The importance of mobile devices for your small staff association
Posted on : 08-25-2010 | By : Shannon Otto | In : communications, marketing, research and stats, technology
Tags: ASAE, asae annual meeting, asae10, blackberry, iphone, MemberClicks, mobile, small-staff association, social media
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Hello from somewhere above Las Vegas! (Isn’t technology amazing?!) I’m headed back to the East Coast after a busy few days in Los Angeles for ASAE’s Annual Meeting and Exposition, and it truly was a fantastic trip. The sessions provided me with a ton of food for thought, and I really enjoyed meeting so many people “in real life.”
Today, I wanted to share a quick tidbit of info from Jeff De Cagna’s session on mobile technology. I’ve been thinking about this for a few days and I think it’s really important, especially for small staff associations.
Jeff shared a great deal of important statistics (for example, for every one computer sold, there are four mobile devices sold), but the point that really stuck out to me was about the generations. Everyone uses mobile devices. Not everyone uses social media.
Too often, we talk about the importance of having presences on social media and engaging with your members online, but it’s vital to remember that not everyone uses Twitter, Facebook, et al. Nearly everyone — from the 22-year-old new member straight out of college to the 65-year-old who’s about to retire — uses mobile devices. Perhaps not everyone uses a phone that can connect to the Internet, but those phones’ market shares are growing each and every day, and experts predict that within just a few years (5 or so, I believe), we will access the Internet more on our phones than on computers.
So when you’re thinking about what to include in your communications arsenal, don’t forget about mobile. It could be more important to your association than social media. If you use Google Analytics or another website analytics program, it should show you how people are accessing your website — whether it’s via iPhone, BlackBerry or computer. Be sure your website is visually appealing and has easy-to-digest information. Ask your members if they would use an app.
Most people are never more than 10 feet away from their mobile phones. Members should have easy access to your association on those devices.
Does your organization have a mobile strategy?
Good observation about the use of mobile and the recognition that not everybody uses Twitter or Facebook.
And, yes, everybody does have a cell phone, but many people only use it to make phone calls, so there’s still a lot of education that needs to take place about the strategic use of mobile devices.
You’re absolutely right – many people do only use their cell phones for phone calls. That’s why it’s so important to find out how your members use their cell phones and what they use them for. Research has shown that Internet use on mobile phones has increased, so it should be on association execs’ radars.
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