MARK 4024 – My Mobile Day Assignment
“Take my hands now, you are the cause of my euphoria.”
– Lyrics from Euphoria by Jungkook of BTS
It’s 9 AM and my phone blasts BTS’ Euphoria, signalling the start of another day. On a good day, I would usually lie in bed and let the song finish. On a not-so-good day, I would jump out of bed, pick up my phone, shut it off. Regardless, I always find myself spending a good 10-15 minutes scrolling through my Twitter and Instagram feeds in bed. Why is this? When did I start developing this habit?
To answer my previous question, I thought about the time when I got my first mobile phone. I was in eighth grade when my parents gifted me with a Nokia 3500c. With my cell phone, I was finally able to send text messages and take pictures with my friends. However, once ninth grade came along, everyone around me started getting BlackBerry phones and iPods.
Not wanting to feel disconnected from my friends, I used the money I saved from my paper route (yes, I was once a paper girl) and bought an iPod Touch (4th generation). To me, this was the beginning of my mobile and social media habits. While I still used my Nokia phone to call and text my friends, I would find myself using my iPod more as I could watch videos, use social media, and of course, listen to music all with the touch of an app. Notably, I first created my Twitter and Instagram accounts using my iPod Touch.
Today, I’m happily using my iPhone 8 for many of my everyday activities such as checking my email, listening to music, taking pictures, shopping, and ordering food. It’s amazing to see how much mobile technology has evolved over the past decade. Truly, no matter what it is you want to do, there is an app out there that’ll help make things easier. On my iPhone, I currently have 48 apps downloaded that range from productivity (i.e. emailing, web browsing) to entertainment (i.e. YouTube, Disney Plus).
My Top 5 Apps
As a digital marketing student, I am constantly reading and sharing content on social media. Hence, it’s no surprise that a good chunk of my screen time is on social media apps. When I’m on-the-go and need information, the first thing I do is pull out my phone and Google the answer to my questions using the Safari web browser app. For entertainment, I’m usually on YouTube. My top 5 most-used apps (listed in no particular order) are the following:
Micro-moments and Pet-peeves
I want to Know
Artists I enjoy listening to these days include Crush, H.E.R., Daniel Caesar, and BTS to name a few. I remember a time when a friend texted me asking if I listened to BTS’ latest single. I was in the middle of working on a paper, but I had to take a break and check out Twitter to see if she was serious (that the song came out). Sure enough, upon opening the Twitter app on my phone, BTS was trending.
Through the tweets from other fans I was able to get the URL link to the official audio of BTS’ Your Eyes Tell. Indeed, I was a very happy fangirl when I found the news to be true and finally listened to the new song! Twitter’s platform, especially on mobile, helps users in the I want to know micro-moment find the latest news in pop culture. This ease of use is probably why the platform is usually the first to share trending topics (compared to traditional news outlets).
I Want to Buy
With the current pandemic situation, I prefer to order food in advance to shorten my time inside a restaurant. This past Sunday, while driving home from church, my family and I had a craving for Chipotle. We were pretty set on what we wanted (we were all the in the I want to buy micro-moment), and so I took out my phone and googled Chipotle. The restaurant was the first result on the SERP, so I clicked on the link and was brought to the Chipotle’s homepage. From there, I tried to place a mobile order but soon gave up as the website was loading very slowly (keep in mind the fam was pretty hungry). Slow-loading sites are one of my pet peeves!
Screenshot from Chipotle’s Website; The app was definitely faster than the website.
Just as I was about to give up, I noticed that the fast-food chain had an app. Voila! I was able to place my order quickly through the app as it offered a much smoother user interface. Overall, my experience with the Chipotle mobile app was superior compared to its website. Like most customers, when making a purchase, I want my transactions to be quick and seamless. After placing my order, I was able to quickly pick up my food when I arrived at the restaurant.
Hey, Marketers…
Based on my experiences with social media and food ordering apps, user experience is vital to keeping customers! If a website is loading too slowly, it may irritate users and cause them to take their business elsewhere. A dynamic website adapts to the device screen size, making it more accessible to different devices. However, a mobile app is beneficial since they usually have a smoother interface and load faster. Undeniably, marketers need to take into account the fact that consumers are changing, and mobile dependence isn’t going away any time soon.
-LaarniJane♡
Songs mentioned in this post…
SimplyLJ 