Practically everyone has a mobile phone these days, and some users will really make the numbers matter for companies who are making full use of mobile apps and services to boost their earnings. These trendsetters are going to be the ones who pioneer the latest in reaching out to the mass of active users that are becoming increasingly receptive to a new age of marketing and interactive content.

Social networks are quickly becoming the number one way for mobile users to exchange information. Use of these devices, and social networking apps has increased by almost 250% from spring of 2009, to spring of 2010. One of the biggest factors is to be found in the elevated use of smartphones. According to market research, the number of Americans who are considering switching to a smartphone is about twice as much as it was two years ago. In this report, there are top ten items that are going to impact the social media landscape, with the advent of new mobile phone and tablet PC technology:

1-Let Freedom Ring

There is further research that shows a direct connection between the rise of social media, and the increase in mobile usage content. This is significant for shoppers who want to buy from their phones, rather than entering a physical location or even dealing with making purchases online, while tethered to a desktop PC. This newly found freedom to roam stores and gather data on the fly is going to be of major influence, research indicates. The portability of mobile handsets will lead to enhanced usage throughout locations that were inaccessible before.

2-Growth in the Number of Users

According to online polls by eMarketer, reports show that in 2008, there were approximately 228 million mobile phone users in the USA, which represented about 75% of the total population. In 2009 those numbers grew to roughly 239 million, pushing the growth figures upward about 78% for the number of users. This figure is expected to be reaching 250 million users before long.

3-Get Smarter

The handheld device market is shifting, and it’s in favor of smartphones, and the USA consumer market is fueling much of the demand. With up to 15% of consumers polled responding that they would be buying a smartphone in the next 90 days, smartphone penetration in the US market will climb steadily. Around the world, Nokia’s Symbian OS accounts for about half of smartphone subscribers, due to its dominant position in Europe and in the Asia-Pacific region, but in the USA it seems that Apple’s iOS, Google’s Android, and RIM’s BlackBerry are the ones going head-to-head for market share. Blackberry currently enjoys the largest portion of that market share, but what will be of interest is the turning tide, as Android shows the fastest growth in the market. Without even getting into the speculation over Microsoft’s Windows Phone Series 7 OS, it can be concluded that smartphone owners are a hungry lot, when it comes to their desire for more app use, browsing, social networking, music, video, and messaging.

4-Mixing Business with Pleasure

Gaming on mobile devices has seen growth of 45% in 2008, with continued growth pushing 64% this year. The expected figure for 2011 is forecast at around 73%, as technology and support for high-end apps gets better and faster. As if that wasn’t good enough news, mobile gaming, music, and video revenues will very likely more than double from 2010 to 2014, at their current pace. The biggest winners in the gaming business will be the ones who can strike the best balance between fee and free, as services fall into openly accessible apps, and those that come with a subscription.

5-It’s All About Where You Say It…

Location is everything, especially when it comes to mobile marketing with handheld devices like phones or tablets. The closer a marketer can get to a consumer, the more relevant their message can be made at the moment. Putting the power to buy near the point of purchase will be a deal-breaker for many, a will providing information about the product in question.

6-It’s Also How You Say It, Too

The way consumers communicate with each other is changing in a big way, and studies show that today’s consumer with a handheld device is using the smartphone to do everything from sending text messages to other mobile devices, using the phone’s browser, downloading apps, playing games, and even updating their blogs while they’re out on the streets. The concept of localization comes into play once again, as marketers try to find the best ways to make consumers aware of their products from being in the right place at the right time.

7-Cheaper, Lighter, Faster… Better

Mobile devices have made quite a dramatic evolution, and with new technology comes the ability to make them more portable, and for a lower price. These devices have essentially become miniature personal computers, and boost the environment for tablets to make their place a permanent one in the coming years, especially after considering the previous points about location playing a large role in how purchasing decisions are made.

8-Tablets are a Clean Slate

While they still have their share of detractors, tablets are rapidly changing the business of computing, and they are doing it at a surprising rate. Experts at EMarketer project a future of 12.9 million iPad shipments worldwide in 2010, with 36.5 million 2011, and 50.4 million in 2012. There could be a 25% presence in the market for tablets, next to notebook and desktop PC sales. One thing that tablets are promising is a more immersive experience for users, and this is driving sales. The industry at large is pushing towards the HTML 5 standard, which means the Internet is becoming more app-like, so there’s an increasing convergence between the appearance and experience.

9-The Need for Big Bandwidth

By the year 2015, mobile consumers in the USA are expected to consume data transfers of about 327,000 terabytes of mobile data per month. Industry analysts at Mobile Crunch point out that this kind of growth represents a 40-fold increase in data consumption over five years.

10-Making Room for Video

Mobile video may be at the core of the mobile device market’s massive growth, say industry experts. In 2015 the rate of data transfer for video content is expected to be somewhere around 225,000 terabytes per month, making the need for high-speed data transfer options a necessity. As carriers roll out 4G technology, carriers are expected to move toward tiered pricing, to make video streaming a reality that could impact advertising and marketing content in ways that agencies could have only dreamed of.