Mobile Ubiquity – Media Strategy for the Long Run
Many marketers testing the mobile waters today look at the
medium as merely another media channel, one through which to reach consumers on
the go in highly targeted and effective ways. Certainly this perception is true
in many ways. No other medium in human history has the ability to target people
through various means from high reach awareness programs through to
microscopically-granular messaging directly at the point of purchase. Mobile trumps
all other media in this way, with a laser-focus all the way down to the
shopping isle.
Even though this reach capability along the path to purchase
is unique to mobile, taking a campaign-by-campaign approach to the medium as an
advertising channel, sells mobile short.
With the advent of digital media a couple decades ago [yes,
it has only been this long] marketers quickly adopted a long term approach to their
marketing efforts through the adoption of customer relationship marketing and
the almighty database. Email has reigned king since this time, even while email
boxes clogged with unopened email and spam proliferated with offers of millions
in dollars in payoffs from the estates of foreign financial elite and free
giveaways with no catch but signing up for a mile-long list of offers that
essentially sold the user’s soul to the devil.
Still the value of a long-run approach to marketing and advertising via
database builds.
Certainly in no way were marketers off-track on this
approach. The ability to capture a consumer’s email address extended the value
of advertising programs to remarketing efforts, brand loyalty programs and a
host of other highly-targeted, customer relationship initiatives that took each
advertising effort and stretched its sights to the long term value of each and
every customer touch point.
The fact remains that email is a still pretty effective but
when one compares its effectiveness with mobile and SMS messaging, the true
power of mobile as a customer communication tools makes email pale in
comparison. The average email open rate falls somewhere below 5%. So for you
math wizards out there, for every 100 email sent only 5 are actually even
opened. Those numbers aren’t great. And when you add on the high rates of
opting out of subscription from messaging burn and an overabundance of clutter,
some postulate that email may be a dying marketing communication channel.
Comparatively speaking, 95% of SMS messages are opened in the first five
minutes of receipt, with the overall open rate closer to 100%! And with the
right opt-in language in place, SMS enables high-octane marketing tactics such
as geofencing, mobile couponing and point-of-purchase initiatives that reach
consumers as they’re out in the world making those purchase decisions critical
to all marketers business performance goals.
When done right, SMS not only delivers on the aforementioned
state-of-the-art marketing tactics, but it also formulates deep customer
relationships, that over time build unparalleled brand equity, loyalty and
advocacy that turn customers into marketing allies.
Take all of this into play and add in the ability for mobile
to be completely ubiquitous and ‘always on’ with the use of SMS, MMS, QR and
the burgeoning response technology delivered through AR and NFC and you have
the ability to now reach consumers in multiple ways, through rich and engaging
experiences and so do through every other media channel at marketers disposal.
Mobile is always on, and its ability for ubiquity takes the long term approach
to customer relationship management and communications to every consumer touch
point, while amplifying the value of each advertising and marketing initiative through
the lifetime value of each and every consumer out there.
