Something we have long predicted has finally happened. In terms of Google searches, mobile now has more searches than desktop. This point is especially striking given the fact that the “Desktop” category included tablets like the iPad, which are not what you would traditionally think of as a desktop computer.
This means that for the majority of people, where they go first for information, news, purchases and otherwise is a mobile screen, and not a desktop. Whole industries will need to fundamentally change how they approach their business strategies. Currently, many companies have a budget allocated for Web development but don’t have a corresponding one for mobile. With the majority of users now accessing information from a mobile device, businesses absolutely need to have a mobile strategy, and have money budgeted towards that.
And no, they should not convert the website budget to mobile web budget, as the mobile web is dying. If extra budget can’t be had, then whatever companies are spending on web they should start to shift that funding into apps. This shift has long been coming and we are excited to see it happening, so we can continue to help more and businesses get their message out to where their users are.
In the longer term, the companies that get the attention of users will be the ones who have good apps. Those companies will be the survivors and will defeat their competition. It won’t be the best website that wins anymore. And lest we forget, businesses need to make money, and most buying decisions are made on mobile now.
In a few years this will be self evident but right now there is a seismic shift that is occurring, and many are missing it. They need to adjust accordingly or feel the pain of moving too slowly. And they better hope that pain doesn’t entail shutting their doors.
