In Mobile, to search is too late

Call me contrarian but I’m skeptical of the value proposition for mobile search. Don’t get me wrong, “search” has exponentially lowered the cost for finding valuable information (search costs). However, the act of searching lends itself to a person parked in front of a computer in a “working” environment. Libraries try to minimize the noise and distractions for a reason; people need focus to effectively research. So while search will remain paramount as an entry point for the PC, I doubt that it quite hits the sweet spot in mobile. The utility of search will be far narrower.

When using a mobile device in most instances time and attention are scarce. Mobile search will only occur with a great and pressing need. Search requires an interruption to the “mobile” person. That means an opportunity exists for an “agent” of the individual to help people before they search.

Rather than search, in a mobile environment we must strive for anticipation. When in a primarily mobile environment, if forced to search, it is too late.

I’d previously written this post and with a related post by Mark Hendrickson on TechCrunch yesterday it seemed timely to publish. Mark’s post, Is Search the Best Interface for Mobile?, makes quality, specific points about the weaknesses of “search” when mobile and using mobile devices. First, he raises the difficulty of typing out a search string on a mobile when mobile. Second, hundreds or thousands of results (in fact more than 3-5 results) to a query are unhelpful.