Just as smartphones did after their first appearances years ago, tablets are growing in popularity at a rapid rate, and they are beginning to become a crucial consideration in digital marketing. As people are reaching the web in a growing number of ways, desktop digital advertising solutions are not going to necessarily create a successful campaign anymore. Mobile is slowly but surely taking over a huge role in digital marketing, and most marketers are definitely benefiting from the change. Just as we have always seen with smartphones, the tablet industry is dominated by the same two big names: Apple and Android. They have been competitors since the beginning of smart technology, and Google has led the way for a while now, but which company is the best option from a marketing perspective?
Some information from a company called Onswipe, a “touch” web content solutions company, gives insight into which of these two competitors could be the most beneficial choice for digital marketers. The information, as reported by MarketingLand, comes from a recent study of theirs, and it states that Apple’s iPad accounts for at least 98% of web traffic on tablets to the company’s partnering publishers. This means that other types and brands of tablet only bring in about 2% of web traffic on tablets.
Although the number itself is almost unbelievable, it also means that Apple is destroying Google in the web traffic competition, at least when it comes to tablets. Google has always prided itself with its Android platform being extremely popular among consumers, but no amount of tablet sales will bring web traffic up. In the competition for tablet based web traffic, Apple clearly holds to top spot, and the company can feel pretty confident that they won’t be losing it any time soon. So, although Google’s Android has a lot of people buying products, what really matters to marketers is how products are being used. Therefore, it seems that the most valuable tablet usage comes from Apple.
MarketingLand reports even more valuable information from Onswipe regarding user engagement on Apple’s iPad. Here is an excerpt from their article:
Onswipe also points out that iPad owners are more engaged and spend 56 percent more time per session with their tablets vs. the iPhone. The iPad also is responsible for more web traffic than the iPhone and Android devices combined, despite the fact that smartphones are considerably more numerous than the iPad.
For the mobile world, I always saw Google as the head honcho, seeing as they have always been the leader in sales and marketers seem to love Android. However, it seems that Apple’s iOS has been the more valuable platform for marketing to mobile users, specifically those using tablets. It really shows how functional Apple’s products are, as Google sells far more mobile devices than Apple, but Apple accounts for nearly all mobile web traffic on tablets. Web traffic is valuable, of course, and Apple is in the perfect position for marketers to become interested in the company.
