Indelibuzz

The recent holiday weekend allowed me to celebrate new technological independence with my upgrade to a smarter smartphone. Between better hardware, software, and the latest Android OS it finally became preferable to perform a majority of tasks while ‘on the go’. All of these formerly required the use of my desktop, a 27” monitor, and of course – being physically at the office. In addition, porting Facebook and Twitter to my new handheld was, for the first time, a standard step in the setup of my new phone. And I’m not alone.

Currently there are 4.7 million monthly active users of Android’s Facebook app and 56 million using the FB application for iPhone. But these numbers don’t reflect use of the numerous 3rd party social network apps available for mobile devices. Mobile browser use on Twitter and Facebook had triple digit increases in the past year.

So the real question is: Have brands caught up with the convenience and portability of social networks? A review of some of the Facebook pages for the brands I’ve ‘liked’ highlighted the need for thinking small when it comes to social marketing.

Regardless of brilliantly clear graphics and ease of use, social network pages on mobile devices are real-estate challenged. Users multi-tasking between email, games – and yes, even phone calls – are quickly distracted. So it’s critical that your brand’s Facebook, Twitter and other social pages look as good on mobile devices as they do on the big screen.

The mobile experience also underscores the fact every moment matters when brands step into social conversations with their fans. You have mere seconds to engage your audience. The discipline to ‘be brief, be bright and be gone’ is paramount. Because even if you’re working on a large screen right now, there’s a good chance your target audience is looking at something a lot smaller.