Top 7 mobile moments in 2013

iOS7

Many will look back fondly on 18th September and remember the horror that it would take 47 hours and 12 minutes for Apple’s new operating system to download. Fortunately all of our phones were able to update by the next morning for us to swap opinions on the new design. I don’t remember any software update generating this much excitement.

iOS7’s release came at a crucial time for Apple. Filling the hole left by Steve Jobs has been difficult and the competition has been closing in. It still has the power to delight and impress us but they will need to return to innovative ways if they are to hold onto the smartphone market.

50 billion app downloads – in both stores

Both Google Play and the Apple Store hit the 50 billion app download milestone this year.

Many have foretold the death of the app but it doesn’t look like it’s about to die and why should it? Apps have a number of advantages over mobile websites such as being able to work without a connection and pushing messages for users’ immediate attention.  Websites alone may not be enough for some companies even if they are mobile-friendly.

Many have foretold the death of the app but it doesn’t look like it’s about to die.

Google Glass

This next big thing or fashion faux pas? We’ll find out when Google Glass is released to the public next year. What is likely is that it will herald in a new era of mobile technology – expect more watches and other items that are more wearable than a smartphone.

Glass is a significant moment for Google. While they have dabbled in laptops and smartphones, this is their first innovative piece of hardware. Even if it doesn’t come off, all eyes will be on them to see what they come up with next.

Responsive design

Pete Cashmore predicted it would be the big thing for 2013 and he wasn’t wrong. Total global web traffic through mobile has almost doubled this year to 17.4% – I’ve also seen figures as high as 28%.

Responsive website design has been the winner on the mobile design front as it is easier to implement than an app, cheaper and requires less maintenance compared to apps and mobile-specific websites.

Search

Over 70 percent of mobile searches leads to action within one hour (compared to a month for desktop), so being mobile is now an immediate business concern and necessity.

Mobile search is already encroaching on desktop search and is predicted to overtake it next year. If your company relies on being found online then you need to plan for better mobile search and ads.

Mobile’s share of ad spend doubles in a year

Mobile ad spend, particularly in video has seen rapid growth and shows no sign of stopping. As digital eats into traditional ad spend, mobile is eating into digital’s spend and now makes up around 14%. Over half of Facebook and Twitter’s advertising revenue now comes from mobile.

The Internet Advertising Bureau is predicting that mobile will break £1 billion in 2013 and mobile video advertising has also seen serious growth – a 1,260% leap from 2013 to 2013 (£1.7m to £23m).

Over half of Facebook and Twitter’s advertising revenue now comes from mobile.

Social happens on mobile

While this isn’t a new statement, it’s one that needs to be reinforced. If you are using social channels to share your content, then the website you are sending people to has to be mobile friendly otherwise you will never reap the benefits of either medium.

Facebook and Pinterest see over half their traffic come from mobile and Twitter’s is over 75%. Pinterest is one of the biggest winners here with over 48.2% of all social network-sharing on iPads.