Generation Gap and Smart Phones

The Kiplinger Letter had results of an interesting study at the end of 2010.

To me it highlights the basic reason small business has been so slow to understand not just the importance of the web, but the transcendent effect of mobile technology.

Simply put, the folks that own the small businesses do not yet use the technologies most of their prospects use.

Here is a snapshot of the results...

 Here were some other results of Generation Y's technology usage...

•   90% use the Internet
•   75% use social networking sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter
•   60% access the web wirelessly on-the-go
•   83% keep their cell phone nearby, even when asleep
•   40% don’t even have a landline

A good friend of mine from the Boomer generation bought his first smart phone - an Android -  two weeks ago today. After he had it for three days I saw him at a conference. He could not believe how it had already changed how he did everyday things.

I asked him if there could have possibility been anything I could have said to him before he bought his smart phone that could have made him understand what just a few days of having his own smart phone made him understand.

His unqualified answer was "no". Nothing I could have said could have made him understand.

I asked him if he thought he could explain it to someone who did not yet have a smart phone. Again, he said no.

This was a truely transformational event in his life. Yet he can not clearly explain it.

 It is no wonder the average small business owner doesn't understand. But if they want to work with those who do, they need to take the leap and get a smart phone - Android or iPhone, the Blackberry or Windowes phones don't count because they have no significant apps - today. Approach it with an open mind and learn what it is all about.

The Decline and fall of Blackberry

Interesting post by Henry Blodget over on The Business Insider on the future of Blackberry. Here are teh main points he makes...

1 - RIM’s products are no longer the best on the market

2 - the smartphone market has become a “platform” game

3 - one of the biggest selling points for BlackBerrys has always been their security and integration with corporate computing systems, most notably Microsoft’s Exchange. Increasingly, however, companies are allowing employees to use whichever devices they prefer.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/blodget-rimm-toast-2011-5#ixzz1Mp6cV5fF

His conclusion...

The most likely scenario for RIM is that it becomes Nokia, a company that once dominated the cellphone market but lost several steps and is now scrambling to stay relevant. A worse scenario would be that RIM becomes the next Palm, a one-time leader that falls on its face and is eventually sold for scrap to a larger technology player.

Apps 6 Times More Popular Than Web on Phones

Read Write Web has a post comparing the use of apps vs. web browsers today titled. Apps 6 Times More Popular than Web on Phones.

The chart below shows the results of the study by Zokem.

Here is the basic quote...

"The study, conducted in April 2011, found that on smartphones, apps were used 85% of the time, but the Web browser was used just 15% of the time. On tablets, apps were still popular, but were used just 61% of the time as compared with Web browsing, which was used 39% of the time."

I hear lots of discussion about how your company's phone app will become more important than your company's web site. In a post PC world - which we are now entering - I believe this is definitely true.