Coming Soon: Mobile 2.0

The boom-crash phenomenon of the Internet in the late twentieth century resulted from traditional retailers (store and catalog) investing billions of dollars in extending their operations to the Internet without considering that the new channel might require them to take a different approach. It was not until there was a widespread catastrophe that most firms decided to start over, and try to get it right, after having learned the hard way that the Web is a thing unto itself, fundamentally different from traditional channels, and requiring a fundamentally different approach.

The emergence of the mobile channel has given them the opportunity to repeat the same mistake, and they seem to be doing an excellent job of it: companies are approaching the mobile channel in the exact same way they are approaching the Internet channel, as if the mobile device is merely a miniature computer. Many seem to be making their mobile presence a virtual clone of their Web sites, to enable (or compel) the customer to do the exact same things, in the exact same way, as they do in a fundamentally different channel, with very little regard for the nature of the channel or the way in which people seek to use it.

Sooner or later, they will achieve the exact same results: a complete and spectacular failure that will give them the incentive to do what they should have done in the first place ... consider mobile as a thing unto itself, fundamentally different from the Web channel, and requiring a fundamentally different approach.

From all I've seen and experienced, I don't hold out much hope that companies will see the mistake they are making before they venture too far and invest too much in going in a familiar direction that's altogether inappropriate for the new medium. I do expect that they will learn the same painful lesson and that, before much longer, we will see the rise of Mobile 2.0 - and hopefully, they'll only need two chances to get it right this time.