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While companies seek the use of the virtual world of Advergames, there are others that are taking advantage of millions of mobile phone subscribers. Mobile marketing provides marketers with high speed in message delivery, interactivity, great customer reach and response rates five times higher than direct mail, making it a tool that fosters and maintains strong relationships.The advanced technical performance combined with different mobile content and services has created a new context for brands as well as end users. A recent study showed that in the US alone, 99% of 270 million US mobile phone subscribers have SMS service. But even with such statistics, marketers still hesitate in using mobile marketing in their branding strategies without proven use.
As smartphones proliferate and marketers move beyond experimentation, eMarketer predicts that spending on mobile advertising will gain momentum over the next five years, reaching $1.56 billion by 2013. The very personal nature of a mobile device makes interactivity, informativeness, and personalization measures that would influence the use of mobile marketing as a social media tool.
For the tool to be effective and lucrative to brands, marketers should address customer relevant, requested and interactive content. As such, perception of platforms in terms of better usability and accessibility will allow marketers to generate dynamic ongoing content and applications that are more relevant and efficient to consumers. Also, it would provide insight to the combination of social media needed to further expand revenue channels. Using demographic and psychographic variables of gender, country, city, region, birthday/age, language, consumer group and type, subscription type and status, subscription type and status, phone brand and type and MMS-activated handsets, deployed personalized display and text ads across multiple mobile channels provides consumers with dynamic content and applications, and for marketers: better, more focused accessibility to their real consumers.
Wait; there is more- Better understanding of the role that permission-based marketing plays in encouraging consumers to participate in long-term, interactive campaigns. Marketers can be more effective and lucrative for the industry participants as they focus more on customer relevant, requested and interactive content. The beauty of permission-based mobile marketing is that messages are not perceived as spam or unwanted advertisements, but rather an invitation from the brand. So here are some questions that may be considered:
1- Did the message target the right audience?
2- Was it passed along to others because of its contents?
3- How effective was the information passed to gain permission by the consumer vs. the information shared afterwards, in terms of the level of trust, loyalty (number of actions taken per information shared), social presence (the number of new subscribers generated from an original/unique customer)?
As interactive media has the potential for customization, more emphasis should be placed on person factors that influence how consumers want to receive information and how they process such customized messages. The fact that mobile phones are almost without exception used and possessed by a single person makes it possible to use the phone as a unique identifier, making it an attractive channel for targeted promotional messages. Measuring the effect on purchasing decisions and buzz generated more focus on thrilling existing customers to building longer-term relationships can further create greater brand authenticity. Based on click behavior, the marketer can observe what actions were taken by the consumer and whether they completed a purchase. Furthermore, the effects of personalized information are much easier to track.
So, should we, as marketers still hesitate?
And do we, as consumers, embrace?
E-communications is a powerful medium when dealing with social change issues. Reaching audiences of varied cultures and different perceptions, the internet has provided powerful tools that have proven to be more beneficial, than traditional media, in improving the quality of information shared and generating linkages. Consumers worldwide have become aware of the potential that the internet and other social media have provided over the past couple of years, especially with regards to health related information. With rapid access and delivery increasing, so have the prevailing issues and key factors that have been associated with web-based health communications and their implications.
Interactive Health Communication (IHC) is the interaction between an individual and a health related provider through an electronic device or communication technology. The internet has bridged gaps and provided applications that are useful in building awareness and support, health communication needs to be based on scientific evidence and communication theory models, where e-communications is part of an overall integrated approach to reach specific audiences. While consumers and healthcare professionals demonstrate significant interest in using the internet, privacy and information quality, present notable risks in healthcare provider-patient relationship.
The absence of social rapport that is present in face-to-face encounters may influence how consumers view and process information. It is therefore important to ensure that information shared online clearly indicates its source credibility to ensure that trust is maintained with the intended audience. But more importantly, are patient privacy and equal access to information by all. Furthermore, when applying online health communications to influence behavior change, practitioners need to identify the level of audience exposure to the online channels they plan on using. Knowledge of their target audience characteristics, the role that online mediums play in effectively reaching their segment are equally important to how the internet is perceived and used by different consumers (including health practitioners and services). Once barriers have been identified and removed, based on who the target is, internet-based communications and tools, integrated with other traditional media channels, can be valuable in increasing social support, mobilizing communities and providing the needed services.
The internet is one of the most powerful influential medium that can affect health outcomes if used properly as part of an overall integrated approach to health communication. One cannot ignore the use of the internet and its effect on different audiences; therefore, it is important to continue to eliminate barriers such as access and source credibility. The opportunity for e-health technology to improve access to information, reach rural or underserved populations, reduce care delivery costs, and integrate health care services and information is significant, and should not be avoided.
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When you are out in the dessert with no access to any tech toys, you end up doing a lot of thinking. How is it that we don’t miss our good old fashioned toys? Why are we no longer encouraged to explore the outdoors, and consider the wii, an amazing invention? What happened to soothing your child because of a paper cut they got as they were coloring? Endless questions kept on popping in my head as to where we are today. And the answer was simple- we have been bedazzled!
We left good old fashioned fuzzy-feelings that we experienced as we wait for the postman to come with a long awaited letter, as we try to solve the Sunday crosswords, and as children enjoyed imploring their five senses. The revolution of Generation Y bought in the adrenaline of savvy networks of information, digital devices, and unlimited access to a whole new world- the virtual world.
In a trance, we embraced it with no reservations. It touched every aspect of our lives, controlling how we communicate, and how we are looked upon. The modern world to which we now belong to is now most likely the only thing that our children understand and as they grow up, the word ‘postman’ will be have a historical connotation to the latest and trendiest form of communication.
Our state of bedazzlement has given opportunity to a new “children’s digital media culture” to swiftly move into place. This has resulted in a rich array of websites being created for children and tweens. The uniqueness of today’s interactive features of new media have given companies the advantage of integrating advertising and website content to promote “brand awareness” and “brand loyalty” among children, encouraging them to become consumers beginning at a very early age.
The emergence of increasingly sophisticated advertising media, promotional offers and creative appeals in recent years, new issues have also developed, of which the integrity of the brands themselves are questioned as they compete for market shares. So what happens when brands target 0-3 years old? Do we remain bedazzled or do we do something about it?
Brands have always focused on allocating large budget for their advertising and marketing efforts to develop their branding, style and promotions based on their target consumers. What they often oversee is that consumers are becoming more sophisticated in their purchasing behavior, and the effectiveness of the traditional means of marketing within the fashion industry is no longer enough. With a deteriorating economy, brands face the increasing skepticism of consumers towards advertising messages.
A recent research by Unisfair reported that three-fourths of marketers are planning to increase their outreach to social media in 2010. Lead generation and customer retention/engagement are the most critical objectives for marketers today. According to Crispin Porter and Bogusky, brands need to consider every form of marketing communications, from active and passive store experiences (staff-customer interaction and buying environment) to the style of press releases and internal corporate communications to ensure that new advertising will not just have temporary benefits (Zmuda, 2009).
For example, Gap Inc. has begun focusing on strengthening its brand by shifting to a mix of traditional and non-traditional tactics, including influencer programs and multi-faceted campaigns (Moin, 2007). In celebrating 40 years, Gap’s most recent campaign- ‘Born to Fit’ was featured on Polyvore, a cutting-edge fashion site with 3.7 million unique visitors a month (Hillier, 2009).
To further promote its image, Gap Inc. encouraged fans to declare what they were born to do with an interactive Facebook gallery, style mixer iPhone application, and pop-up shops. Furthermore, the corporation hosted “the nation’s largest simultaneous acoustic concert at more than 700 Gap Stores across the US”, while outfitting the New York Stock Exchange with 1969 jeans, for the first time in history, and ringing the closing bell (Gap Inc., 2009). The campaign also used visual (in-cinema and through their stores), outdoor and print mediums ( New York Times, New York Post, Vogue, Vanity Fair, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, US Weekly, People, Interview, Nylon, GQ and Rolling Stone) in major metropolitan areas nationwide, to increase consumer awareness and encourage their key publics to express their personal style.
This type of IMC efforts maybe just the thing that other fashion brands need to consider to keep their multi-variant customers. As the fashion industry’s main source of advertising, the monthly glossy, is experiencing sharp declines in ad sales this year – some down 47% for the September issue, according to Forbes, social media has deconstructed the traditional means of communication between retailers and consumers by adding new channels for discussion (Kavilanz, 2009). Brands need to use all tools available to be able to recreate the customer relationship based on effective two-way communications and trust (Karolefski, 2003).
As I sit here in the middle of the desert, I am wondering if there was no failing economy, would we be so focused on cluttering new media tools? So what happens after that?
References:
Gap Inc. (2009). Media Center. Retrieved November 6, 2009 from http://www.gapinc.com/public/Media/Press_Releases/med_pr_GapPremiumDenim08132009.shtml
Hillier, K. (2009). Six social sites every fashion marketer should know. Retrieved November 6, 2009 from http://adage.com/digitalnext/article?article_id=138893
Karolefski. J. (2003). PR stirs it up. Retrieved November 6, 2009 from http://www.brandchannel.com/features_effect.asp?pf_id=166
Kavilanz, P.B. (2009). Merchants get punished in July. Retrieved November 6, 2009 from CNN Money website: http://money.com/2009/08/06/news/economy/retailsales_july/index.htm
Moin, D. (2007). Latest blow for GAP: Group plots new tack as sales slide goes on. Retrieved November 6, 2009 from HighBeam Research: http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-157109868.html
Zmuda, N. (2009). Crispin picks up all ad work for Gap brand. Retrieved November 6, 2009 from http://adage.com
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