Viper Rural

Apple iPad could offer step-change in digital marketing

Author: Neil Wilkins

Neil learnt his marketing with the likes of Orange, NatWest, BP Castrol and Ordnance Survey and now helps individuals and businesses to communicate more effectively. He trains and mentors marketers on professional Chartered Institute of Marketing qualifications through to post-graduate level.

The internet is awash with rumour, counter rumour and speculation today about the likely imminent announcement from Apple about their iPad, a device that could revolutionise mobile internet and digital marketing in ways we have only been dreaming of.

Why the hype? Well here's just one snippet of speculative, but informed, coverage from the media.

So what's so different?

The big opportunity is in integration... a device that will see content and information so rich in features and user-experience that it's chargeable. For many years, publishers and news channels have struggled to see their content raise revenues despite its quality and reliability. Advertising revenue around such content has never reached the levels required to make this a sustainable service in the long term. But this could be set to change with a device that offers always-on (via integrated and seamless wifi and 3G coverage), any time, any place, multi media content, information, audio and video with targeted and potentially 'user selectable' advertising and sponsorship.

This is where the digital marketer steps in because collectively our industry must now rise to the challenge of the technological wave and come up with innovative and customer-centric marketing models that challenge what's gone before and ultimately deliver far greater returns on the investments that brands have come to expect.

And why is this so different from the now ubiquitous iPhone? Well it's simple... the screen will likely be around 10inches across and even for a simple marketer like me... I can see the benefit of that!

- Posted on Tuesday 26 Jan 2010 at 23:55 by Neil Wilkins

Tags: apple tablet (1), digital (41), digital marketing (22), iphone (10)