Why globally outsourcing pieces of your campaigns can be beneficial.

Let’s skip the obvious. We all know that “outsourcing” is a powerful term with multiple meanings. In marketing, it’s no different than in any other industry. Brands outsource marketing to agencies. Agencies outsource pieces of projects to freelancers, smaller agencies and new media companies. New media companies outsource their IT development, which allows them to keep their new media “new”.

Sure, these are all practices of outsourcing that are very familiar. But what about the more recent phenomenon of “offshore outsourcing” -- and what does this phenomenon mean for interactive marketers?

In a nutshell, regardless of where you sit in the marketing value chain, offshore outsourcing will fuel innovation and efficiency in interactive marketing in 2005 like never before.

Take four cases in point; each of these is an example of firms leveraging low-cost, offshore talent to deliver a successful marketing campaign.

1. Mobile Marketing

We’re all familiar with companies using SMS as an effective marketing tool. Whether it’s to introduce a new album or to get voters to the polls, mobile marketing is a tool every company must have in its arsenal. Pushing a text message to a cell phone seems simple enough. But what happens when a human can help facilitate the customer response? That’s when mobile marketers turn to live assistance. That’s right, real human beings answering the phone!

Madonna promoted her most recent album to fans via an SMS blast to their cell phones. Consumers were given the option to pre-order her album by pushing “1” on their phones to connect directly to a live customer service representative who processed the order. In the past, the cost of such live assistance was cost-prohibitive. But today, by using an offshore call center, companies can add live operators to their mobile marketing campaign for less than half of what it would have cost them before.

2. Web Marketing

Outsourcing Web development to a reputable offshore team allows many more companies to add an online component to their marketing strategy, something that previously was both expensive and time consuming.

AT&T Wireless used Octane to build its AT&T Wireless Photo Zone site to display consumer photos taken by street teams demonstrating the Sony Ericsson T68i Camera Phone. Reps roamed AT&T-sponsored events (sports, concerts and festivals) snapping pictures; consumers got a code to download their photos. The campaign was successful because of the rapid deployment of a cost-effective and innovative Web-based application that managed the photos and codes.

3. Celebrity Marketing

Branded entertainment is a rapidly evolving marketing sub-segment. Take, for example, new lines of clothing by J-Lo and Gwen Stefani, or the new “CURIOUS” perfume by Britney Spears. Celebrity-branded clothing lines are nothing new, but what happens when you infuse hot celebrity brands into the fast-moving wireless world? With a cost-effective offshore call center and software development facility at your fingertips, a lot can be accomplished in a short timeframe and with a tight budget.

When 'American Idol' and rap artist Jay-Z each decided to launch branded cell phones in Sam Goody stores across the United States, Musicland (which operates the Sam Goody retail chain) turned to Octane to provide a fully integrated wireless operation. When consumers walked into any store, store employees called Bangalore, an India-based call center, whose specialists processed credit checks and navigated a detailed process to activate the phones on AT&T Wireless’s network.

Jay-Z and 'American Idol' call center agents were trained in American pop and hip-hop culture in order to service callers appropriately. Agents even dressed the part for work. I kid you not (see pictures). These college-educated, English-speaking employees answered all customer inquiries about the phones, explained benefits available to 'American Idol' and Jay-Z fans, and helped troubleshoot issues for existing customers. To service callers, specialists utilized an intricate software system, which seamlessly interfaced with AT&T Wireless’s IT infrastructure. With a call center in Bangalore, software development facilities in Calcutta, and a shipping facility in South Dakota, the project went truly global to deliver a successful celebrity marketing campaign.
 
4. Advertising Technology Development

Of course, all online marketing and advertising campaigns use evolving ad serving, database and reporting tools. For marketers to ensure effectiveness and maximize the ROI from their ad spend, these tools need to keep up with the latest interactive marketing techniques. Online advertising models have morphed from CPM-driven models in the late ‘90s to cost-per-action -- or even cost-per-call -- models today. It is no surprise then that most major U.S. firms are leveraging offshore talent to develop and maintain their interactive marketing tools.

OFFSHORING MYTHS

1. Cultural differences with an offshore team will lessen the “creative” quality of a project -- FALSE. Agencies typically dictate “creative” to their IT group and the group follows orders. This process flow is no different when working with an offshore team -- especially one with some U.S.-based senior management. At the same time, given India’s huge entertainment industry, you can be sure that ad-savvy technology teams in India understand the power of mobile marketing, new media and celebrity-driven brands.

2. Time differences will hinder productivity -- FALSE. Hybrid onshore/offshore firms like Octane are servicing clients with senior executives and account managers residing and working in the United States -- in fact all of our executives even grew up here. For 'American Idol,' all client communications were handled by a San Francisco-based product management team. This allowed for product development meetings during U.S. business hours, with a majority of the actual development being done while U.S. executives were sleeping yet ready by the next morning. How’s that for productivity?

There is no doubt that the trend of offshore outsourcing will continue to allow companies to make the most of their marketing resources. Typical cost savings for offshore software development and call centers are between 40 percent and 60 percent. With many online marketers, agencies, and technology firms already making offshore resources a crucial part of their business strategy, can your firm afford to wait?

Sameer Bhatia is the CEO of Octane Technologies and a frequent speaker on offshore outsourcing in the online and mobile marketing sectors. Octane was the first company to present a case study on outsourcing for the U.S. media and entertainment industry and also the first to help bring celebrity-branded wireless devices to market. Octane is a worldwide sourcing firm that was founded on the belief that successful companies benefit from solutions that transcend national boundaries, conventional practices and traditional thinking. Current Octane clients include interactive marketing, wireless and gaming firms. For big and small enterprises alike, Octane is fueling "Business Without Borders."