Today, Google had a press conference addressed by Matthew Zaheen, Head of Marketting for Google Malaysia, and Sajith Sivanandan, Managing Director of Google Malaysia to unveil three very key features that Google is releasing into the Malaysian tech ecosystem.
Mobile Search Moments
First off the agenda was Google’s latest research statistics. The Google research and development division has set out to further enhance the way that users use Google on their phones, primarily the search function. The presentation was conducted by Sajith Sivanandan to deliver the findings of the research team. The research was focused around 3 important moments, starting with the actual Search itself, the Conversion that followed the search as well as the Perception.
To further expand on this and shed some light a little, there are about 10 million 3G subscriptions in Malaysia at the time of survey. It is also found that 51% of adults in Malaysia have a smartphone and 24% of those users are women who are more likely to make their searches on a smartphone than on anything else, like a tablet or a PC. The group of 403 participants in this research agreed to be monitored of their daily habits on their smartphones when using Google search, most of the searches were based on navigation. Another interesting fact is that these searches often happen at home or at work, and the volume of searches increase as the end of the week draws nearer — When users are starting to plan for their weekend, looking at things like weather, where’s the best bargain or even where are they going to eat for their Saturday night gathering. The group averaged about 3.3 searches a day. If you want to see numbers, about 80% of mobile searches occured at home or at work, and 22% of them happen on-the-go. Roughly 8% of these searches happened while in stores or at a restaurant. 91% of mobile searches actually led to a conversion, or further action. Which means these users used Google to find info about a product or store before making a purchase of a product or even a service. Some 50% of these searches help with decision making when time is urgent. Also, 26% of consumers who click on an ad (or at least those who didn’t click on it on accident) are more likely to visit a store to make a purchase.
“Today’s battle for customers is won in ‘micro moments’ – the spontaneous moments of decision-making and preference-shaping that dictate outcomes throughout the entire consumer journey, which is happening with consumers on mobile,”
Sajith Sivanandan, Managing Director, Google Malaysia.
There is a lot of truth in these ‘micro moments’, how often have you gone to a shop and wondered if you should purchase something, or think there might be something better? Google definitely zoomed in on this and has done necessary optimizations to their search engine to better provide information that is both useful and convenient to the end user.
The above image is an example of how Google will implement ads into the searches, it’s definitely what you are looking for and it is definitely a way for Google to help boost your business’ presence in the market and on the web, all you need is a mobile-enabled web service and you’re good to go. How to get one, you might ask? Well keep reading, the press release has a big announcement regarding this as well!
Streamlined Mobile Results
Based on your connectivity, Google will now deliver it’s search results based on your internet connectivity. The searches will not be based on whether you are on 2G or 3G however, but based on the your internet speed at the point of search, which means even if you’re on 3G with horrible speeds, you will still be able to get results for your searches. This benefits both the users and businesses. Fewer bytes means you get faster answers. You won’t get Google’s high resolution graphics, but you will definitely get Google’s high quality services. This is a giant step Google takes towards organizing the world’s information and making it literally accessible to everyone — not figuratively accessible to everyone with a good connection.
Mobile Leadership Program (MLP)
Better ad presence, smarter search results and faster delivery times are all great and everything, but the main reason for this press conference was to unveil Google’s latest lunge towards enhancing the experience and convenience for those micro moments. Google’s Mobile Leadership Program, the first program of its kind that is aimed towards helping businesses enhance their presence not only on the search engines but from within your smartphone. You won’t get to see all those pretty graphics without a properly optimized website anyway, and Google is willing to teach you how to create one for free!
Matthew Zaheen, Head of Marketing Google Malaysia and Sajith Sivanandan, Managing Director Google Malaysia were present to unveil the MLP that is targeted towards ‘supercharging’ Malaysia’s businesses on the mobile space by helping agency and business professionals become better equipped to engage Malaysians via the mobile platform. The MLP will aim to help marketers build a stronger presence as well as cover the research and insights, Google’s own mobile solutions and measurement tools as well as assist anyone who wants to improve their mobile-related skill set and knowledge.
“This trans-formative role of mobile in digital marketing has opened up exciting new opportunities for businesses to reach and engage with consumers, and our Mobile Leadership Program aims to help them discover and grow their proficiency in mobile advertising.”
Sajith Sivanandan, Managing Director, Google Malaysia.
Google Malaysia will be holding MLP boot camps in their home office with the first session beginning on the 28th of April. If you do not have the freedom or time to attend the boot camps in KL, you can download the course material online for self-study as well. The materials you get for self-study are the exact same materials you get for attending the boot camps, so do not feel pressured to attend the boot camp (which, by the way; is free) if you feel more comfortable on your own. Here is the program overview:
- Market insights on the state of mobile in Malaysia today
- Insights into various mobile offerings available in the market
- Best practices on building effective mobile sites and apps
- Principles on how to create an optimised mobile experience for your users
- Measurement tools, helping you track and improve performance from all your mobile tactics
- Become mobile ready by assessing your mobile knowledge via our online quiz
More information can be found at the MLP website at http://g.co/MLPMY. Did I mention that the MLP website is mobile optimized? Check it out on your phone!
