cover image The Third Screen: Marketing to Your Customers in a World Gone Mobile

The Third Screen: Marketing to Your Customers in a World Gone Mobile

Chuck Martin. Nicholas Brealey (NBN, dist.), $26 (240p) ISBN 978-1-85788-564-4

After spending 10 years and $100 million, Motorola launched the first cell phone in 1983. Known as a "brick" phone, it could support one hour of talk and eight hours in standby and cost $4,000. Today, 94% of Americans own a cell phone (a quarter of whom use it exclusively). Martin argues that a convergence of trends in consumer behavior and technology has resulted in a migration to the "third screen" (after television and the computer) in this insightful account of the rise and widespread adoption of mobile phones. Cell phone technology allows users to access content anywhere, at any time, creating extraordinary possibilities for tailored promotion (for instance, reaching consumers in a store with the offer of coupons). And apps enable advertisers to literally become part of the customer's phone. Martin deftly illustrates how brands like Lexus, Zippo, and ING have used the mobile channel to connect with customers, and Martin ponders tough introspective questions on consumer behavior and an organization's ability to pull off a mobile promotion. Anyone interested in the evolution of consumer behavior and the adoption of new technologies will appreciate the clarity of Martin's prose and the breadth of his vision. (May 16)