Monday, December 09, 2013

Wearable Watches - Marketing to on Tiny Devices?

As technology has evolved, devices have taken on new form factors. Whereas marketers in the past were concerned about newspaper/magazine ads, today, digital marketers need to be mindful of not only "traditional" desktop computers and laptops, but also phones, tablets and potentially the proliferation of "smart" wrist-watches.

Some would argue that it is difficult to advertise on smartphones given small screen sizes and limited space to create ads. This challenge is exacerbated by potential smart-watches such that could potentially replace phones in many cases. Sure this seems pretty James Bond-like, but wearable technology is gaining traction, and big-time manufacturers including Samsung and Sony have released smart-watches that integrate with current product lines and have "smart" functionality and internet/bluetooth connectivity. There are rumors on TechCrunch and other well-respected blogs that both Apple and Google are in the process of developing their own smart-watches.

While it would be difficult to prognosticate on whether wearable watches will disrupt the mobile internet landscape - it stands to reason that digital marketers will have to find ways to properly target such devices with ads that are legible and not incredibly intrusive. I think it is a significant challenge and would imagine that full screen ads would be one of the only effective ways to reach consumers - the question is whether consumers will be irritated to the point of abandoning such technology if it becomes overly obtrusive.


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