Despite technology research specialists Gartner suggesting the Android’s marketing penetration had reached its peak in 2014 with 82% of the smartphone market locked up, the platform appears to be on the up.
According to the data analyst group, Q2 performance in 2015 was the slowest in the platform’s history with 330 million units being sold to end users during the period (13.5 over the amount sold in Q2 of 2014).
However, in response to Gartner’s assessment, Google’s CEO, Sundar Pichai, highlighted the platform’s growth in “emerging markets” by pointing to countries such as Vietnam and Indonesia. Stating that the company had added “400 million active devices” to the platform in 2015, Pichai’s sentiment seemed to be that Android is still the dominant force in the smartphone world.
The Insta-Brand
Indeed, with 1.4 billion users around the world, according to Google, the platform is certainly a bountiful place for online marketers. Through Android apps such as Instagram and Twitter, marketing companies are now able to engage more users than ever before.
Greenlight Digital states that Instagram should now be a primary marketing tool for every business with an online presence and not simply an “afterthought”.
In detailing an effective Instagram strategy for brands, Greenlight not only noted the size of the Instagram market (400 million users, half of which used an Android device, according to Facebook, in 2013) but how independent content creators can help build up a brand’s following.
Noting the advice of Brogan Mooney (a social media figure with millions of followers), the digital agency highlighted how finding the right “influencers” can help a company engage with more users and build up more credibility through the use of “brand ambassadors”.
The upshot of using Instagram is, according to those in the digital marketing industry, therefore, a more personal brand that connects with more people around the world.
The Twitter GIF
Along the same lines as brand engagement through Instagram, Twitter is now being seen as the latest frontier for digital marketers. Topping the recent list of Twitter innovations in recent months is the launch of the GIF button.
First announced in February 2016, the new keyboard feature basically allows Twitter users to upload GIFs (animated images) to their timeline with a single click.
After noting the fact that users shared more than 100 million GIFs in 2015, Twitter moved away from a third-party GIF system to an internal one powered by Giphy and Riffsy.
From a marketing point of view, Twitter reaches around 320 million users and, according to Kiss Metrics, the new GIF feature could make it easier for companies to show off new products without having to produce videos.
Citing the power of the new button, Kiss Metrics stated that GIFs allow companies to show off new features without “data problems”. Moreover, they allow marketers to add some “fun” into their Twitter campaigns.
The Changing Face of Marketing
The face of marketing is constantly changing and, with 1.4 billion Android users now dispersed around the world, the way in which brands can engage with new demographics is more diverse than it’s ever been.
Harnessing the power of Instagram and Twitter, digital marketing agencies are now able to inject more fun and more individuality into their campaigns.
Indeed, there’s something more personal about a mobile advert and, as more innovations such as the Twitter GIF button come to light, we can expect marketing trends to continue shifting over the coming months and years.
