The Palm Pre Just makes it Interesting

Filed in archive Mobility on August 7, 2009

© cesarastudillo



Its the age of the smartphones. Recent research from Gartner shows that across the globe, mobile phone sales are decreasing, but "smartphones" (meaning any cell phone that can text/access the internet/connect to email/do generally cool stuff) continue to increase. That means no one seems to want a "normal" mobile phones anymore. In fact, many new smartphone-users bought their phone reluctantly with the mindset that they need one to keep up.

Right now, Nokia has sold the most smartphones worldwide. But Blackberries and the iPhone are quickly gaining (Canalys research release) market share. Of course, the Palm Pre has yet to be released in Europe, and it's had some fantastic pre-sales. This "iPhone-killer" will come out in October.

But what do all the smartphone have to do with business? Well, for one thing, more people will be accessing the web from their phone. Companies need to make sure their websites are mobile-friendly. You can check yours right now with the dotiMobi emulator. If you have money, you might want to consider going the "App" route. iPhone apps are huge but lots of business owners carry blackberries and the competition is less fierce.

Truth is, the internet's great and all, but people are busy. The average consumer can't/won't make time to sit down at a desktop and surf for the nearest coffee shop. They need to know right now! Look at mobile web-browsing as a chance to reach more people when they need you instead of one more marketing obstacle.

In the end, it won't matter which smartphone "wins". The point is that people want mobility and your company needs to provide it to stay in the game. Don't worry if you only text at 5 wpm, you can still have a presence in the mobile arena.

Want more (free!) tips on how to make your business smart-phone friendly? Go here.