Of Course We Have a Mobile Strategy (Don't We?)

Person1: You do, right? Have a mobile strategy?
Person 2: Sure
Person 1: What is it?
Person 2: Our IT department makes sure all of the areas on our website can be opened on mobile devices.

End scene. Fade to black.

"Why Mobile Matters in the 'Era of You,'" a Huffington Post article written by Kristen Lauria, vice president of marketing, IBM Mobile Enterprise for IBM's Software Group, really caught my attention on two fronts — "mobile" and "era of you." I've talked a lot about the shifting sands in the marketing arena and how nonprofits are reaching out to constituents — or perhaps not reaching out to them — through emerging and evolving channels and actually missing significant opportunities.

Lauria has a powerful opening to her article....

"No matter what country you live in or how old you are, one thing is abundantly clear: We're in the middle of a mobile revolution that is changing the way we shop, travel and manage our finances. Mobile is also presenting Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) with new platforms to connect with customers as individuals. Marketing as we know it, geared to demographic segments, is being replaced by the "era of you." Just as the Internet shifted the way we shop, mobile computing is revolutionizing how businesses are reaching out to customers. The explosion of mobile, social networks and location-based services are providing millions of clues as to what consumers crave. People are leaving digital breadcrumbs as they communicate with brands, compare prices and post opinions about their latest purchases."

I love everything about what she says. But, if I'm honest, I'm worried about how the nonprofit industry is evolving in this area. I've been talking to organizations recently about their mobile strategies. Many of them are of the belief that this means the ability for someone to access their website on a mobile device. Some of them go as far as saying "text -to-give" has not been successful for them because they aren't disaster- or urgent-issue-based charities.