an app just to make it, contract it out to India. If you are looking at this
as a major part of your business going forward, you really need to be out there hiring and
training in-house, said Varland.
Socialbombs rst application, Paparazzi, was released in March 2009 and the studio has
subsequently launched a large-scale Facebook app for Fisher-Price.
5 THINGS YOUR IPHONE DEVELOPER
WANTS YOU TO KNOW contd
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Mobile apps are getting all the buzz, but theres still plenty of life and advertising
opportunities in mobile websites.
That was the consensus from panelists at the Magazine Mobile Imperative luncheon
sponsored by the Magazine Publishers of America and eMedia Vitals. Although the market
for mobile applications is taking off, the mobile Web offers more scale and is evolvingas a cross-platform solution for publishers to provide content to mobile users, said Craig
Ettinger, vice president of marketing and business operations for Time.com.
Time.com averages about 500,000 unique visitors a month to its mobile-enabled WAP
(wireless access protocol) site, which it launched in September 2006. New developments
such as HTML5 and 4G wireless will dramatically improve the mobile Web experience,
enabling functionality similar to dedicated apps that take advantage of native functionality
such as location services, Ettinger said.
Were probably six months to a year away from having great, great, rich mobile Web
experiences, and again the beauty of that is cross-device, cross-platform, he said. The
scale is already there. In addition to cross-device support and scale, WAP sites are easier
to maintain and iterate than apps and offer streamlined reporting because they can be
integrated with standard website analytics.
IN FRENZY OVER MOBILE APPS,
DONT FORGET THE MOBILE WEBBY DEREK SLATER
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Monetizing mobile banners
WAP sites also offer benets for advertisers. Because of the scale, banner ads can be
served to virtually all modern mobile devices, said Pooja Midha, vice president of business
development for MTV Networks Digital.
MTVN uses a lot of 300-by-250 formats for its mobile creative;
since advertisers already produce this inventory for other
digital campaigns, its relatively easy to repurpose for mobile
devices. But the smaller screen sizes has also forced MTVN toget more creative with its creative, introducing formats such
as iPhone oaters, which include motion graphics that
appear over a newly loaded page for two to three seconds
before shrinking back to a traditional banner. A recent Sims3
campaign with Comedy Central and other MTVN sites featured
Sims characters that popped out of the banner to steal the
sites logo. The campaign achieved an impressive 24% click-
through rate at launch and a 17-18% click-through for the
duration of the campaign.
Another type is the screen-smasher unit, in which the ad
comes crashing through the screen (a Javascript animation),
simulating a cracked display. The graphic then retreats into
IN FRENZY OVER MOBILE APPS,
DONT FORGET THE MOBILE WEB contd
Were probably sixmonths to a year away
from having great,
great, rich mobile Web
experiences
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
a call to action. Midha said a recent screen smasher campaign with the U.S. Air Force
generated click-through rates of 9-10%.
The key to successful WAP advertising, said Midha, is creating ad formats and experiences
that lean into what users are already seeking and doing with the MTVN content. Dont
bombard the user. Enhance it for them, she said. Our strategy is to do a little bit of
everything but make it about the fan rst.
She said WAP banners have advantages, such as being cost-effective and universally
available on any device, as well as providing scale and a solid metric for success in click-through rates. But on the downside, WAP banners are also a competitive space that is
somewhat commoditized because of the rise of ad networks.
Its challenging for us to explain why a banner on our site is that much more impactful
than a banner on another site thats another premium publisher, she said.
IN FRENZY OVER MOBILE APPS,
DONT FORGET THE MOBILE WEB contd
Dont bombard
the user. Enhance
it for them
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Maybe you want to make your magazine HTML5-compatible for the iPad, but you dont yet
have the resources to develop a custom app. The document-sharing site Scribd offers one
solution: Publishers can upload PDFs or other digital les of their magazine content and
Scribd will convert them to an HTML5 format viewable through Scribds reader.
Its a simple solution, and one that might fall short for publishers seeking a more robust
iPad application. But Scribds free service is one alternative for publishers to make their
content more mobile while offering some basic interactivity such as links. Scribd is making
a transition to HTML5 from Flash, which required viewers on mobile devices to download
documents via PDF. Scribds switchover to HTML5 is designed to create a better mobile
reading experience as more people consume content that way, says Tammy H. Nam, vice
president of content and marketing at Scribd.
For publishers, Nam says using Scribd is an opportunity to provide content on mobile
devices with zero cost, rather than spending a lot of money developing an app. What
[publishers are] doing right now is creating very specialized applications for these mobile
platforms, and the return on their investment is probably questionable, at least in the near
term, Nam says. With Scribd they can essentially upload their content that they already
have without having to do any extra time or effort.
SCRIBD REACHES OUT TO
PUBLISHERS WITH FREEHTML5 CONVERSION
BY ELLIE BEHLING
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
One of Scribds rst big media customers is Forbes, which offered its special issue about
Warren Buffet rst for free via Scribd. This is an issue they had already compiled, Nam
says. The only thing they had to do was upload it. While Forbes is partnering with Scribd,
the publisher is also considering other platforms and pursuing the development of an app,
according to paidContent.
Scribd plans to develop its own apps for the iPad, iPhone and Android, Nam says. The
company is also working on adding support for audio and video as well as the ability for
conversion to an ePUB format. Nam points out that multimedia capabilities will also allow
for more interactive advertising.
Theres another potentially interesting development in the works at Scribd: Nam says the
site will be offering alternative revenue models for publishers in the next couple of
months, though Scribd isnt detailing them yet. Under the current system, a publisher on
Scribd can choose to give away content for free or sell it (forking over a 20% cut to Scribd).
The catch is that the commerce side of Scribd isnt yet in HTML5, but Nam says they will be
enabling it soon.
Scribd hopes to become a place for publishers to experiment with different revenue
models for mobile content. Our goal with media companies is to give them revenue-
making opportunities, and shortly well be able to present them with multiple options to
making money to offer content, Nam says. HTML5 goes a long way in helping to make
that happen because the technology itself is so open and its readily available on any
mobile device ... They dont have to do anything and its immediate distribution across all
platforms.
SCRIBD REACHES OUT TO PUBLISHERS
WITH FREE HTML5 CONVERSION contd
Using Scribd is an
opportunity to provide
content on mobile
devices with zero cost,
rather than spending
a lot of money
developing an app
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Nam says shes seen a surge in media companies using Scribd for a variety of purposes.
Right now 150 media companies publish content to the site, oftentimes consisting of source
material, such as court documents (which are now also in HTML5). Others are using Scribd
to upload entire issues (e.g. Forbes) or for supplemental content, such as USA TODAYs
education issue.
The social aspect of Scribd may be another appeal to media companies. Scribd bills
itself as a social publishing site, allowing users to easily share content across their
social networks. The college-focused, subscription-based magazine Saturday Night,
for example, offers free content on Scribd to target an audience of readers that wantcontent on their mobile devices and interact via social media. Theyre sharing what
theyre reading on Scribd with their friends on Facebook and Twitter, Nam says.
Theres a lot of viral discussions going on. According to Nam, social engagement has
more than tripled since the conversion to HTML5.
Scribd bills itself as a
social publishing site,
allowing users to easily
share content acrosstheir social networks
SCRIBD REACHES OUT TO PUBLISHERS
WITH FREE HTML5 CONVERSION contd
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Its a given that you need a mobile version of your website in order to deliver a good user
experience on a mobile phone. But does the content itself need to be tweaked as well?
You bet it does.
Assuming you have a mobile version of your site, cant you just strip out the graphics,
images, PDFs and ash and call it a day? If you want to make your content useful on amobile device, youll need to do more.
Here are 5 actors to consider or publishing to mobile platorms:
1. Easy to use/scan/understand: Simple wins on the small screen
2. Concise: Get to the point, fast. Dont ramble. Publish robust summaries with links
3. High value or time-sensitive content: Data, actionable inormation, tools and news
4. Search optimized: Its how people nd content on mobile5. Easy to move cross-platform: Adding a prominent email this link is one way
Jakob Nielsen summarizes the differences in writing style for print vs. web:
Particularly on commercial sites whether theyre B2C e-commerce or specialized
B-to-B sites users cherry-pick the inormation and concentrate narrowly on what
they want. I youre smart, youll write accordingly: make your content actionable
and ocused on user needs.
MOBILE CONTENTLIKE WRITING
FOR THE WEB, ONLY MORE SOBY MITCH SPEERS
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Mobile content should be even more actionable (data, not anecdotes) and focused on user
needs (scannable, hyper-concise, ast-loading, and/or entertaining). Some examples:
Apartment Guide Mobile--a magazine thats a directory is well-suited to mobile
http://m.paidcontent.org is fast, highly readable, easy to navigate on a phone.
http://mobile.nytimes.com is an excellent mobile site. I think its actually better than the
NY Times iPhone app.
Unfortunately, good mobile versions of magazine websites are scarce. Car and Driver
touts its mobile site, but the usability is terrible. Varietyshows a great approach to
modifying its content for mobile in an iPhone app.
Paul Conley had this to say about the potential of mobile content:
Mobile devices oer the frst opportunity in history to create content that is
aimed at individual users. With mobile, youre not publishing restaurant reviewsor your community -- youre giving the guy at the corner o Main and State three
options or health ood within a six-block radius. Youre not giving the executive
at the airport an interace where he can check his ight, youre sending him a text
message when the airline changes his gate.
MOBILE CONTENTLIKE WRITING
FOR THE WEB, ONLY MORE SO contd
Users cherry-pick
the information
and concentrate
narrowly on what
they want
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Should all your content be available to mobile users?
Ideally youll think through what users are most likely going to want to access on their
mobile devices. Asking your readers what they want would be a good idea. News
content is well suited to mobile, as is any content that is constantly updated. Fewer mobile
users will read a 2,000-word interview all the way through. A summary paragraph with
bulleted key points and a link to the full text may get traction.
What about non-editorial content?
You probably publish more than editorial content. If you have a directory, a data product,
a specialty calculator or anything that lends itsel to away-rom-the-computer use, youd
do well to focus your initial efforts there. Some examples:
The Chemical Touch (iPhone App) is a touch-sensitive periodic table of the elements that
brings up a chemistry-textbooks worth of information for the element selected.
US Elections (iPhone App) is a database of every U.S. presidential election, with details
about candidates, electoral votes, states carried, popular votes, percentages and more.
Theres an app or that
If you have the resources, and your content or data is in demand, you should consider
developing dedicated iPhone, Blackberry or Android apps for them. Well-designed
apps like this are often an improvement over the same tool used in a mobile browser.
MOBILE CONTENTLIKE WRITING
FOR THE WEB, ONLY MORE SO contd
Mobile devices offer
the rst opportunityin history to create
content that is aimed
at individual users
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Wall Street Journal mobile edition (m.wsj.com) is a decent mobile website, but the WSJ Reader
for Blackberry automatically pushes updates to your Blackberry that you can access ofine.
Deciding which platform to build an app for is a function of your audience. If youre trying
to reach the nancial industry, Blackberry is a good bet, though Bloombergs iPhone app is
well regarded. For consumer markets, iPhone or Android platforms deserve a look. Silicon
Alley Insider has some useful tips for those considering whether to build an iPhone app.
Video and podcasts
Video can work on some mobile platforms, but bandwidth limitations are still a barrier.
For iPhones and Android phones, publishing video to YouTube is a good solution. For
other platforms, its going to be trial and error. For example, Verizon V CAST is a service
add-on for about 35 Verizon phones, but to publish video to this service, you need to
negotiate with Verizon. Good luck with that. Other phones seem to support downloading,
converting and then playing video, such as video podcasts, but not easy playback of video
direct from a website.
Audio podcasts are a lot simpler than video to execute, and are a natural for many mobile
devices. Flash animation is generally a bad idea, as is PDF.
SEO is still critical
If your editorial is well optimized for search with an emphasis on keywords, descriptive (not
clever) titles, headlines and headings, then it will be well-positioned for mobile SEO as well.
Mobile users are heavily dependent on search, so SEO is critical.
MOBILE CONTENTLIKE WRITING
FOR THE WEB, ONLY MORE SO contd
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Stafng issues
Tweaking and trimming content for mobile shouldnt really need dedicated staff. It can
(and should) be part of the workow of posting an article in the content management
system. The editor who produced the original piece is best equipped to boil it down for
mobile use, if necessary. Developing mobile apps to expose data products, calculators and
the like will probably require hiring an outside developer. Most media companies dont yet
have iPhone, Android or Blackberry developers on staff, nor should they.
Augmented realitythe uture?
The web allows content to be more useful and accessible than print, some in ways that could not
be imagined 20 years ago. Content, in the form of actionable information and tools, is being
made even more useful on mobile platforms. One fascinating development is augmented reality,
or the ability to superimpose information in a layer over reality. Typically they use the phones
camera, GPS location data and some kind of image recognition processing to provide a layer of
information on top of the camera view of wherever you are. There are some AR apps for Android
and iPhones now, and they are very cool. The Economist did a good write-up on AR recentlythats worth reading. The Layar Reality Browser is a good example of an early AR mobile app.
Mobile means more meat, less at
Small phone screens and keyboards will continue to force publishers to trim all non-
essential words, sentences and images. The real power of the mobile phone as a platform
is that it knows who you are and where you are. Using that power effectively will lead to
mobile content breakthroughs that will set your brand apart.
MOBILE CONTENTLIKE WRITING
FOR THE WEB, ONLY MORE SO contd
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Monetizing mobile content isnt just about deciding how much to charge for your iPhone
app despite the overabundance of punditry on that point. Mobile advertising models are
evolving almost as rapidly as the mobile devices themselves. The question for newspaper
and magazine publishers is, How many of these ad dollars can you capture?
The expected growth of the mobile market makes this an increasingly urgent issue. Irish
researcher Research and Markets is forecasting a 37 percent compound annual growth rate
for mobile advertising revenues through 2015.
The challenge for publishers is ghting for a cut of those revenues among the device
makers, wireless service providers, digital stores and yes, the advertisers themselves, which
view mobile as an important channel for making direct connections with a target audience
using their own content.
In some ways, publishers will be competing with advertisers on the content creationexperience, says Ned May, a director and lead analyst with market researcher Outsell.
Every time a brand creates a great app, thats taking a users attention and time from
other media.
Because the role of newspapers and magazines in connecting consumers and advertisers
is less dened in the mobile space than it is in the print or even the PC-based Web worlds,
publishers that wait to see how the mobile landscape takes shape may be left out of the
mix altogether.
MOBILE ADVERTISINGS
MOVING TARGETSBY ROB OREGAN
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Here are three of the biggest moving targets in the mobile advertising space. The more
publishers educate themselves about these key elements, the better theyll be able to
develop a mobile experience that serves both the audience and the advertisers.
1. The devices
The category of mobile devices continues to evolve, from dumb phones (voice and text
only) to Web-enabled smartphones to larger e-readers. In a recent report authored by
May (Device Wars: Whats a Publisher to Do with Smartphones, E-Readers, and Tablets?),
Outsell further distinguishes between e-readers and tablets: e-readers are single-functiondevices for the acquisition and display of content primarily book content, while
tablets are small computing devices [including netbooks] capable of being loaded with
sophisticated applications and communicating primarily via data networks. These devices
may or may not have a dedicated keyboard for input and their display is typically a color
screen and is increasingly one that can handle touch input.
The differences go well beyond the size, shape and functionality of the devices, because
consumers interact with content differently on each device. Understanding how they
interact is critical for both content creators and advertisers.
Heres how May distinguishes usability among the three types: Smartphones are for sips
of content. E-readers are about immersive reading, where people are not looking for
distractions i.e., advertising. The iPad and other tablets, by comparison, will be much
more purposeful for users. Users will pick up a tablet to accomplish something, not just
browsing or playing with a cool new app. That speaks to bigger experiences, which suit
publishers better.
MOBILE ADVERTISINGS
MOVING TARGETS contd
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
2. The creative
Because the three categories of devices are used for different purposes, the ads delivered
through those devices will be different as well. In his report, Day describes the different
advertising opportunities emerging for the three devices types:
Smartphones will leverage ads that take advantage of knowing the users location, the
primary task she is engaged in, and her ability to remain connected.
E-readers will be suited to contextual advertising, similar to the Amazon model (If youlike this, youll also like this).
Tablets offer opportunities for advertisers to potentially invest more resources designing
their own applications that reside on the device rather than buying search and display
campaigns.
For this new generation of large-screen tablets, the key for publishers is nding more
ways to integrate their advertising partners into the richer content experiences they offer.
Apples forthcoming iAd platform could help by providing a means to embed interactive
ads that dont take the user away from the publishers app environment.
Skiff, the Hearst-backed venture that is developing a new e-reading platform and e-reader
hardware, is taking a different approach. The initial emphasis of its service, due later
this year, is to help publishers preserve the traditional newspaper or magazine reading
experience including the display ads.
MOBILE ADVERTISINGS
MOVING TARGETS contd
Apples iAd platform
could help by providinga means to embed
interactive ads that dont
take the user away
from the publishers
app environment.
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Ads that are reminiscent of print are a more powerful, better way of reaching consumers
than the more Internet-centric models, says Kiliaen Van Rensselaer, Skiffs chief marketing
ofcer. The emphasis will be more around visual display, and the impact that has, so the
advertisers that are currently spending billions on print advertising will be able to preserve
those investments.
For smaller-screen smartphones, publishers have a broad array of inventory types to choose
from, ranging from text-based ads to expanding banners. The Internet Advertising Bureau
lists the various inventory types in its Mobile Buyers Guide.
Sponsorships are also growing in appeal, especially for apps. Financial Times iPad app,
for example, is sponsored by Hublot, a watchmaker, which is subsidized free access to the
subscription-based FT.com site for two months.
For many publishers, sponsorships are a better alternative than intrusive display ads. They
also open up opportunities for deeper, more lucrative relationships with advertisers.
The key to attracting these sponsors, of course, is through compelling content and a large
and/or loyal audience. It always comes back to the content.
3. The metrics
The biggest gap in the mobile space for publishers and advertisers remains a standard
set of metrics. Publishers need compelling audience quality metrics to attract advertisers
and compelling engagement metrics to demonstrate the success of mobile campaigns.
MOBILE ADVERTISINGS
MOVING TARGETS contd
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Unfortunately, theres no agreement as to what those metrics should be. This is a good
news/bad news scenario for publishers. If anything, the launch of new networks like iAd
muddies the waters even more.
The good news is that mobile devices can return all kinds of data about whos consuming
your content, how theyre accessing it and how theyre interacting with it. The bad news
is that carriers and some platform vendors (like Apple and Amazon) are reluctant to share
subscriber information with content or publishing partners. Throw in privacy concerns and
a woeful lack of mobile measurement standards and you have quite the hornets nest.
Theres some movement toward open platforms and standard metrics. Skiff is working
with Nielsen and comScore, for example, on new metrics to measure the effectiveness of
mobile advertising. Without going into specics, Van Rensselaer said the goal is to deliver
fairly quantitative measures of subscribers behavior with publications offered through the
Skiff service, including the time spent on a page. He added that Skiff plans to share that
information with publishers as part of its publisher friendly approach.
MOBILE ADVERTISINGS
MOVING TARGETS contd
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
WHICH MOBILE PLATFORM
SHOULD YOU FOCUS ON?BY MITCH SPEERS With ve major mobile platforms in the US market, where should publishers place their
bets? Here is some data to help you make the right decision. Of course, before you invest
in building mobile apps, you should ensure your website is optimized for mobile browsers.
If users have a good experience using your site from their phone, they are more likely to
consider downloading your smartphone app.
First, look at the US market share for each of the major smartphone platforms according to
Comscore research released April 5, 2010:
RIM, maker of the Blackberry, still has a commanding lead in smartphones in the US,
with 42.1% market share for the 3-month period ending February 2010, according to
ComScore. Blackberry is
the platform of choice for
corporate IT departments,
so they are more likelyto be in the hands of
corporate managers. The
biggest gainer in this
list is Googles Android
platform, while both Palm
and Microsoft have seen
pretty steep drops over
the past 6 months.
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
WHICH MOBILE PLATFORM
SHOULD YOU FOCUS ON? contd
So, if you were to base your decision on handset market share, your priorities would be
pretty clear. However, market share alone does not paint the full picture.
The Apple iPhone is the platform that really gave the mobile application space mainstream
appeal. The iTunes app store is the largest and most protable of its kind by a wide mar-
gin. The numbers are important not for their sheer size, but for what they say about how
each platform is used. The iPhone gets used as much more than a phone. The Blackberry
is a phone/email device with a browser. The others are trying hard to beat Apple at its own
cool multifunctional mobile device game.
Sources:
1. RIM/Blackberry webstore
2. 148apps iPhone app store stats
3. Windows Phone marketplace
4. AndroLib.com Android app fan site
5. Pre Central community site
These numbers are so large as to bealmost meaningless to an app consumer.
Nevertheless, they do emphasize the
relative health of each platforms app
ecosystem, and by that measure, Apple
is the 800-pound gorilla.
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
WHICH MOBILE PLATFORM
SHOULD YOU FOCUS ON? contd
There are now several
paths to in-app advertising
launched or nearly ready to
launch. If your advertisers
want high-impact, rich me-
dia ads in the mobile chan-
nel, these new mobile ad
providers are set to deliver,
at least on Apple iPhone
and Android.
So, how can we project the
future? One good indicator
of future performance is developer support. If developers see promise in a platform, they
will write applications for it, especially if the hardware support is there. Over 30,000 de-
velopers use Appcelerator app development tools, and a survey of 1028 (really) of these
developers in late March 2010 gives a good indication of the attitudes towards these
mobile platforms.
The Apple iPhone is still the platform most developers have interest in creating apps for.
The Apple platform is popular because it has strong consumer acceptance and developers
know you can make money from it.
Palms recent nancial difculties have dampened developer interest. There are really no
compelling reasons to invest in Palm-specic apps for publishers.
(Source: Appcelerator survey March 23-25 2010)
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
Developer interest in RIM and Microsoft has surged as both companies have made it easier
(with better APIs) for developers to create new mobile applications. In addition, Blackberry
makes it a point to accommodate carriers, in stark contrast to Apple.
Android is the one to really watch in this race. Googles strategy to beat Apple makes
a lot of sense. They will continue to offer decent (if not stunning) alternatives to the
iPhone, but be available across all carriers, in many varieties, and usually at a lower price.
Most importantly, Googles purchase of AdMob positions them to be a signicant player
in in mobile advertising.
The next big battleeld is for enterprise customers. Apple hasnt shown a lot of appetite
for this market in any of its product lines. RIM has built its success almost exclusively on the
enterprise. Google is pushing hard on several fronts to be a heavy hitter in enterprise soft-
ware, and Android is likely to pull share away from both RIM and Apple in this market.
So, if your audience is largely corporate managers in medium to large enterprises, placing
bets Googles Android probably makes a lot of sense. RIM is huge in the enterprise, but
their app strategy, particularly in-app advertising, looks less-developed. Microsoft, like RIM,has great enterprise penetration, and their new push to woo developers could reverse their
slide, but Apple has managed to make Microsoft something of a joke in mobile devices to
date. If your focus is consumers, Apple and Android are your top choices.
The mobile landscape is changing very quickly, so it pays to have someone in your
organization responsible for staying abreast of the technology and the major players.
You need to be here.
WHICH MOBILE PLATFORM
SHOULD YOU FOCUS ON? contd
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Publishers Playbook: Mobile Strategies
How to create your frst iPhone applicationThe iPhone has created unprecedented excitement and innovation. Still, for those outside the development
world, the process of developing iPhone apps is a bit of a mystery. This how-to guide walks you through the
steps to make your idea for an iPhone app a reality.
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/08/11/how-to-create-your-rst-iphone-application/
Mobile app or mobile website?Before you invest in mobile marketing, consider your audience and the startup costs.
http://www.entrepreneur.com/marketing/marketingideas/article205856.html
5 cant miss usability tips or mobile website designsA few simple yet prominent steps to designing a much more effective interface and increasing the quality
of a mobile websites usability.
http://spyrestudios.com/usability-tips-for-mobile-website-designs/
Q2 Mobile Ad Impressions Grow 61% Over Q1, According To NewReport From BuzzCity
In case you needed more proof that investing in mobile is a good idea, global mobile media companyBuzzCity released the results of its Global Mobile Advertising Index for Q2 2010, which reveals a
quarter-over-quarter increase of 61% for mobile advertising impressions over Q1.
http://www.mobilemarketingwatch.com/q2-mobile-ad-impressions-grow-61-over-q1-according-to-report-
from-buzzcity-7743/
MOBILE WEB RESOURCES
http://emediavitals.com./http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/08/11/how-to-create-your-first-iphone-application/http://www.entrepreneur.com/marketing/marketingideas/article205856.htmlhttp://spyrestudios.com/usability-tips-for-mobile-website-designs/http://www.mobilemarketingwatch.com/q2-mobile-ad-impressions-grow-61-over-q1-according-to-report-from-buzzcity-7743/http://www.mobilemarketingwatch.com/q2-mobile-ad-impressions-grow-61-over-q1-according-to-report-from-buzzcity-7743/http://guides.seomoz.org/beginners-guide-to-search-engine-optimizationhttp://www.mobilemarketingwatch.com/q2-mobile-ad-impressions-grow-61-over-q1-according-to-report-from-buzzcity-7743/http://www.mobilemarketingwatch.com/q2-mobile-ad-impressions-grow-61-over-q1-according-to-report-from-buzzcity-7743/http://spyrestudios.com/usability-tips-for-mobile-website-designs/http://www.mequoda.com/articles/search-engine-optimization/the-best-seo-keyword-strategy-how-to-pick-seo-keyword-fights-you-can-win/http://www.entrepreneur.com/marketing/marketingideas/article205856.htmlhttp://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/08/11/how-to-create-your-first-iphone-application/http://emediavitals.com./