Data Snacks and Data Meals

An author referred to the use of mobile computing as "snacking on data," which struck me as a clever metaphor, and then bounced around in my head and expanded to other digital channels.   I have to get it out of my head, and this seems like as good a place as any ...

Mobile: The Snack Bar

The original metaphor seemed an apt way to describe the mobile channel and the ways in which users approach it: a few bites of data to satisfy puckishness, but not a full meal.

My sense is that this metaphor is important to keep in mind in the face of the "shovelware" approach that is being taken on the mobile platform by some firms, in that they don't really consider the value of the medium as a thing unto itself, but consider the mobile device to be a portable computer that should have the full range of capabilities as any Web site.  That's entirely the wrong approach.

When mobile is done well, it gives the user a few bites that can be eaten out of hand while on the go.   You wouldn't want to build a financial plan or attempt to rebalance your portfolio on a mobile device, and it's doubtful the platform could even be used to make a well informed decision to buy or sell a single security - but if you're waiting in line or walking from one place to another and you feel the need to check your account balance or the price of a given stock, it's good for a quick bite to tide you over.

Voice/Store: The Full-Service Restaurant

Carrying the restaurant-format analogy to other media, it seems to me that the voice and store channels are more in the nature of a full-service restaurant, an eatery in which there is a broad menu of choices for consuming a sumptuous multi-course meal, conducted by a waiter who is there to answer your questions and offer suggestions.

The extension of the metaphor seems particularly apt in that regard: people who do not feel confident in making choices without advice need the kind of interactive help that only another human being can provide, and their visit or call indicates a willingness to spend a considerable amount of time.

Retuning to the financial services example, this may be an instance in which you call or visit a financial advisor to take on a larger task of considering your portfolio strategy or carefully weighing the merits of a given investment option.   It would be silly and excessive to have to call or visit to get a data "snack" - inconvenient to the patron and an annoying to the establishment.

Website: The Kitchen 

I'm not sure if the Web channel is analogous to a restaurant at all: if a dining metaphor is to be used at all, it would be likely more of a kitchen where there are a stock of ingredients, equipment, and supplies that you will use to prepare your own meal.  It provides much more than you need for the task at hand, including specialty tools you will use only once in a while - but having them available when needed is worthwhile.

In terms of assistance, there is no waiter and no cashier - there may be a rack of cookbooks to which you can refer when you need ideas and advice, but that is most often ignored.  The kind of person who steps into a kitchen is confident in their ability to prepare their own meal.

Back to the financial services example, the Web has the same capabilities as the brokerage that you would call or visit - arguably more because it is a self-service medium in which you will need the resources that are normally available to the advisor/broker who would normally assist you.

In fact, the reason that a user would prefer to visit the kitchen is because he does not want any "assistance" - as he knows exactly what he wants, any help or advice would be unwelcome meddling and interference.   There is also the notion that it is cheaper to do it yourself (backed by commission structures that discount Internet trading) and more convenient (there is Internet access in the home), though admittedly not as immediate (you must go home, or unpack your notebook in a place that has access, to use it).

As for contrast to the mobile channel, it seems reasonable that a person might go to the kitchen for a snack, or to a Web site for a quick bit of data to satisfy momentary curiosity ... but this seems a secondary motive that does not make full use of the capabilities, and for users with both mobile and internet, a slightly less convenient way to get a few bites of information.

Tablet: ????

In the interest of being comprehensive, I'd like to include the tablet, but I'm not quite sure how it fits.  It could be my own lack of insight into the medium, but it's also possible that those who provide services on the device haven't quite figured it out yet, either so it seems to be in flux.

It doesn't strike me as a particularly good "snack bar," as it's a rather cumbersome device that can't be used on-the-go except in the nature of a laptop (stop, sit, unpack, and eat), and because it can generally be used for a broader array of purposes, it would seem to fit into the "kitchen" category of a personal computer.

So is the tablet analogous to a lunchbox?  A picnic basket?  A chuck wagon? The only thing that seems certain is that it's not a full-service restaurant, but an acceptable analogy completely evades me.