Professional services firms must meet the growing mobile expectation

People are researching and buying services and products on their mobile devices in growing numbers. Successful firms must offer a mobile-optimized experience for clients and prospects to learn more about the organization and engage with its professionals, or risk losing business to their competitors who do.

Below is a combination of published data and proprietary usage data from our Vizibility users.

People use mobile devices to make purchase decisions with growing frequency.

• Of the 1.2 billion computing devices sold in 2012, smartphones and tablets out-shipped PCs by 2-to-1. (ZDNet)
• 61% of smartphone users make local searches from a device (Localeze/15miles Fifth Annual comScore Local Search Usage Study February 2012)
• 79% of smartphone owners use their device to make or influence a buying decision and 74% make a purchase as a result (Google, Ipsos)
• Nearly 1 in 5 smartphone users scan barcodes such as QR codes to get more information (comScore 2012)

Companies without a mobile strategy are driving business to their competitors.

• It’s not just products, people are also looking for professional services. 21% of smart phone users and 12% of tablet users have searched for a professional like an attorney using their device. (“How Today’s Consumers Really Search for an Attorney,” LexisNexis 2012)

• 72% of buyers expect you to have a mobile-friendly web site (Sterling Brands and SmithGeiger study 2012)

• 61% of customers who visit a mobile unfriendly site are likely to go to a competitor’s site (Karim Temsamani at IABALM 2012 via IAB)
• Only 29% of the top 100 U.S. law firms have a mobile-friendly web site (up from 12% in 2011)
• Only 15% of the top 100 U.S. accounting firms have a mobile-friendly web site
• 67% are more likely to buy from a business with a mobile-friendly site (Google). The top uses (Harris Poll 2012) for smartphones, tables and computers are:
  • Smartphones
    • 89% stay engaged
    • 82% research and news
    • 75% navigate/directions
  • Tablets
    • 78% research and news
    • 74% stay engaged
    • 61% social networking
  • Computers
    • 84% read email
    • 81% research and news
    • 69% social networking

• Don’t be a mobile frenemy. 57% won’t recommend a business with a poorly designed mobile site (Google)

Mobile friendly organizations engage with customers and prospects better and more often

The top two mobile marketing objectives for businesses are increasing customer engagement (71%) and generating revenue (56%) (ClickZ, 2012)

• 70% of smartphone owners call a business after searching (The Mobile Playbook)
• 19% of professionals with a QR code on their business cards get scanned at least once every 30 days (Vizibility, December 2012)
• People spend an average of two minutes with a professional’s Mobile Business Card on their smart phone as compared to less than a minute on a web page on a PC (Nielsen Norman Group)

To be competitive today, organizations must be ready to engage with customers and prospects on mobile devices. And if you needed any further proof about the future, Ping Mobile announced recently that more kids know how to use a smartphone than how to tie a shoe.

Next steps you can do right now

• Create a mobile home page
• Create mobile bios for professionals
• Add QR codes on business cards that point to Mobile Business Cards
• Contact ALL-STATE LEGAL to learn more about hosted Mobile Business Card solutions for your professionals