(2012-11-30) Rethinking Mobile First

Back in 2010 Fred Wilson noted/supported a trend of Mobile First/Web Second development. The thing I like about these kinds of apps is they are with you all the time and can be used in moments of downtime. As such they lead to higher levels of engagement. I've always preferred Mobile Web models unless you really need closed-FatClient features: Off-Line use; strong interaction with phone hardware (beyond what PhoneGap will give you).

Vighu Norby says Mobile First hasn't worked well for Every Me, and his next product will be Web First. Unfortunately he combines this point with the challenges around Social Media Advertising-based (free-to-user) models. He's right that the combination is particularly deadly because ad models require huge scale and getting Viral Critical Mass is harder in a closed app. But he does show a number of advantages to Web First in-general: faster iteration, easier acquisition/activation, etc.

Fred Wilson counters: But just because something is hard doesn't mean you shouldn't try to do it. I am convinced the next set of large and valuable consumer facing services will be built with mobile as the primary user interface.

• BrandonBurns commented: mobile is a channel, not a product strategy... Your product defines how you execute it, not the channel.
• Fred counters: Could and will mobile be good enough for everything we do on the web? My gut tells me it will and I am trying to live a mobile first web second existence as much as possible to test that instinct. I am writing this post in the chrome browser on my Nexus 4.