Tag Archives: resources

Does Mobile Finish the Task

Through the recent MMF Consultation, we connected with the group Christ for All Peoples. They are one of very few organizations whose missional impact takes the perspective of reaching out to immigrants, and letting that influence put them in the position to go to various people groups around the world. During our time chatting, one of the pieces of information shared came from the website Finishing the Task which not only impressed the state of the missions movement, but also begs the questions if/when/how mobile can help finish the task.

Unreached People Groups (PDF) from Finishing the Task

Some years ago, we talked about realistically looking at the impacts of mobile. I think this dataset allows for us to revisit that question, and then ask of our methods and activities if we are engaging the technology and behaviors of mobile correctly in order to finish the task. As we stated on the panel at the MMF Consultation – information is not transformation. We cannot make a mountain out of distribution methods, and do nothing about lifestyle. We cannot just put a bible on a device and expect that literacy rates will rise and with that people will engage Christ. There’s something a bit more… detailed about the point of using mobile that our methods in mobile ministry have to speak towards. And when they do, then we see without a doubt that mobile ministry is truly effective.

So, for your organization, what about mobile directly or indirectly finishes the task of getting the Gospel to the ends of the earth?

Digital Natives or Digitally Naive

More than 90 percent of young people in many developed countries are digital natives, with South Korea leading the way at 99.6 percent, according to a new study.

The terms digital native and digital immigrant can be a bit of lighting rod. We’ve talked about it several times over the years, and have grown to treat it with a bit more sensitivity towards its imaginations and realities. What I’ve liked best about the discussion has been what difference in opinions and applications come via economic lines.

For example, in an article at the NY Times, its talked about how the terms fit developed nations differently than emerging nations – and even gradients within both of those.

Everyone’s fascination with digital nativism in the U.S. or, say, Scandinavia is fine, but the places where this phenomenon probably has the most impact is low-income countries in Africa or Asia,” Dr. Best said. “The places where it is most salient are those where the least amount of attention has been paid to it.”

There are also striking differences among developing countries. Malaysia, for example, fares well even against many wealthier countries. Seventy-five percent of 15- to-24-year-olds are digital natives.

As a percentage of the total population, 13.4 percent of Malaysians are digital natives. Malaysia ranks fourth, behind Iceland, New Zealand and South Korea, on this measure, which the study suggests will be an important determinant of a country’s future potential to take advantage of the economic, political and cultural opportunities of Internet use.

And then you have these introspective looks at the utopian effects of mobile and connected spaces. These are things which are probably best understood in action and behavior by someone described as a digital native, but is best seen against those who are not – for instance this article at The Atlantic Cities looking at smartphones causing more interpersonal interactions in some urban contexts:

Especially in big cities, Huttenlocher argued, social media can help people connect with specific groups of people and feel less lost among millions of other residents – and millions of other people on the Internet. “One of the things we’re seeing is the increasingly urbanization of tech and how we use tech. Location is part of that re-personalizing of technology,” he said.

Digital Natives per Country Map – The Atlantic Cities

There’s a good bit to look at here. And depending on your location, the conversation about the significance of being digitally native or not carries a different weight. There’s not a broad sweeping opinion, but there’s also nothing stating that some of the characteristics identified which can be helpful in understanding the trends and applying a decent solution.

[Infographic] Opera Notes Mobile Consumption

Opera, one of the pioneers of the web browser, and definitely one of the leaders for mobile browsing, has recently released a set of graphics noting some mobile consumption trends in the USA. Here’s one of those graphics:

Mobile Consumption Guide

 

One might wonder why we don’t see more information like this, or even how Opera is able to get this kind of info. In Opera’s case, they can pull this information using the analytics gained from the use of their mobile browser products. From that information – including the sites that are being browsed, and the times of day, they can point to trends like this. Its one of many examples of using a common access point to determine how people use your product, and how to position your product development cycle.

Many churches and organizations have a similar data collection point when they offer the Internet through WiFi hotspots in their facilities. Through the data access logs, you can see what it is what people are accessing and when they are accessing it. You’ll want to scrub this information of data that directly identifies who might be browsing – but getting information such as the type of browser, the type of device, the sites being accessed, etc. are enough to understand a bit better what folks are looking at. And if you notice that your web properties aren’t being accessed, that’s not a time to force people to your site, but it does mean that you should look at designing accessible areas on your website which speaks to what people are genuinely interested in.

Infograhpics like this and the one posted a few days ago give those kinds of avenues forward in mobile ministry (#mobmin). Now, its up to you to design and implement a mobile strategy that makes the most of that data.

Case Study: Vumi Go Redesign

Vumi Go style tile

Part of the opportunity that mobile has allowed has enabled all kinds of people-groups to be empowered to either create or have access to tools that traditionally were not as available. Depending on the motives of the programs though, several services have come and go, leaving both the designer and the consumer at a disadvantage of maintaining a connection to that service offering. Case studies which look then at the redesign of an application or service tend of be quite helpful therefore. You aren’t just reading a technical trope of the issues and opportunities of design or function, but you are also seeing how the consumer’s preferences factor into the planning, design, and final result.

A recent case study read which follows along this line of thinking was posted at Elezea in reference to the product/service Vumi Go. Take a look at it, and consider the entire scope of the problem and opportunity described.

If you have a case study which should be added to our listings, do get in touch so that we can get that added to the listing.