|
As with the arrival of any new media or way of doing business, the promise of untold success balances precariously with the fear of venturing into the unknown. That’s certainly the case with mobile marketing, which is developing slowly, but surely.
So, the good news is “you’re not behind,” says Shabbir Safdar, chief technology officer, Mindshare Interactive Campaigns, an interactive communications agency with its headquarters in Washington, D.C., and satellite offices around the country. “But,” he adds, “you have to start now. There is no sure recipe for catch-up.” Building your own file of mobile opt-in customers will be invaluable in the future, because the mobile carriers will never allow marketers to sell a list of mobile opt-in names, he explains. At most, companies will be able to ask other companies to send marketing messages to their mobile housefiles on their behalf. But even that approach is going to be watched carefully, due to carriers’ concern about keeping spam out of the mobile environment.
To navigate this uncharted territory, Safdar advises marketers to consider the following factors that he notes are having an impact on the success of current mobile marketing campaigns—and that he expects will be important far into the future of mobile media.
Must-do #1: Rethink your media buys.
“Mobile is, in a lot of ways, going to revalidate every other marketing medium because the mobile phone is almost indistinguishable from the person. We’re talking about a device that you and I carry with us for 15 hours a day, personally. It’s not like our computer that we get up and leave when we go to lunch,” says Safdar. He likens a cell phone to a giant “I want to buy” button, which has the potential to turn into a “buy” button when the infrastructure is worked out to make purchasing products and services via a cell phone bill a simple procedure.
At the present, the mobile phone turns all other media into lead-generation tools when coupled with a response mechanism. This translates into companies putting mobile promotions just about everywhere. Safdar points to My Coke Rewards as a good example; the text codes are on the product itself—bottles and caps. Some other popular channels for placing invitations for audiences to text your company: billboards, “bus boards,” magazines, radio and TV. The only medium that has not fared so well on the mobile marketing front is direct mail. “No one has figured out the silver bullet for direct mail,” he says.
So, the good news is “you’re not behind,” says Shabbir Safdar, chief technology officer, Mindshare Interactive Campaigns, an interactive communications agency with its headquarters in Washington, D.C., and satellite offices around the country. “But,” he adds, “you have to start now. There is no sure recipe for catch-up.” Building your own file of mobile opt-in customers will be invaluable in the future, because the mobile carriers will never allow marketers to sell a list of mobile opt-in names, he explains. At most, companies will be able to ask other companies to send marketing messages to their mobile housefiles on their behalf. But even that approach is going to be watched carefully, due to carriers’ concern about keeping spam out of the mobile environment.
To navigate this uncharted territory, Safdar advises marketers to consider the following factors that he notes are having an impact on the success of current mobile marketing campaigns—and that he expects will be important far into the future of mobile media.
Must-do #1: Rethink your media buys.
“Mobile is, in a lot of ways, going to revalidate every other marketing medium because the mobile phone is almost indistinguishable from the person. We’re talking about a device that you and I carry with us for 15 hours a day, personally. It’s not like our computer that we get up and leave when we go to lunch,” says Safdar. He likens a cell phone to a giant “I want to buy” button, which has the potential to turn into a “buy” button when the infrastructure is worked out to make purchasing products and services via a cell phone bill a simple procedure.
At the present, the mobile phone turns all other media into lead-generation tools when coupled with a response mechanism. This translates into companies putting mobile promotions just about everywhere. Safdar points to My Coke Rewards as a good example; the text codes are on the product itself—bottles and caps. Some other popular channels for placing invitations for audiences to text your company: billboards, “bus boards,” magazines, radio and TV. The only medium that has not fared so well on the mobile marketing front is direct mail. “No one has figured out the silver bullet for direct mail,” he says.
Companies Mentioned:
 |
|
