Over the time that WARC has carried out this survey with the MMA, the role of mobile in the arsenal of marketers has grown significantly. Today, more than two in three marketers are incorporating a mobile-first approach in their marketing. As smartphone technology becomes more and more sophisticated, marketing professionals have needed to increase both investment and focus on improving digital and mobile competences.

The report analyses mobile marketing capabilities, growth in m-commerce and social marketing, and impact of technologies such as AI, IoT, ML & voice on improving marketing efficiency.

Key highlights include:

• Two third (69%) marketers have adopted mobile-first approach – a 10% increase since 2020 demonstrating mobile marketing’s growing position in the greater modern marketing picture.

• 55% marketers use engagement metrics followed by business metrics (51%) to measure mobile effectiveness in 2021.

• 75% marketers are expecting an increase in mobile budgets in 2021 – a 20% increase since 2020 led by social media and m-commerce technologies.

• Social media leads in marketers’ (86%) strategy, followed by mobile web display (50%) and in-app display (47%). 56% Indian consumers engage with social media ads – highest among any country.