To accompany this article a series of interviews were recorded with such business leaders as Formats fit for purpose: directories and mobile search
Printed directories may seem “last century” but retain a tenacious grip on consumer loyalty for local spending. Meanwhile, mobile search may be about to deliver its long-held promise, as it prepares to go social.
Making mobile search more social
Steve Ives is the CEO of pioneering mobile search business Taptu (see panel). In Taptu’s February 2008 white paper, “Making search social” (www.taptu.com/whitepaper) he argues: “While the PC has evolved to become a social device, the mobile phone is a supersocial device. Mobile phones will become the optimum way of accessing social networks because they are always with you and are less subject to workplace usage rules.
“Users will search for content and information that has social significance or lends social currency. When they find a phone number, they will want to dial that number. When they find a song, they will want to download a preview and play it, and share that result with friends.”
The white paper identifies “megatrends” that are making it easier for people to use their phones online – including handset improvements, the spread of mobile broadband, and the abandonment of operator restrictions. In the view of Steve Ives, these ongoing trends will deliver a mobile internet that is ready for the mass-market in 2010 and will start to drive profound changes in consumer behaviour from 2012.
Recent figures from eMarketer appear to support his view: global spending on mobile search advertising is expected to grow from a modest €60.5m in 2007 to a mammoth €2.7bn in 2012.
Steve Ives l Listen to the podcast
The thick book shrinks
The enduring appeal of the printed directory is summed up by Peter Buxton (see panel on page 14) very simply: “The 100% database is always the key advantage that Yellow Pages starts with, which nobody else has to offer.”
This advantage is particularly relevant for providers and consumers of local goods and services. In Peter’s view: “In twenty years’ time, I don’t think we will have big, thick, city Yellow Pages books. I am sure we'll have printed books but they will be somewhat more local and much more targeted.
“You will have the city broken into seven or eight parts. Currently the typical directory has a circulation of 500,000. I see that coming down to under 100,000.”
Taptu – a great leap, not incremental change
Steve Ives is the CEO of Taptu (www.taptu.com), a 3i-backed business that is delivering the possibilities of mobile search, making it more social.
“Around 500 billion searches a year are made on a desktop, but only around ten billion searches a year are made on mobile devices. So mobile search is currently around 2% of desktop. This isn’t because there are many fewer devices – in fact, there are probably more mobile devices connected to the internet than desktop devices. It’s to do with mobile search not having entered the mainstream for most consumers.
“There are a few issues that contribute to this. Firstly, the small screen: the typical PC website has all sorts of navigational links, and when you try to put that on a mobile screen, you end up with a long, thin strip.
“Relevance is a big issue because desktop web content isn’t mobile friendly. There are also networking issues – mobile networks are slower than broadband. And cost is a factor because on mobile internet today most consumers don’t have a flat rate tariff.
“However, even with the cost issue, the minute people get a 3G phone they’re doing double to triple the amount of mobile internet stuff.
“Where mobile search really scores is in letting you use dead time. If you’re in a queue, you might do a quick search for a car. You won’t buy one but you might get to the stage of booking a test drive. And you’re more likely to do that on a mobile than a PC.
“In 2002, an experiment measured the browsing behaviour of 150,000 people and found their desire to keep navigating reduced drastically once they passed 12 clicks plus scrolls. Today’s mobile search services from big brands typically have a distance to good results of around 30 clicks – way above the 12 needed for a good experience.
“Taptu helps consumers reliably find content on their mobile phone in 10 clicks or less, so creating a huge improvement in the user experience.
“We get paid when users click on ads. It’s a recognisable model – but with mobile in the future you have much more information available on the profile of users, so you can display much more relevant advertising. This attracts significantly higher rates of revenue.
“Initially we’ve focused Taptu on music and fact finding but we’re steadily expanding to a larger range of categories to deliver a full universal mobile search service in 2008.
“Google introduced their mobile model in 2001. Their lack of penetration isn’t for lack of trying or lack of resources. I think they’re translating their model for desktop search a little too literally to mobile. Mobile’s really a different model of search. It requires discontinuous innovation and that’s hard for a really big successful company to do.”
Peter Buxton l Listen to the podcast
Directories – there’s life in the format yet
Peter Buxton has worked in the world of directories for 30 years, initially with ITT World Directories and, since 1995, as a consultant (www.buxton-independent.com).
“The Yellow Pages publisher has three key assets. Brand awareness, which, in most markets, is at least 90%. An advertising base, which it retains at 85-90% a year. And enormous sales coverage: it covers every single business in the country once a year. Google and Yahoo! also have brands but they don't have a retention rate which is as high, because it takes years to achieve. And they don't have a sales force.
“My company, Yellow Pages Today, is involved in a twice-a-year research study across the seven main countries of Europe. One question is, ‘When you're looking for local goods and services, where do you look first?’
“The last study showed that 46% of adults would first search in printed Yellow Pages. That compares, for example, with only 18% who would look in a search engine first.
“The typical Yellow Pages advertiser is a very small business, probably with fewer than five employees – typically somebody like the plumber. Online hasn't really changed the world of the plumber: what he has to offer today is the same as it was twenty years ago. So, you don't need up-to-date information when you're searching for a plumber and the chances are you’ll use print.
“Online or offline, Yellow Pages is the 100% source – a key advantage nobody else can offer. If, for example, you were searching for a hotel in Oxford and looked in the Yellow Pages, you would find every single hotel listed. If you looked under Google for hotels in Oxford, you would almost certainly not find 100% of hotels in Oxford but you would get booking agencies, travel agencies, maybe even restaurants.
“On the other hand, if you wanted a takeaway pizza and looked in Yellow Pages, you would get 100% of pizza deliveries, which you don't need, whereas if you looked in Google, you would find something quick and convenient. So the different services have different benefits.
“In those markets with a local Google, the biggest attack has been in entertainment: there are several key words that are very successful in online search and that is hitting Yellow Pages. But that's a relatively small piece of the 1,500 headings that Yellow Pages has. In many areas, Yellow Pages is holding strong.”