Will that be a mobile app or a mobile website?

Mashable reports on the dramatic growth in smartphone usage among the 18-24-year-old demographic and on a corresponding interest in mobile technology among education marketers. There are some great real-world examples and ideas to be found in "5 Ways Higher Education Is Leveraging Mobile Tech." We especially like the approach at Boston's Emerson College where students are connected with major brands looking for a leg up on social media marketing. Many of the examples you'll find in these links are oriented to engaging current students but you can see how these same strategies could be adapted for prospects as well. The Chronicle of Higher Education, meanwhile, has a related piece that points out:

Many colleges have published iPhone apps in the last few years that allow people to get campus news, maps, and other information on Apple's popular smartphones. Then some colleges found they also needed to develop a version for phones running Google's competing Android system. And some built apps for BlackBerrys as well. But at least a few colleges are now reconsidering the wisdom and the expense of building all those mobile apps. As the mobile Internet continues to grow at an astounding pace, those colleges are shifting their attention from stand-alone applications that can be downloaded from an app store to mobile-optimized versions of their Web sites.

Is your institution building or operating mobile platforms now? Or planning to do so soon? If so, why not use the comments option below to share your experience. Sources: Mashable, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Wall Street Journal