'An embarrassment' not to be involved in mobile, says expert

Businesses that deliberately leave mobile marketing off their agenda should be embarrassed by their efforts.

That's according to Melissa Parrish, a senior analyst at Forrester Research, who believes that mobile is moving forward even quicker than social.

She told btobonline.com: "There are so many vendors eager to help with marketing strategies, but marketers don't know where to turn. But mobile has moved so quickly, even more so than social, that it's an embarrassment for marketers not to be involved."

The explosion of mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets makes it "imperative" for marketers to make sense of the medium.

As a result, an increasing number of marketers are hopping aboard the mobile marketing train, especially when it comes to advertising.

Figures from telecom research company Berg Insight suggest the global mobile ad market is poised to jump from $3.4 billion (£2.2 billion) in 2010 to $22 billion (£14.1 billion) in 2016, representing a 37 per cent annual growth rate. Furthermore, the surge will take mobile advertising from 3.8 per cent of all worldwide ad spending to 15.2 per cent in the next five years, according to intomobile.com.

Parrish continues: "Marketers are still learning about their mobile customers and how mobile fits into their marketing practices. At this stage, it's extremely important that marketers demand from their agencies case studies with results that are relevant to their own objectives."