You don't need a crystal ball to know the mobile web will continue to grow by leaps and bounds. The minute you picked up your first modern smartphone you probably predicted it, as did all the experts. What people didn't predict is how quickly and how much it would grow. The numbers are amazing. Even the Google geniuses didn't expect it: http://mashable.com/2011/02/28/schmidt-mobile-growth/
The Numbers - Mobile Web Stats
According to comScore, in December 2010, nearly 47% of mobile subscribers in the U.S. were mobile media users (meaning they used their phones to browse the web, download content, use internet connected phone apps, etc.) This is up more than 7% from the previous year, and way up from several years ago.
comScore attributes this growth to smartphone adoption, 3G/4G device ownership and the increasing ubiquity of unlimited data plans - most of which will not change. Network speeds keep getting faster, and more smartphones are being released by manufacturers all the time. Smartphone prices are dropping too. This all adds up to more mobile web users every year for the foreseeable future.
Law Firms Late to the Party
While it was somewhat easy to predict smartphone use, and therefore mobile web use, would grow rapidly, it was even easier to predict that law firms would come late to the mobile web party, as law firms often do to new technology. Most law firms have done little to nothing to serve mobile users with services and content. This is particularly tragic when you consider that law firm clients make up some of the most sophisticated users of the mobile web - are nearly all professionals, and nearly all have smartphones.
Some of the first firms to target mobile users have also missed the mark, making "apps" that are little more than scaled-down, downloadable versions of their websites. Not really all that useful to the mobile user who can just go to the firm website to get the same information provided in the app.
A few firms are developing mobile-friendly websites, but those sites are often scaled-down to provide only a small portion of the content that is available on the main firm website. This leaves little incentive to visit the site using a phone, and often leads to dead ends for the visitor and higher website bounce rates.
The Practical Mobile Web for Law Firms
Law firms can take advantage of the new audience of mobile web users in the same way they target normal web users - by providing practical services instead of fluff.
1) Identify opportunities the firm has missed, such as developing a mobile optimized website
Faegre & Benson developed a full-featured, mobile-optimized website specifically for modern smartphones (Blackberry, Android, iPhone). The website offers all the same content as the non-mobile site, but provides a streamlined interface that is easier to use on small screens.
2) Review existing online client services to see if there is a chance of providing clients with a mobile-friendly way to access the service, such as a mobile-friendly extranet
3) Think about how your clients communicate with your firm using their smartphones. What information do they need? How might that information be available to them via the mobile web? This line of thinking will lead you to creative ideas about mobile services your firm could offer.
When Thinking Mobile, Think Smaller
One of the best things about smartphones is the ability to download apps. An app for a smartphone typically doesn't do a lot of things - it just does one thing in a very simple and convenient way. For example, a weather app only gives you the weather. It doesn't try to give you all the day's news. It focuses on one thing - weather.
Law firms need to follow the protocol to be successful with mobile. Law firm web apps that try to do too much won't be adopted. Instead, focus on creative ways to add value for clients, based on their industry, interests, or the type of legal services the client receives from your firm.
Simple, easy-to-use apps, that provide information or tools that the client would actually need, will be downloaded and used.