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Days of mobile on the cheap are over: Forrester

Marketers face an uphill trek to catch up with mobile-savvy consumers, hampered by inadequate budgets and a lack of big-picture focus, according to a new Forrester Research report.

Although marketers are developing mobile applications, they put an inordinate amount of resources into project-based work and buying media instead of developing strategy and infrastructure to support long-term marketing goals. The findings suggest that marketers are ill-served by a provincial vision at a time when a broader strategy is needed to close the gap with consumers who are a step ahead.

?The days of mobile on the cheap are over,? said Julie Ask, vice president and principal analyst with Forrester Research, San Francisco. ?Mobile moments are the next battleground for brands to win, serve and retain customers. 

?They need to think differently about mobile and dig in,? she said.

Customer engagement
Forrester?s report, ?The Mobile Technology Firms Use For Consumers: 2014,? finds that 21 percent of US consumers have made the mobile mind shift ? defined as expecting to get anything they want on their mobile device in their moment of need. 

Consumers need to be reached in mobile moments.

While 53 percent of digital business executives cite increasing customer engagement as at a top mobile priority, 46 percent have $500,000 or less to spend on digital initiatives in total, leaving 68 percent of respondents without the budget needed to support successful mobile initiatives. 

More than 60 percent have developed a native Android or iOS app, and a further 19 percent plan to build one, according to the report.  Just as with mobile devices, firms are also prioritizing the development of tablet apps as their installed base grows and overall revenue potential increases. 

?Marketers view apps as the most important mechanism and experience to engage consumers on mobile devices,? said Ms. Ask, co-author of The Mobile Mind Shift.

?The app gives them the most flexibility to offer services while also allowing for consumers to opt in for push notifications and other features. 

?Apps are more contextual and as a result, better experiences if the marketers can drive downloads,? she said.

Beyond basic app development, most firms lack the resources to build out user interface design, analytics or marketing solutions. 

?They are doing project-based work and buying media rather than putting strategy and infrastructure in place to support longer term marketing goals,? Ms. Ask said. ?They are focused, so to speak, on the small "m" in marketing rather than the big "M." 

?Talent is also scarce,? Ms. Ask said. ?Mobile isn't that high of a priority for a lot of brands ? yet. 

The report contradicts expectations that budgets allocated toward mobile will grow significantly this year as leveraging mobile to enhance consumer convenience becomes an important component of marketing strategy.

Lacking buy-in
Battling a lack of management buy-in, marketers will be hard-pressed to catch up with mobile savvy consumers, missing an opportunity to reap the rewards of delivering the right message in the mobile moments that matter.

Brands need to broaden strategies.

?Catching up will be harder,? Ms. Ask said. ?They will need to think about leap-frogging and a less linear progression. 

?Catching up means a real commitment to internal processes, platforms and people,? she said. ?They can't just keep doing project-based work.? 

Final Take
Michael Barris is staff reporter on Mobile Marketer, New York