The Integration of Mobile Marketing In this second part of How to make a Mobile Campaign Successful I will look at the importance of integrating Mobile Marketing with other elements of your Marketing Mix.
Personally I believe handset devices, network speeds and consumer acceptability are not good enough for Mobile to become a stand alone marketing tool. Sure, this will be a huge growth area with the development of mobile search engine optimisation, banner type advertising and the development of rich media broadcasts. However, apart from a select few user groups, these mechanics just aren’t commercially viable for most brands. Used correctly mobile marketing can drive consumer interest beyond passive viewing, into interacting with a brand.
Whether entering an on pack promotion using MMS, requesting a brochure sample via SMS or offering personal information via WAP; mobile offers instant gratification not available through any other medium. In most cases it is as a response to some other advert / promotion. The key to success, as suggested in part one, is ensuring that there is a purpose for using mobile. There is little point in sending out an email broadcast asking them to respond by SMS if SMS is going to offer little benefit over an email response. Or why offer an information service that text’s your customer at 2am in the morning (see Julian Hucker’s [Esendex] blog).
However imagine a TV advert during Big Brother, where in the past the audience have shown a preference to text. The advert is shown at 9.45pm, during what is generally perceived as an addictive program, and when the advertisers call centers are closed. Yet the advertiser still chooses to promote an 11 digit, unmemorable telephone number and expect the consumer to call back the following day to engage. Surely asking the viewer to text their name for a call back the following day would be the better practice. If you can orchestrate a situation whereby using text will delight the audience, whereby it adds an unexpected piece of value, this is where mobile is at its most powerful.
A consumer texts in to claim a free cinema ticket, not only should they get back confirmation of when the tickets will be delivered but also information on their nearest participating cinemas. If the consumer enters an on pack promotion, in most cases they will just receive a confirmation of entry. However, the consumer texts to enter this because they want to win, they want to engage. Not winning is one thing, but not being advised if they have won or not is even worse. Imagine a football information service that only lets you know the results when your team wins! So many brands pass up the opportunity to further engage with their consumers at the end of a promotional campaign by letting them know what happened with the competition.
Imagine…
Thank your for entering Brand X’s competition. Congratulations to Mrs B from Cheshire who won the car. Don’t forget to Brand X is now available in throw away packs from Boots. We’re sorry you didn’t win this time. A personal message of interest to a known customer all for the price of a sms message! Mobile is like every other form of advertising, it must be appropriate for the audience at that given time. Next week I will discuss the importance of having clear objectives when using mobile.