Are you thinking about the iPad? Are you considering what the thing is going to do for, or to, your dinky blog? I have no interest in buying one but I can guarantee people like my parents, the casual surfer, the cool hipster, the student and the business user is about to leave their cumbersome laptop and desktop by the wayside. What does that mean for you, the article manager, busy filling the landfills with crap content? I dunno. But I have a feeling dynamic, meaningful and entertaining content is about to matter. You know how easy it is to click around links with a mouse? The shit you’ve been doing for the better part of 15 years? That is about to die an inglorious death, I think. People are now going to be tapping stuff. Tapping is a drag. I have an iPhone. It sucks. You have to pinch and zoom and tap. The iPad is larger and allows for better control. But the last thing people, I think, are going to be tapping is stupid Google ads. How many ads do you tap on with your iPhone?
I think the iPad-like devices are about to change how people interact with the Web. Not everybody is an Internet Marketer building shit. Most people hop on to be entertained, to alleviate boredom or get informed. The way they interact with webpages may in fact change with the iPad. Maybe not. But it is worth thinking that maybe those text links aren’t so damn groovy after all. Maybe banners will come back. It’s much easier to tap a banner than a small hyperlink.
Maybe nothing will change. Perhaps the web morass will continue to click on shitty niche sites. Maybe more so with an easy to use iPad. I just think that things may change with the iPad in ways that I am not able to articulate. The best sites on the iPhone are those with apps. The web browser sucks. Pinching and zooming is a necessary evil that I despise. The ones with apps are those that I go straight to info. They have no ads. No Adsense. If that is the future, how the hell are you going to be making money?
From 5 Min Forecast:
“Marketers might actually ‘need’ an iPad, and soon,” writes our friend and colleague John Forde. Mr. Forde is mostly a “behind the scenes” guy, and although he spends far too much of his free time visiting cafes in Paris, he’s an articulate and influential writer and thinker here at the Agora Financial HQ.
“The iPad is the logical next step,” Forde contends, “after smartphones, to the always-on society. If you’re looking to build and sustain a marketing relationship with your customers, this is great news.
“What I’m most excited about isn’t the nifty factor, or even the always-on connection. What I like is that I can start writing marketing that works like a page, and not just a scrolling screen again. Online magazines that look like real magazines, bookalogs that look like real books, letters with inserts that pop out at you — they all took a hit when online direct response started to eclipse pricey print mailings. Now they can come back, digital, but just as engaging as ever.
“And of course, for anybody selling information products, there are lots of new tech possibilities too. If you can get your hands on an iPad, take a look at the BBC and NPR apps to see how you could get your news in front of readers. Take a look at the Gilt app for ideas on how to create a tablet-friendly catalog.
“Already the e-mailed promotions I’m receiving via the iPad come in looking strong. But imagine if your letter had a little image of a customer service that, when double-tapped, underscored the headline benefit or pushed the reader ahead.
“Imagine animated charts in or embedded product demonstrations right there ahead of you sales close. And maps, coupons, offers, even headline tests, all driven by these tablets’ abilities to lock in exact locations via GPS and Wi-Fi triangulation…
“The iPad and imitators could end up as just novelties. But I don’t think so. This looks like an open door to me… and to other seasoned marketers I know too.
{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
Point taken, but I don’t see it being a threat in the next 5 years.
I finally got a phone with internet. Guess what? I dont use the internet. Had to ask my brother who has an Iphone, never uses the internet. He’s too busy using his 100 apps
I hope you are wrong but good video as always. I don’t think I am smart enough to adapt.
One more thing. Perhaps the way to go is to market to poor people who don’t have the money to shell out for all the fancy gadgets. Poor people who are stuck and have to use their laptops and desktops.
Dude you just made a guru and his gravy train affiliates millions with this next great product … “the death of mobile marketing — how the iPad can make you millions”
Yea, it won’t happen overnight, but I see a potential change in how content is consumed.
If you use SEO, target transactional terms and show people good deals on stuff they want to buy then you will still make money…
I never thought “entertaining” people was necessarily the best way to make money online.
Getting a googler wanting to “buy pink wizz banger cheap” to a page listing cheap pink wizz bangers should hold good no matter what device they are using… speaking of which, how many people are going to do their online buying with an ipad or iphone… Ill wager most will squandor their time on you tube with an Ipad, but when it comes to shopping for pink wizz bangers they will dust off the old IBM clone with proper keyboard, access to mail, printer for receipt etc…. then get back on the guff pad and track the order in between you tube and facebook.
Personally I find these gadgets allow you to spend more time online, but do not make you spend less time on your computer.
The iphone is a good example… when that came out I read loads of “blog post from my iphone”… I never read a “second blog post from my iphone” because although possible… its a total drag.
I use my phone all the time for mail / reading stuff… but only when I do not have access to a PC.
After reading Jakob Nielsen’s takedown of the iPad earlier this week I wouldn’t worry if I were you.
I’m not even close to being worried. I am simply looking forward to see what I can do to make money and continue to make money. Just saying folks might want to consider all possibilities as they try to make money on the web sewer. Maybe the iPad is a fad and will be obsolete in 3 months. Who knows? To clarify, I never said people wouldn’t make money. I simply suggested people might have to adapt past the Adsense-type model of slinging shit along the sewer bottom. I am suggesting that instead of bored people clinking around web links they are going to be spending time clicking around apps. I have apps for everything from Drudge Report to Engadget to Rotten Tomatoes to WSB-AM radio on my iPhone. I never visit those sites on my laptop any more. What if the future holds that people prefer to buy slate devices instead of laptops because they are cheaper and easier to use? What if they prefer to use sites that have apps developed? Times change. I see what the iPad is doing for people who are sick of laptops and desktops. It’s a quick shift. If folks aren’t paying attention I think maybe they will be disappointed in their earning potential in the future. Much like the folks who got smoked slinging directory sites 5 years ago. Much like the folks who were slinging MFA sites 3 months ago and saw every site de-indexed and their accounts banned. What’s next? I’m looking forward for a hint at how I am going to make my spending money as the herd gravitates to slate devices. HP is developing one. Google. Microsoft can’t be close behind. LG. Samsung. Blackberry. Obviously good content, yes entertaining sites, will collect traffic whether you are using a Commodore 64 or an iPad. Money can still be made building a directory site. But times are changing. I’m thinking about it. I would be happy if nobody else is.
I hate using Apple products, including my iPod and iTunes. I always refused to get an “iPuke” and will never purchase a fucking iPad. Isn’t it possible that iPad won’t quite revolutionize the world, but simply exist as an option? People like options. People like gadgets. But not everybody likes iCrap from Apple or touch screens.
It’s possible. Though I think tapping apps is the future. It’s why HP bought Palm. For the OS so they can use it for their slate. Verizon and Google are creating a slate. Microsoft will. Samsung will. LG will. Toshiba and Sony won’t be far behind.
I am totally with you. I fucking hate Apple products. I despise iTunes. I just found the iPhone option cheaper than another cell phone + Sirius. And I needed a way to get to some sites at work that were blocked. As soon as a good option on ATT comes out I will ditch the iPhone as quick as I can fling it in the lake.
I’m not a huge fan of Apple (I do like some of their products) but I think the iPad is worth considering but not in terms of IM.
The app development platform is giving people a lot of opportunities to make some really decent money. Combine this with being able to outsource the development and you can have everyone jumping into the mix.
The problem with the iPad is Apple’s stance on who and what is developed. Unlike open architecture, it does restrict many people and companies from creating great products.
I think the iPad is going to keep a great option open for people that learn how to adapt to it but the majority of the web will still be heavily keyboard/mouse for quite a few more years.
Just as a final though though – if you can begin to adapt and learn from touch interfaces now, you’ll probably do quite well in the future.