Deliverable 4 – Mobile Technologies

Mobile Applications and Data Collection

In the last decade, the world has realized amazing growth in the use and availability of mobile phones in all societies across the globe. What used to be only available in modern urban centers is now commonplace in less-developed countries, allowing mobile engagement for nearly all. With the exponentially increasing presence of mobile technologies, companies are exploring additional and innovative opportunities for these devices to gather data about the mobile user and apply that data in new and creative ways.
With every application that a user downloads to a mobile phone, opportunities are created to collect extensive information related to that user. In many instances, the information collected may improve a user’s experience with a company and help foster increased use or purchases. For example, an internationally recognized coffee vendor uses a mobile application that allows the user to enroll in a rewards program, offering points for each purchase that can later be redeemed for discounts and free products. If the user should choose, they can also store payment card information within their mobile app, and make purchases directly with their phone either online or within a store. Though very convenient for the user, this has the added benefit of providing the coffee vendor with extensive information about the user that can be stored and used later — which physical store they shop at and how often, what beverages they purchase, mailing and email addresses, birthday, current location — as well as the ability to send messages directly to them via SMS.
This information allows for several opportunities that would otherwise go unrealized for the cash-only customer who is not leveraging the mobile application. For example, should a user that normally frequents the same store twice a week suddenly stop going, the app may send a message saying “We miss you! Here is a coupon for 50% off your next visit.” If perhaps, a new location is opening up close to the user’s office, a marketing email could be sent saying “We’re coming to your neighborhood! Check out our new location opening next week – here’s a coupon!” Even when traveling, the app can sense and record significant changes to your geolocation and send a note like “Welcome to Miami! Beat the heat with a delicious iced cappuccino at our Market Street location!” because it knows the user purchases cappuccinos on a regular basis. All these examples and associated marketing opportunities become possible through mobile application use with little intervention required by the user.
Though this example is related to a single company, many organizations provide mobile apps that, in addition to providing a feature-rich experience for their customers, also collect data on their user demographics, usage patterns, locations and more – and, in many instances, without the user realizing. This data can also be used to provide improved experiences back to the entire user community, not just to the single user. Much of the data for Google traffic alerts (though not all of it) is collected behind the scenes by the Google Maps application on many smartphones and tablets. In this instance, the total collected data is anonymized to show traffic patterns on Google Maps, though the individual user data is still available for their individualized Google History view.
The mobile experience provides users specific functionality while providing organizations and application developers a captive audience capable of supplying valuable data back for their use. As mobile technology continues to evolve, and applications become more complex, the relationship between data collection and user experience will continue to grow, benefiting users and companies alike.

Social Media and Data Collection

The increased use of social media is one of the fastest-growing trends within the world today. Mobile technology paired with innovative social networking platforms have provided the world a forum where information can be shared quickly and easily. Whether it is family photos, interests, or professional contacts, there are numerous places this information can be posted and viewed online. es are now also taking advantage of this phenomenon, realizing there are powerful insights that can be attained by collecting and analyzing social media data. Information posted by users that may seem meaningless or even silly can be used by companies and organizations to form valuable perspectives on potential customers and shape user experiences.
Organizations such as banks, political campaigns, and even educational institutions can use the information collected through social networks to find new clients or perform targeted delivery of products to existing customers. A credit card company, for example, can leverage third-party marketing organizations that specialize in data mining of social media to help make targeted delivery of content more effective. A certain type of product, for example, could be specifically messaged to a single group or demographic based on their behavior within social media.
Ironically, this kind of behavior is not new or uncommon within financial institutions – for years, many major credit card companies have been using the transactions collected by card users to develop spending profiles and behavioral patterns, allowing for the detection of unusual activities and ultimately leading to the prevention of fraud. By extending this same approach to include data from social media, companies can provide a more resilient solution and better protection for their customers. Behaviors within social media can be captured and used to better understand what is normal, and call attention to activities that are not.
Other businesses have found ways to leverage social media to improve their presence within the online community, realizing that customers tend to put more faith in the reviews provided online than even the most robust and expensive advertising campaigns. Websites like Yelp or Trip Advisor have become very successful. Their ability to integrate social media ensures the reviews and information provided online are readily available for the contact lists of each of their users. Hospitality and travel industries have equally embraced social media, realizing that social networking sites such as Pinterest and Instagram provide virtually a countless number of photographs to showcase their destination and further build the online brand for their location.
The social media phenomenon has shown no indication of slowing down in growth and popularity. es of all sizes have realized this and are seeking alternative ways to use these networks and the data they produce to improve products for, services to, and intelligence surrounding their customers.