Over the past 9 months, the industry has finally moved away from talking about the its-so-outdated-not-even-funny-as-a-joke "Year of Mobile" (thank GOODNESS) and has concentrated on promoting "Mobile-First." While I applaud the importance this places on including mobile tactics to brands' marketing strategies, I can't help but wonder if this phrase actually means anything. Or is just another concept marketers can toss around to make it sound like they really "get it?"
My greater point for today's post is how marketing jargon dilutes conversations to either make up for lack of real substance or to confuse the audience so that they buy into the message. However, I'll first clarify my contention with the idea of "Mobile First." In my experience, mobile is not a primary discovery engine. Most of the time we're engaging with mobile content after we've begun research elsewhere or with a specific intent in mind, such as finding a coffee shop for a mid-morning meeting. This may not be the only intention of the phrase "Mobile First," rather that you design with a mobile experience in mind to be sure you're prepared for this audience as well. However, the challenge remains that I want different things from you on different devices, so this may neglect some of those other wants. In that case, "Mobile First" isn't the best strategy. Rather, all of your experiences should be designed to compliment one another while providing the optimal experience for each. So again, does "Mobile First" really mean anything or is it just another phrase to toss around to validate the speaker?
Specialized jargon can be found in many occupations, though I have to imagine none exploit it so much as in marketing. If you've ever attended a conference, you've probably noticed how many of the speakers tend to remark on the same phrases you hadn't ever heard before that day. But did you actually understand the point they were making? Was there one? At least once a week I have conversations with brands and other media partners where they ask me what some new acronym means or how it differs from another phrase they've heard. If there's value in the strategies media partners are advocating, what is the benefit of confusing the client with jargon?
As more brands are coming to understand the power of mobile as part of their marketing strategy, we need to do even more to break down the complexities to increase testing and innovation. That means speaking clearly about capabilities and limitations to identify existing challenges. The sooner we're able to do that, the faster we can identify solutions that push us all forward.
Main Take-Away: If a media partner or agency can't explain a concept without jargon, it's probably a bust.
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