CRM - May 2008 - (Page 25)

CUSTOMERS KNOW BEST As vendors and marketers venture out into uncharted territories, consumers will also play a part: The smartphones and cellular devices they opt for will become more advanced and thus technologically more receptive to mobile marketing. “In two to three years, everyone will have a smarter phone,” Air2Web’s Jones says. Still, having the smartest of phones means nothing if the services provided aren’t appealing to the customer. For instance, more than 60 percent of the phones sold in the U.S. are equipped with a camera, but only about 30 percent of those are being used for picture sharing, says G. D. Ramkumar, cofounder of image-recognition mobile marketing company SnapTell. In other words, that’s an underdeveloped market for SnapTell, which targets the users who truly believe a picture’s worth a thousand words: They can transmit a cameraphone picture of a wine label and receive back a review of the wine, or use a snapshot of a DVD cover to add a film title to their NetFlix queue. According to Ramkumar, SnapTell does not require an application download; instead, images are simply sent to a designated “short code.” But another barrier to entry may be cost: Ten cents per message for a random text will make any potential customer resent an irrelevant offer. But not all offers are irrelevant: “People who want to participate [in an offer] are motivated by the potential compensation,” MarketTools’ Hendrickson says. What a consumer gets has to be perceived to be at least as valuable as the cost incurred by hearing about it—which means mobile advertisers need to be more upfront about the incentive. The Internet, too, was once billed by the minute—until the introduction of fixed-rate unlimited access. Carriers are already responding to the mobile craze with the introduction of fixed-rate service plans; while market acceptance is still too early to gauge, fixed-rate plans will significantly change the way consumers interact with their phones. This past February, Verizon launched a monthly $99.99 plan for unlimited voice www.destinationCRM.com calls and long-distance calls to 48 states. A $119.99 plan includes unlimited messaging to anyone on any network, and a $139.99 deal adds VCAST VPak, VZ Navigator, and mobile email. Competitors AT&T and Sprint soon followed with their own unlimited plans. WHO’S ALREADY DIALED IN? DOS of Mobile Marketing THE Make the offer relevant Encourage instant interactivity Offer something of value Keep the message short and simple—every word counts Build an ongoing relationship Give customers the option to opt in or out Work off of a targeted, well-segmented list Not surprisingly, the freshness of mobile has made it an attractive communication tool for younger people. As a result, marketers are looking to mobile efforts as a way to reach the influential 18-to-25 demographic compared to the above-40 generation. Raised in the Web 2.0 era, 63 percent of American teenagers—ages 13 to 17—have a mobile phone, according to a study last December by the Pew Internet & American Life Project. In addition, the Nielsen Company reports that 35 percent of “tweens”—ages 8 to 12—have cellphones. “I see a big generation gap with technique and with comfort,”says Richard Aaron, president of event planning company BizBash. As a professor at New York University, Aaron is exposed to those who wouldn’t live without text messaging and those who “just don’t get it.” Aaron wanted to explore the realm of mobile to reach younger audiences, particularly recent college graduates. His campaign was a brief mobile survey conducted by MarketTools’ Zoomerang product, which sought participant opinions about a trade show. Presented during the conference, the survey was timely and relevant—and drew an incredible response rate of approximately 80 percent. (In marketing, Aaron says, 4 percent is typically considered “good.”) That’s not to say that older generations aren’t catching on. Make an attractive offer and they will come. According to a study of over 2,000 American adults conducted by consulting and research firm Deloitte last October, about 62 percent of “millennials”—consumers between the ages of 13 and 24—reported using their cellphones as entertainment devices, up from 46 percent in the previous survey just eight months earlier. The percentage of consumers ages 25 to 41 using their cellphones for the same reason rose THE of Mobile Marketing DON’TS Don’t get enamored with the technology—stay focused on the marketing goal. In other words, just because Bluetooth is the hottest new technology doesn’t mean you should create a campaign that involves Bluetooth. Instead, think, “What is my problem and how can I help solve this problem?” Don’t treat mobile as a standalone operation. Mobile is another channel of marketing. To get the most out of the campaign, mobile should be combined with other media, such as television or print. Experts and marketers agree that mobile will not and should not take away from any existing campaigns; rather, it will act as a supplement to enhance the overall experience. Don’t spam the consumer. Bluetooth and radio frequency identification (RFID) technologies make it possible to ping individual consumers based on their location. So far, it seems that consumers and carriers will not tolerate such activity; to prevent these behaviors, carriers are trying to make it difficult for companies to obtain a short code and send messages, according to MarketTools’ Kirk Hendrickson. SOURCES: AIR2WEB; MARKETTOOLS http://www.destinationCRM.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of CRM - May 2008

CRM - May 2008 Contents Front Office Feedback Reality Check Customer Centricity The Tipping Point Is CRM Too Hard for Microsoft Vendors Go Virtual For Feedback Sense-sational Marketing How UGC Can Benefit CRM DestinationCRM Dashboard Price Check, Aisle 5 Required Reading The Moving Target The Excellence Myth Seven Steps to SOA Success And They're Off! Are You Ready to Party? Skin in the Game The Right Numbers Secret of My Success Re: Tooling Connect Pint of View

CRM - May 2008

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