Mobile marketing is on the cusp of moving markets and deserves consideration as part of the marketing mix for a wide variety of products and services. No longer the province of teenagers or a parlor trick perpetrated by nerdy early adopters, mobile media is gaining widespread use as new phones and new software make the internet accessible everywhere. In no time we'll all be tethered to the digital grid; connected by a single multi-functional device.
Consider several recent developments:
- Almost two-thirds (63 percent) of cellphone users have received email, used text messaging, or obtained news and sports information on their phones.
- More than one-third (38 percent) of mobile phone users access the internet from their device. There are 40 million active smartphones, closing in on 20 percent of the total cellphones in use, and the market continues to grow, driven by iPhones and Blackberry Pearls and Curves. There are 130 million phones in use with "highly capable internet browsers," and the IBM Institute for Business Value survey recently found that 40 percent of respondents had internet data plans in-use and one-third of those respondents had already watched a video on their phones.
- Once a consumer starts watching video on their phone, 45 percent continue to do so regularly. According to video ad manager Black Arrow, this accumulates to 800 million hours of mobile video viewing. That's still a tiny slice of the 389 billion hours of broadcast TV watched, but a bellwether nonetheless.
Evidently, we have begun to solve the technical issues of compression, design, and compatibility that bring the internet off the desktop, out of the laptop, and into our on-the-go daily lives. You can bet this trend will continue. Continuous improvements in speed, signal clarity, and software integration will lead to a single compact, personalized device that becomes an indispensable tool for managing communication, interaction, commerce, and the most practical aspects of our lives. Dick Tracy's wristwatch video phone and the Star Trek communicator already exist. Soon we'll all be using their progeny.
Then think about the mobile applications that people we know have already come to rely on. Many people use their phones to search, receive news alerts and sports scores, interact with TV shows, vote or take surveys, play games, send or view photos, get directions, or communicate with other humans. Facebook access from mobile devices has tripled in the last year to 15 million users. Who knows how many other social networks are making similar claims as we get used to the idea of telling everybody what we're doing in real time and sharing everything we find, like, or do with a gang of unseen others?
The NFL streams video of games to mobile devices, Sears2Go.com allows you to buy Craftsman tools using a phone, and a Disney-Verizon alliance will use cellphones to interact with kids and families while they're in Disney theme parks as early as next year. Progress in "m-commerce" is making the interfaces and downloads between websites and phones easier, smoother, and less kluge-y day by day. Soon mobile wallet applications will allow us to use our handsets to fill up parking meters, buy from vending machines, purchase movie tickets, check out quickly at retail stores, and complete complex financial transactions with the keypad.
And while there are a few indications that consumers expect and will tolerate advertising surrounding these nifty new tricks, it's not really clear how much and what kind of messaging will resonate. Therefore, the prudent forward-looking, professionally-paranoid marketer will get started and get smarter about mobile media and marketing now. During this ascent phase, prices are low, content and merchant partners are flexible and open to experimentation, and there's still time before anybody gets a lock on a killer app, game-changing technology, or critical market segments.
Here are five tips to start framing your own mobile marketing program.
Focus on core apps. Lead with your strong suit. Decide which of your core products or services are most useful for on-the-go customers and start there. Don't try everything at once. Try one thing: the service demanded most by customers or prospects; the items that are most closely identified with your brand identity; or your unique selling proposition.
Start small. The first tip puts you squarely in test-and-learn mode. Ask customers to do one thing; to choose, vote, get a coupon, set an alert, or take an exclusive offer. The idea is to validate the channel and test your ability to influence incremental changes in behavior. You want consumers to do one thing easily and quickly so they like it, appreciate the effort, and feel warm and fuzzy about your brand.
Market across platforms. Mobile apps are critical for a few, but the real value for customers and prospects lies in rounding out the brand experience. Use a mobile test to get customers to respond to an e-mail or to an ad, to view and vote, or to offer opinions about something they see or hear in another media channel.
Make an offer. In return for taking a mobile action within a fixed timeframe, customers should get a reward. Rewards can take the form of contest entries, discounts, and exclusive access to people, places, or things of value, such as freebies or coupons. Mobile media is a direct-response platform. Many consumers come to it with expectations set by DR marketers.
Ask about it. Do a post-action customer satisfaction survey using email and mobile media to gauge customer reactions and gather customer input and feedback. Mobile marketing is evolving and who better to help you plan step number two than the folks who responded to your initial foray?
Daniel Flamberg is managing partner, Booster Rocket.
