Product teams and marketers are walking right into the trap of isolating experiences to devices, instead of using these devices as tools for a beautiful omnichannel, cross-device brand-to-customer conversation. And mobile devices are to blame.

The mobile craze has many companies willingly building up the walls of their own internal silos, unwisely using devices as the bricks to hedge up the customer experience one user at a time.

This trap is the result of an incorrect reaction to the unavoidable differences in devices.

Devices are different, that is true. Mobile is no more a desktop in your hand than a desktop is an upright phablet with a keyboard.

But just because they are different doesn’t mean the mobile experiences and desktop experiences are mutually exclusive or non-collaborative. Unfortunately that’s exactly how many companies approach the mobile/desktop issue.

Instead of considering each device as a contributing asset to an overarching customer experience, companies are dividing their business up into mobile and non-mobile departments, segmenting up the customer experience in a way it should never be segmented.

While being mobile-minded doesn’t just mean trying to fit your website on a small screen, it also doesn’t mean building experiences that are exclusive to mobile devices. The customer experience transcends devices, and unless companies successfully build bridges between different platforms and devices, customers will build their own, be they positive or negative.

Instead of segmenting product design by device, the proper approach is to consider how each device serves as an instrument to forward user-centric objectives within the appropriate context.

David DeVisser, Principal Architect at Adobe, recently said:

“Mobile has become the most important digital customer experience of our time, but it is not the only method of reaching your customers and prospects. Focusing on the customer relationship and their experience with your brand is paramount. To exceed expectations in this goal, use the correct, not just “best” technologies to deliver experience. Use data procured over time, combined with real-time insights, iterating often and striving for individualized personalization, versus mass segmentation.”

Building for devices is a divisive practice, both internally for product and marketing teams, as well as for your customers. David DeVisser will be discussing this topic at the upcoming  Mobile Analytics Summit  in his session “Mobile Department? Shut it down.”  Reserve your seat now   to learn from DeVisser and 25 other mobile thought leaders.

About the Author

Jack Vawdrey is a content marketing strategist and closet programmer interested in the opportunities that marketing technology and automation present for enterprises. Passionate about digital marketing, content marketing, and analytics, Jack is continuously honing his skills in these areas and relishes an opportunity to share what he's learned. Jack joined the ObservePoint marketing team in 2016 as Managing Editor and now works as a Content Marketing Consultant.

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