NEW YORK ? An mCordis executive at Mobile Marketer?s Mobile FirstLook: Strategy 2016 advised marketers to leverage mobile as a personalization medium rather than an advertising channel by developing empathy and understanding for consumers.

During the ?Mobile Versus Mobility: A New Era of Connectivity? session, the executive detailed the history and evolution of mobile, beginning with the first device created in 1983 and culminating with the connected supercomputers now referred to as smartphones. However, brands must go beyond gazing at mobile devices as simply smartphones if they want to effectively leverage user data and profiles to foster long-lasting relationships.

?We moved beyond the cartoon of a mobile device to a physical brick that?s in our hands to a supercomputer that?s in our pockets, which is in fact no longer a phone,? said Michael Becker, managing partner at mCordis. ?It?s a communication medium. It?s a commerce medium. It?s an entertainment medium.

?It?s all of these different considerations, and frankly, most consumers don?t see it as a phone anymore.?

Marketing evolution
Individuals seek personalization when they engage with their mobile devices, leaving marketers to locate ? and consequently present ? utility and value to consumers. One area of difficulty with which brands have previously struggled is scaling their efforts.

Mr. Becker referenced "The Brady Bunch" when giving an example of optimal personalization. In the television program, Alice Brady would visit local butcher Sam, who knew her favorite types and cuts of meat. Consumers are looking for those types of interactions on mobile, although they are not always scalable.

Nevertheless, smartphones offer a gateway to a world of information and data, which can be leveraged by marketers and users alike.

?The new basis of competition is no longer manufacturing; the new basis of competition is information,? Mr. Becker said. ?Let?s take the information we have about goods or services, use this newfangled thing we call the Internet, put it out there and display that information as efficiently and effectively as possible.

?This is when we start getting the recommendation economy.?

As consumers continue using mobile to gain information about products and services, brands will continue to garner valuable customer data and insights on purchasing behavior. This will transform the retail sector.

Estimates predict that 90 percent of all retail will be mobile-influenced by 2020 and 2021. This will require all marketers to know their customers on a personal basis, meaning they will likely tap into methods such as location-based targeting.

Beacons are one tactic capable of bridging the physical and digital worlds. This week, pharmacy chain Rite Aid announced it is employing InMarket beacons at its bricks-and-mortar storefronts.

In addition to using the technology, Rite Aid will have access to the approximately 42 million consumers InMarket has through its affiliated applications.

The addressability factor
Mobile, more than any other medium that has ever come before it, has one important factor that acts as the golden key to marketing: addressability. Companies are able to tailor content or messages to a specific individual, based on his or her profile, purchasing behavior and inputted information.

However, these details should not be used to target the consumer with tried-and-true advertising methods. Instead, an increased focus should be placed on creating conversations.

?Content is king,? Mr. Becker said. ?The queen of content is distribution. When you put the king and queen together and do it right, the offspring of those two are conversations.?

The advent of ad-blockers will also make traditional marketing methods, such as banner ads, less likely to succeed. Twenty-one to 46 percent of the millennial audience is installing ad-blockers, a potentially concerning notion for many brands.

Therefore, companies can no longer rely on the handcuffs of paid media, per Mr. Becker. Marketers must take control in the mobile world by leveraging their consumers? databases, using their own media and creating an invaluable asset.

Mr. Becker named a Turkish bank as a prime example showcasing how marketing can transform from the usual ?targeting? into a memorable two-way conversation between an individual and a brand.

The bank in question sought to reach customers not using its mobile banking services by sending them a personalized email with a link to a video. The video contained a clip of false news footage claiming that the individual was the last person on the planet not using mobile banking.

The humorous tactic resulted in more consumers opting in to try the mobile-enabled services.

?Personalization is nothing new,? Mr. Becker said. ?We had it with our butcher, we lost it in manufacturing and distribution society, and we?re bringing it back in with mobile.?