Mobile Ubiquity – Media Strategy for the Long Run

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.

2011 Prediction Results

OK, crazy new job in Q3 last year and I'm finally catching up on the blog. I FINALLY got to my 2011 predictions so let’s see how I did.

11 Predictions Over 11 Months in 2011.

1. Google Gets Into the Music Business

This comes first as I know people in the music business who got drafted by the Search Goliath. Rock on.
This did come about but where is Google taking this? My insiders won’t reveal any details but the quiet makes me think there are some big announcements on the way in the coming months. Grade: A+

2. Facebook Places Kills Foursquare

I’m sorry but why would any advertiser invest in a still-niche platform like Foursquare when you have 500M peeps on Facebook who can’t resist to tell the world they’re having a freaking latte at Starbucks. Foursquare=DeepSix
Well there certainly isn’t as much buzz about Foursquare but it’s still alive. What isn’t clear is what’s the deal with Facebook places? I for one, don’t get the whole geo-me-me-me announcements. I don’t want the home invaders to know when I’m out having a good time. Grade: C+

3. MySpace Implosion Continues

Their focus on music and entertainment was a brilliant move…that they should have done 7 years ago. Too late, Mr. Murdoch, yo space just ain’t cool no mo.
Despite the relaunch and refocus and some heavy input from mega-star Justin Timberlake, MySpace continues to be absent in the trades and industry buzz. Big layoffs, rejiggering of focus and business model and lack of buzz makes me think my prediction was on track here. Grade: B+

4. Microsoft Shutters Zune

I would consider it a mercy killing. Does ANYONE other than Microsoft peeps subscribe to this brick and bits outfit?
Not yet, but does ANYONE care? Grade: B


 
5. Privacy Issues Cripple Behavioral Targeting Companies

If the FCC and privacy advocates have their way they’re going to squash the Big Brother precision delivery of ad targeting to our every keystroke and mouse click and with it, billions of dollars in ad spends and thousands of jobs.
I was off. And with anonymous targeting in the behavioral space this isn’t going to happen. Grade: F

6. Apps Spaces Get a Housecleaning

Average usage of apps are just 3 times once they’re downloaded and Apple says there are over 100,000 iPhone apps of which about 100 are useful. Recent studies show 27% of apps are only used once after being downloaded. Time for a housecleaning. Expect app standards to have higher bars.
As predicted Apple has put down the clamp on junk apps and copycat wannabes. Grade: A

7. Google Gets Into the Digital Magazine Business

If they don’t they like totally need to wear helmets on the bus.
Right prediction, wrong company. Amazon takes the lead and kills with Kindle Fire while Apple launches Newsstand with massive immediate ramifications. Grade: B

8. Apple Flattens

Despite Verizon picking up the iPhone and the 3G dropping to $49 on AT&T - not to mention the tres-sexy iPad, a barrage of tablets and competing handsets are going to chip away at market share…add to that Mr. Jobs health issues and the crisp, juicy promise of Apple earnings calls will sour by Q4.
The fruit de jour continues to dominate the electronics space, despite Android staling market share. No one can bang out bottom line gold like Apple. Grade: D

9. Tablets dominate

PCs will be the new desktop. Remember those?
Kindle Fire, iPad2, Newsstand. Nuff said. Grade A


 
10. Traditional Agencies Suffer Major Contraction

Oh, the overhead. Many of these agencies remind me of high-end resort casinos…opulent surroundings and full of pretty people…someone’s gotta be paying for it and it’s brand America and Mr. & Ms. Consumer. Watch more brands attach themselves to smaller, nimbler and smarter shops who take more of a consultancy role with their partners and collaborate on greatness.
The madness continues but budgets are shifting. Major media companies continue to invest heavily in digital technology, with the future of connected devices, multiscreen interactivity and consumer touchpoints from mass market reach down to point of purchase changing the game. Stay tuned here. Grade: B-

11. Digital Dominates

Print shrivels, Cable TV stagnates and digital in its many forms continues to prove it is the medium – there will be no other.
Smart Phones, Tablets and Connected TVs continue to innovate and change the way we live our lives. The numbers are there – the dollars are shifting to real ROIs on media spends and digital is where it works best. Grade: A

Overall not a bad performance for a crystal ball-less hack. We’re on track for more crazy shifts in media in the months to come. Gotta love it!
Overall Grade: B+

The Mobile Phone & You - Part III - The Future

Sep 22, 2011
The Mobile Phone & You - Part 3 - The Future

It wasn’t as easy writing about the future of mobile as it was the past and present. I wonder if Charles Dickens had the same problem when he wrote ‘A Christmas Carol’?

So where is mobile going? It’s anyone’s guess really but developments in the space are taking human interaction and access to information and knowledge to new places. We can only apply a degree of what is now science fiction to postulate what the future science will deliver in our world of the future. If my 12-Year-Old’s 6000 text messages in one month is any indication how it’s changing communication, we’re in for a very different human experience.

A recent article on Mashable, 8 Current Technologies That Will Shape Our Future, the first five of the eight technologies mentioned are directly related to wireless technology. From the smart phones we know and love today, to seamlessly integrated augmented reality, amplified processing power, applications for everything life has to offer, lightning-quick data speeds and extensions of wireless data access beyond devices themselves and into the fabric of the world around us is going to impact human communication and culture in ways we don’t even yet realize. Mobile wallets, geolocation, retinal scanners, implants, nanotechnology – what does the wireless world look like in the future? Use your imagination.

Will the wireless future play a part in improving the very fabric of human capability or will it cripple us with an overreliance on the tech around us where any answer, any direction, and choice is spoon fed to us through a massive net of cloud-powered data, logic and algorithmic deductions?

Will we all live to see the future point in human evolution known as the singularity where the lines between humans and machines disappear and how will wireless technology play into that evolution? At the end of the day we’re all hurtling through space on this beautiful, blue marble and it’s anyone’s guess.

Guy Borgford
Director Mobile Advertising Solution, Hipcricket

The Mobile Phone and You – Part Two – The Present

In our last installment on mobile handsets, we looked at the past and how we rapidly went from toaster-sized handsets that required a wheelbarrow to tote around, to the world of 2G, miniature communication devices, and the lightning-fast adoption of SMS and other interactions we now think of as second nature.

In today’s world our handsets have in many cases, become our lifeline – with smart phones providing us with our daily calendar, our social network news, traffic, weather, news, music, video, entertainment, games, directions, flashlights, stop watches, cameras, video cameras, home entertainment controllers, contacts, reminders and communication via voice, text, IM and video chat - thee list goes on as illustrated by the hundreds of thousands of apps out there.

Let’s face it, these devices are in fact computers, with processing power and storage capabilities that rival desktop machines from just a decade ago – all in the palm of your hand. Recent survey data from comScore is in, noting that smartphone penetration increased significantly, now at 35.1% of overall mobile audience with 82.2 million users. The weekly new user rate was about 863k/wk during July or about 586k/wk average over the last three months. This space is on fire.


The rate of technological change is exponential – and nowhere is this more evident to the average consumer than in the world of mobile. But are there costs? What are the tradeoffs? What does the future look like? What does it mean for human culture and communication?

In our next installment, we’ll explore and postulate where it might be going – and what it might mean to you. Til then…there’s a call for you on line one.

Guy Borgford

Vice President Strategy FGI Seattle

FGI Seattle - interactive strategy, web redesign, digital marketing, interactive advertising, startup strategy, website design, Seattle interactive design, mobile optimized websites

11 The Mobile Phone and You – Part One – The Past

You know you’re old when you tell people you remember in your not-too-distant past when cell phones weren’t a part of our lives. I tell my kids this and they just give me this look like, ‘you’re a relic, dude’.

Then I go into a diatribe about my world as a kid – no videos, no video games, no personal computers, no voice mail, not even a touch tone phone. Yes, maybe I am a relic, but I’m holding it together through a regular diet of healthy eating, exercise and progressive house music – but I digress.

The truth is, cell phone technology as only been available to consumers since the mid-1980s. To some that might seem like another era, but to those of us who can recollect days of mullets, bad fashion and hair metal, it doesn’t seem like that long ago. I remember an acquaintance who was the first person I knew personally who owned a cell phone. The thing was a brick on a stick, and we never really knew what this guy did for a living but something tells me it wasn’t legal.

Cell phones were for the top executives, the superstars, and for the suppliers to those target audiences vices – they were for a few whose livelihood depended on an always-on channel through which they could communicate. For the rest of us there were phone booths and the cutting-edge tech known as answering machines.

Little did we know back then, how much things would change and how fast.

In the 1990s, the 'second generation' or 2G mobile phone systems emerged, primarily using the GSM standard. These were different from the previous generation in that they used digital instead of analog transmission. The rise in mobile phone use with 2G was explosive. With the introduction of 2G systems was a trend away from the larger "brick" phones toward tiny hand-held devices. This change was possible not only through technological improvements such as more advanced batteries and more energy-efficient electronics, but also because of the higher density of cell sites to accommodate more usage. The latter meant that the average distance transmission from phone to base station shortened, leading to increased battery life while mobile.

2G phones also enabled SMS or text messaging, which eventually spread across all digital networks. The first machine-generated SMS message was sent in the UK on 3 December 1992 followed in 1993 by the first person-to-person SMS sent in Finland. With prepaid services being introduced in the late 1990s SMS soon became the communication method of choice with younger demographics, a trend which quickly spread across most age groups.

Well, that takes us into the 90s. Next week we’ll talk about the advent of 3G, 4G and Smart phones and where we are today…then we’ll discuss where we could go tomorrow.

Guy Borgford

VP Strategy, FGI Seattle

http://www.fgi.com

Video Everywhere....What's Your Take?

I’m not afraid to date myself. And I’m not talking about taking myself out to dinner and movie, but I am talking about putting the incredible rate of technological change into context. So, let’s talk video.

Seriously, I remember our family’s first color TV. Granted I was barely in grade school, but the set was the size of most compact cars today, its depth equal to its diameter and the video quality…I don’t think the word quality factored into the product description.

These were the days of consoles…anyone remember those? These sprawling home entertainment systems contained a TV, turntable, radio and a pair of muffled sounding speakers as part of their complete home entertainment checklist – most consoles were large enough to span two zip codes.

FAST FORWARD: From the incredible adoption of video-enabled handsets, to tablets, streaming services, Hulu, YouTube, 4G networks, Wi-Fi, and a huge array of boxes, gaming platforms and DVRs that make video accessible and on-demand just about anywhere. A recent study by Sandvine Inc. shows that Netflix movies and TV shows account for nearly 30 per cent of bandwidth/ traffic into homes during peak evening hours, compared with less than 17 per cent for Web browsing. And The Nielsen Company released data showing the number of mobile subscribers over the age of 13 watching online video on their mobile device in Q2 2010 reached 21.9 million (up 43%) – that doesn’t count those under 13, who, if my 11-year old is any indication, represent a huge number of additional streams.

And add to this, social media’s ubiquity and the viral nature of ‘sharing’, and video has the ability to take on a life of its own, where crazy, creative kids can become mini movie moguls practically overnight. And now Facebook’s video chat announcement today makes video even more embedded into our virtual social experiences. Aside from the distribution channels, think about the barriers to entry – how many user generated content programs are there out there now anyway? TrueTV has based its entire programming schedule on the genre. Big Brother is watching you and he’s out to sell your antics to Hollywood. [Don’t get me started on reality, TV, please – I’m just waiting for a series to come out about plumbers – I can just see the Hollywood pitch now…WATCH PLUMBERS…addictive like crack.]

As each day passes, video moves farther beyond the field of entertainment. More companies use video as tools to engage, educate, assist, and convert. According to eMarketer the use of online video among the 100 leading retailers increased by 18 percentage points between Q4 2009 and Q4 2010, alone – with the recent surge in tablet and smart phone use, that number is bound to explode over this year and into the next.

Video usage online continues to grow at astronomical rates: comScore reports in is Digital Year in Review report that 179 million Americans watched online video each month during 2010 and that more than 88.6 million people watch online video on an average day in December 2010 (up 32%).

New technologies, like anything in the world of business and change are hit and miss - as of October 2010, HTML5 video penetration had reached 54% of web users…and this is expected to rise dramatically as many major web utilities such as Google’s Gmail service plan to force browser upgrades to HTML5-compatible browsers in order to use their services. While the new format challenges Flash, consumer interest and sales of 3D TVs are estimated to decline in 2011 while sales for connected televisions rise, according to SNL Kagan, a media and communication analysis business. Hit and miss…but most are stories of incredible growth.

So, what does all this mean for you? What does it mean for your business? What does it mean for human culture? Those are all loaded questions. Like anything, video’s salience in any one situation depends on context. What is certain is that we can no longer think about video as a self-contained product, viewed in a world behind darkened shades in the comfort and privacy of our home. Video is everywhere. Video is social. Video is powerful. And video will continue to capture the imagination and emotions of people everywhere as the arguably highest art form, behind only life itself.

To explore your organization’s video strategy, book your organization’s complimentary Whiteboard Wednesday with FGI today – info@fgi.com .

Guy Borgford

VP Strategy, FGI.com

Innovation - It Starts From Within

We hear the word thrown around in business all the time. “We’re innovators; Innovation is key to our growth; innovation is what our business is all about.” The list goes on. I wonder how many companies out there have innovation as part of their mission statement, positioning statement or core corporate mantra? My guess is it’s a LOT!

In today’s rapidly changing world, innovation is key to being competitive. Without innovation, companies and their products quickly become relics of the past – the world keeps turning folks and with it a world of change with every spin.
Despite the never-ending need to innovate on the product side and a robust investment in product innovation and research and development, many companies neglect the innovation on the talent side and with it, leaders are hesitant to innovate from the inside out.

Fear of change results in a state of paralysis and again…if you’re not moving forward, you’re moving backward. Technology, culture, capital, people, and the way they all work together are constantly changing, so if your team isn’t innovating on both a personal and cultural level, you can be assured others are, and in the process, leaving your place in the market, in the dust.

Innovation begins at the personal level - call it your spirit, your heart, your soul or whatever else works for you – but change needs to happen from within before it can be rolled out to a department, an organization, or an industry. And sometimes the most dramatic innovations that positively affect companies aren’t on the product or service side at all, but are aspects addressing the more intangible, such as talent, marketing, process, or culture.


As human beings we must adapt to change – it’s an inherent force of nature – as our environment changes, so must we in order to best thrive in our surroundings. Change isn’t always pleasant, nor is it always a fearless process of flawless execution. Quite often it’s scary, dubious, unsettling and packed full of ‘what-ifs’. But then isn’t that core to all challenges in life? Imagine a life without challenge and without personal growth and innovation…pretty boring stuff.

What all this comes down to is defining innovation and how it fits into your personal world and your company’s culture. Think about innovation differently. Innovate on the very definition of the word and through this process you’ll find personal and professional windows of opportunity for innovation that set you and your company apart from the pack.

Change – it’s a good thing. Well Martha said that until she found herself in a jail cell.