For a while, it was very in vogue to think that a mobile web experience was secondary to having an app.
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However, the mobile web is with people without extra work (there’s nothing to download). It’s native to smartphones, which most mobile applications are not.
Not too surprisingly, mobile web use has shot upward since more phones and devices have appeared on the market.
Mobile Web Use Has More Than Doubled Since 2009
A study from Pew Internet & American Life Project, recently revealed that mobile web usage has more than doubled since 2009.
The report also outlined:
- Specifically, two-thirds of cell-phone owning Americans use their phones to go online. (Versus only 31% of people who said they went online on their phones, back in 2009.)
- 91% of all American adults now have cell phones.
- 56% of all American adults now have a smartphone.
What does this mean? These numbers most likely have implications about how new businesses will be formed.
What “Mobile First” Means Is Still Somewhat Undefined
“Mobile first” means something different to every company. There’s no clear consensus on what exactly those words mean, but each business leader seems to have his or her own idea of the vernacular.
The general idea circulating is that: Where readers and searchers and consumers are, businesses must also be. This lends itself to the idea that companies of every stripe need a cross-platform strategy from the onset.
What Does This Mean For App-Based Startups?
Is a single mobile app enough to attract enough of the market?
Some startups in L.A. building specifically for mobile interactions seem to be creating their businesses with eyes wide open.
GonnaBe, a mobile-focused startup founded in Los Angeles in 2012, is aimed at being a platform for people’s social plans. The startup’s CEO Hank Leber said about their approach, “It’s not just about an app. It’s about fitting into people’s lives.”
“As a platform or a service company, you've got to do everything you can to fit into peoples' lives where they are. Sometimes it's via your native app, but often you've got to connect with customers via text message, email, or other social channels. To do this you need the mobile web. Otherwise, you're on an island with your app – which was the strategy like four years ago.”
Los Angeles-based Gumiyo, aimed at helping small and medium-sized businesses create mobile websites, was early to the mobile sector -- examining mobile trends as early as 2006.
Founder of Gumiyo Shuki Lehavi said, “Mobile web used to be an isolated island, where limited versions of websites were written in a custom format and they were viewed by primitive browsers on small screens. Over the past several years, we have seen mobile web traffic to sites we host grow from 0.3% of total traffic in 2007 up to 42% today.”
“For businesses small and large, mobile websites offer a great way to communicate with consumers in a immediate and focused way. Your mobile experience should be to-the-point, optimized, and clear. Fit for the on-the-go lifestyle.”
Gumiyo was acquired by Talus Labs in early 2013.
“For most companies, simply having an app is not enough to attract a big piece of a market. Unless you're a phenomenon like Instagram or Snapchat, you've got to incorporate elements of web into your product in order to really connect with users,” said Leber.
Asher Hunt, head of product at Learnist, a startup aimed at shared, social learning said, "Designing for mobile web is easier and it's harder. You have to cut stuff out, so it forces you to decide what's really important."
