Wireless Informatics Forum

57% of mobile users are using the same set of services as they did in 2003 says a report from AppTrigger. This doesn’t surprise me. It’s not because new services aren’t available; it’s simply because as consumers we naturally resist change, preferring instead to live within the confines of our comfort zone.

Without a compelling incentive to change behavior, adoption rates for many value-added mobile services will remain marginal. But even those services that do demonstrate a compelling incentive remain hampered, typically by discovery and usability limitations on the device.

Patterns of usage are typically set within the first few hours of mobile phone ownership. It is within this period that users explore new features and functions; they are highly receptive to new services making this window of opportunity one of the most valuable in the entire subscriber lifecycle. If a user isn’t engaged during this period then typically they’ll map their old (voice and SMS) usage patterns onto the device.

Making the most of discovery

If I buy a handset based on it’s camera performance, it’s not unreasonable to assume that one of my first actions will be to take a photo. Similarly, there are common activities that most users go though with a new phone; setting a ringtone, importing contacts etc. In most cases these activities, based on the devices capabilities, are not expressly linked with associated operator services.

Of course there’s a compromise between service introduction and intrusive wizards that simply act to aggravate users, but could these anticipated activities be better utilized to introduce users to associated, revenue-generating, services?

Take a picture and be guided through an MMS usage and set-up wizard; set a ringtone and be prompted to visit the operator’s portal to download more if you don’t find anything you like; import contacts and be introduced to the operators backup and restore service that’ll make importing contacts even easier in the future.

All of these services may already be available on the device; just not logically associated with the corresponding functions or features. Instead they may reside several layers deep, waiting to be accidentally discovered by the user 6 months later.

Set-up

After 20 minutes of trying to set-up a new service, 90% of end-users will have abandoned it.

For services such as mobile email, that come complete with notoriously complex set-up procedures, this can be devastating. Users begin questioning the value of the service against existing ‘comfort zone’ tools such as SMS. Even worse, some end-users may experience buyer’s remorse, a condition that can have a profound impact on brand value and revenue.

Before a purchase, the buyer feels positive emotions; there are heightened possibilities about the functionality of the new device. After the purchase the buyer may experience deflated expectations if the product / service doesn’t meet needs or is too complex.

Joining the dots

Device technologies are prevalent enough to support mass-market adoption of most data services; services are launched and available, often bundled on the device itself; and over-the-air configuration tools are one of the most established lines of mobile device management available. The components are all in place, but a disconnect exists. Device functionality and operator services are typically not associated with one other and neither leverages the exploratory phase of new device ownership in a way that entices end-users to break out of their comfort-zones and establish new, more profitable, patterns of mobile usage.