If You Are Going To Do Mobile, Do It Right…

Mobile is currently the fastest growing marketing channel out there. With the ongoing smartphone explosion. there is no apparent end in sight to the number of mobile devices being released each month. So it is no surprise that brands everywhere are making a concentrated effort to get into the mobile marketplace. But before jumping into the mobile pool headfirst, it is important to know how to swim. If you are going to do Mobile, do it right. Here is an example of doing it wrong:

Volkswagen is launching a multi-tiered marketing campaign to introduce the all-new 2011 Jetta. Part of the campaign includes an event at local dealerships that will allow people to test drive the 2011 Jetta before it is available to the general public. The event is by invitation only (although I suspect anyone who has ever done any business with Volkswagen or the local dealership is invited), and you are required to RSVP to reserve the day and time to test drive the car. In an invitation that is sent via traditional mail, consumers are invited to RSVP in one of three ways: by logging on to a Volkswagen branded web site, by calling a number printed on the invitation, or by scanning a QR code also printed on the invitation.

So far so good.

But issues arise when a consumer decides to take the mobile route, and scans the QR code. The code translates into the exact same url that consumers would use to RSVP via a desktop. When viewed in a mobile browser, the text is too small to read, and you still have to manually type in a seven digit numeric RSVP code that came with the invite. The problem here is that the marketing agency failed to acknowledge the difference between the desktop user and the mobile user. Taking a landing page that was obviously designed with the desktop user in mind, and trying to “mobilize” it by creating a QR Code to link to it rarely makes for a good mobile user experience.

A better approach would have been to have two separate pages, or at the very least two separate css packages so the mobile user would see a web page that is more suited toward their unique viewing environment. Take out the three images at the bottom and make the text easier to read. Preferably create a single column format so the mobile browser can use its own logic to zoom in appropriately. And most importantly, prepopulate the RSVP code via the link. It is incredibly easy to dynamically create QR codes - the printing company already dynamically printed the RSVP code itself as well as the phone number to call on the invite. The QR code should have been added to that to save the mobile user the headache of having to type in any type of alpha numeric code on the page.

Mistakes like this are easy to make, but they are also easy to avoid through a little research and proper user persona development. Again, if you are going to do Mobile, do it right.