Posted by Brett Cortese in ux, customer 2.0, multi-device

The 3 Components of a Successful Multi-Device Solution

Today, some of the fastest evolution in personal computing is in the areas of mobile computing and gestural interface. Long gone are the days where the best ideas come out of a room packed with high IQs, stale coffee, and starched white shirts. In today’s world, the average user holding a mobile device is both the recipient of true innovation and the trigger for further evolution.

The real opportunity lies in enabling that user, whom we like to call Customer 2.0, to do business with your organization in new ways. This can lead to incredible efficiencies with existing processes, new revenue streams, a chance to leapfrog your competition, and earn strong customer loyalty. But with myriad new technologies and devices, competing business objectives and the ever evolving customer, it’s a daunting task to create a successful strategy that puts your business in users’ hands on any device they choose.

In our experience, it comes down to one proposition: It’s not about pixels. It’s about people. For while languages change and design trends morph, the work we do remains the same—observe real users and create products and services that enhance and simplify their lives.

With that in mind, there are three key areas you must address in order to build a successful multichannel, multi-device strategy for your business: Strategy, User Experience (UX) Design, and Technology. These areas are so key that we have organized our business around these practice areas.

Strategy
Understand the competitive landscape, which devices to release on and when, and how to measure ROI must be central to your multichannel strategy.

Executed correctly, a strong multichannel strategy provides a host of competitive benefits. In the short term, it paints your organization as an innovator, helping attract new customers and maintain existing ones. And, simply showing initial momentum and previewing your roadmap can place you ahead of the pack. In the long term, being well positioned for what Steve Jobs calls the “Post PC Era” provides you flexibility and added revenue streams.

But varying goals can make it difficult to determine your strategy. It’s crucial to know how your target user relates to a technology platform. So, in determining which devices to release on and when to do so, you must define how you’re going to utilize each platform and take advantage of what it has to offer. Every device is different, and every user has multiple needs.

With a morass of potential features, devices, platforms, and technologies, it’s challenging to determine how to measure success. Success factors may include adoption, up-sell, brand loyalty, transaction volume, competitive differentiation, and social media integration. Measuring the success of your strategy means prioritizing these factors and building in the appropriate measurement mechanisms.

We’ll address UX and Technology in a subsequent blog post.

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