THE CONSUMER ON-THE-RUN MARKET
Elizabeth Chaney
VP, Consumer Experience Services
iO™ global

On-the-Run Lifestyles:  The Convergence of Choice and Control

Individuals with on-the-go lifestyles are not a new phenomena.  The first opportunity to measure and track it came with the banks’ introduction in the 1970’s.  This simple self-service technology re-defined the banks’ relationship with their customers.  The lifestyle adoption of automated tellers was first the opening of the network, so that money could be accessed from any bank, at any time, anywhere in the world.  For example, when the U.S. Supreme Court allowed interstate EFT networks to develop in 1985, total annual transactions began a growth curve at an average of approximately 11% per year for the next 10 years.[1]  When ATM terminals were not restricted to just bank premises, this slope of this transaction growth curve increased even more sharply. 

The consumer was no longer operating under the control of the bank and his/her choice of time and location for fulfillment of cash demands became only as limited as the number of ATM machines available. 

Internet networks today represent a supernova of that same open infrastructure, interconnecting devices of all types  --  televisions to trains; automobiles to airplanes; phones to home entertainment systems; applications to content to brands that make them useful; parents to children to friends and whole communities.  The mobile device is the individual’s remote control for this infrastructure and this “hyperchoice” environment.  Just as banks have learned from their intial days in the on-the-run market, marketers of all types will learn that propositions must converge under an individual’s control and choice, not the other way around. 

Sizing the On-the-Run Lifestyle <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Opportunity
As we learned with the early successful web-based businesses, the market is defined by what individuals are doing in their life, rather than solely on what they are buying.   This activity-centric view provides the context required to sustain an ever growing revenue relationship with that individual. 

Because iO™ global enables its customer constituencies to serve consumers on the run, it embarked on the task of sizing the activity-centric on-the-run opportunity to provide a foundation for service and business model innovation for its customers.  

To initially create the on-the-run model, iO™ focused on the U.S. market.  Using data available from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics[2], iO™ has aggregated and analyzed time-based activity input from 13,068 consumers’ 24-hour activity journals.   Individuals spend an average of almost 3 hours per day on the run.  This scatter plot illustrates the average number of stolen moments per individual by age group. 

The opportunity for consumption of content and media for enjoyment or accomplishment during these stolen moments amounts to a total available market of approximately $180 billion in the U.S. for 2005. 

Variance and regression analysis of the study respondents’ on-the-run time, provided a number of directional insights for on-the-run services targeting and propositon development.  iO™ found that higher income levels, hours worked per week, and the age of children in the household impacted on-the-run time differently for different age segments.  The variance in on-the-run activities, as well as the time and location context for those activities, will significantly impact a mobile marketer’s ability to capture a share of the on-the-run experience for any specific group. 

The On-the-Run Influence Factor
On-the-run lifestyles and, most importantly the technology that enables them to be enjoyable and productive, influence other areas of individuals’ lives.  The opportunity and urgency for service and content providers of all types to participate in a share of the individual’s on-the-run lifestyle increases as a result. 

·          Multi-Medium, Multi-Tasking, Multi-Device. Studies tell us that 70% of media users consume more than one medium at a time.  Of those who listen to radio, 53.7% are online at the same time, 46.9% are reading a newspaper and 17.7% are watching TV.  Of those watching TV, 66.2% are online amd 74.2% are reading a newspaper.[3] As personal mobile devices become ever more capable and as on-the-run time shifts to prime “do it” time, on-the-run styles and devices will start to influence the way individuals do things while at home or work.  Taken from this perspective, look for the on-the-run market opportunity to grow even larger. 

This 70% overlap in media consumption would suggest a relationship between an individual’s time on the run and their relaxation and leisure time.  The individual activity analysis for the on-the-run model also totaled relaxation and leisure time by age groups.  The mean time by age is represented in the scatter plot. 



The combination of relaxation and leisure and time on-the-run represents for some ages almost half of their waking lives.  This is a significant opportunity for service providers and content producers alike.

·          On-the-run activities influence traditional purchases.   Approximately 4% of offline purchases were influenced by the internet in 2005.[4]  Many experts predict that the internet will influence up to 50% of purchases by 2010.  If the same influence factor holds true, and as service providers begin to understand wallet sharing business models with other ecosystem constituents, on-the-run entertainment and information access will potentially be the lever to a larger proportion of consumer discretionary income. 

·          Capturing the impulse buy.  Impulse buying represents almost 40% in the online world[5] and it can account for up to 80% of all purchase in certain product categories[6].  On-the-run time and associated activities are fragmented into a number of small moments, or individual “impulse opportunities”, as the individual is seeking to enjoy or accomplish something during that moment.  Service providers, content producers and advertisers alike should seek to eliminate all of the intrusive steps normally required for purchase (i.e. finding, comparing, viewing, etc.), thereby streamlining and personalizing options to individual preferences for individual on-the-run activities.

Tapping into the On-the-Run Market Opportunity
There are some simple truths all ecosystem constituents should follow to tap into this significant on-the-run market opportunity. 

1.       A service orientation is required to be successful. 

2.       Openness and inclusiveness across the ecosystem of participating constituents will yield greater revenues and relationships for each individual constituent. 

3.       Value is accrued through facilitating what the individual is trying to do  (i.e. their activity).    

4.       Sustainably facilitating an individual’s activities means occupying a more dominant share of their on-the-run life experience.  This is of significant value to any service provider, advertiser, or content producer as they wish to monetize their brands. 

For more information on iO™ global, visit www.io-me.com.  In addition, to learn more about how to capture an ever greater share of an individual’s on-the-run wallet, contact Elizabeth Chaney at [email protected]

[1]   EFT Network Data Book (various years)
[2] Bureau of Labor Statistics, American Time Use Survey (ATUS), 2005
[3] Center for Media Research
[4] Deringer Research; U.S. Census Bureau 2005 Monthly Retail Trade Survey
[5]  User Interface Engineering, E-Commerce Whitepaper, “What Causes Customers to Buy on Impulse”
[6] Abrahams, Ben. (1997). It’s all in the mind.  Marketing, March 27, 31-33, Smith, Don. (1996, February).  The joy of candy.  National Petroleum News Supplement, S2

10 Tips for Going <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Mobile –Today
By Mike Baker, CEO of Enpocket

There’s never been a better time to launch a mobile marketing program.  There’s a substantial audience of consumers using their mobile phones to send text messages, share pictures, surf the Web, download content and even watch TV.  And this audience has shown an increasing willingness to engage with brand communications across these activities.  Perhaps best of all, the medium is completely open and uncluttered because most brands are still trying to figure out how to plan campaigns in this burgeoning space.  Savvy brands are seizing the opportunity.  Here are some rules of the road to get your brand moving in mobile:

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1.        Provide real value.  The mobile phone is your customer’s personal device and you need to respect it as such by ensuring the relevance and value of your brand communications.  Why would someone invite your brand into their pocket?  They won’t unless you offer them something entertaining or informative.  A beverage brand with sports sponsorships might offer downloadable pictures of stars; a maker of allergy medication might offer localized daily pollen count alerts; a consumer bank might offer customizable text alerts about activity in your bank account; a hotel might offer guests confirmations sent to their phone for easy reference at check in; a movie rental store alerts on newly available titles, and so on.  Think of conveying your brand as a service to consumers’ personal device.

2.        Integrate for higher impact.  Mobile is the ultimate channel for integrated marketing programs because the device is ubiquitous, always-on and available for a range of simple and rich media brand interactions.   The trick is making consumers aware of the opportunity to interact, now, for real value.  Smart brands are leveraging their existing media assets to promote mobile calls to action.  Smart brand marketers are promoting short codes (5 or 6 digit phone numbers that allow consumers to initiative messaging and mobile internet experiences) on product packaging, in-store displays, and within broadcast and print ads. Here’s the trick: campaign planners need to understand mobile executions and integrate them at the campaign planning stage.  Look for mobile-enabling companies that can speak equal parts creative and technology execution.  Because the best mobile integrations extend across the customer lifecycle, sit the mobile enabler with the brand marketing, direct response and CRM groups – mobile can stitch these objectives together like no other medium. 

3.        Keep it simple.  The fact is, unless you are dealing exclusively with Generation Y and younger, the average American mobile user is still a novice when it comes to mobile messaging, downloading mobile apps and Web browsing.  Provide specific instructions on how to participate in mobile campaigns.  And, don’t ask consumers to do a lot of obscure triple-tapping (Can you type the @ symbol on your mobile phone?  Will you spend more than 30 second trying?).  Mobile is not the ideal medium for gathering customer mailing addresses or even email addresses; but it is effective for gathering mobile phone numbers for re-marketing.  Another simple way to get your brand in front of consumers using the medium is mobile Internet advertising (think mobile banner ads).  Major operators, like Sprint, recently have made their portal of mobile Internet users available for targeted third-party brand advertising (disclaimer: my company, Enpocket, powers the Sprint advertising initiative).  Offerings like this represent a very welcome opportunity for brands to simply extend the reach and frequency of their existing interactive campaigns into the mobile channel.  In a browsing context, post-click actions like click-to-call, click-to-download and click-to-play-video are very simple engagement activities for the older folks and mobile newbies unsure how to text message. 

4.        Begin harvesting opt-ins -- yesterday.  Similar to email campaigns, push messaging campaigns over mobile are only as strong as your opt-in list.  It takes several months to build a robust opt-in base, so best to start now. If your email opt-in mechanic is already in place on your Web site, why not add a field for capturing opt-in mobile phone numbers?   Also consider running a mobile campaign that offers an incentive for consumers to opt-in for future communications. For example, McDonald’s rolled out a direct response marketing campaign aimed at driving localized store traffic during the slower late-night hours.  Consumers could sign up for mobile coupons on the company’s Late Night Lounge Web site, which drove hundreds of opt-ins during the first week and continued opt-in growth throughout the program for future coupons.  But be careful to establish a program that promises the consumer ongoing and not one-off value.  Examples include integration with loyalty-point programs, regularly refreshed editorial or entertainment content (remember when most brand Web sites were like static scans of a paper brochure J ?), customized alerts, and ongoing offers of value. 

5.        Make it social.   Mobile is a social medium – it’s a phone after all! Of course people use the device to communicate, but they also show off to friends their phones, ringtones, and seem to love texting-in to shortcodes at shows and events.  For example, Robinson’s soft drinks ran its “Court on Camera” promotion this year at Wimbledon, enabling tennis fans to send photos of their favorite Wimbledon moments to a giant display screen.  At the end of each day, judges decided which picture best captured the aura of Wimbledon, and awarded the citizen publisher with VIP center court seats.  This is a great way to cultivate a mobile community and interact directly with consumers with passionate interests that tie into or reinforce your brand.

6.        Map mobile mechanics to the five steps of branding.  You no doubt can recite the 5 steps of brand marketing (awareness, consideration, preference, purchase and loyalty).  Think about how these might work in mobile marketing.  Clickable display advertising on the mobile browser is a great way to generate brand awareness because you can reach millions of mobile users without opt-ins or permissions.  Having gotten a consumer to click, mobile Internet sites and simple text messaging are the best ways to stimulate basic engagement and brand consideration.  Brand-sponsored downloadable content and text alerts are the next step, allowing your audience to build affinity and preference with your brand.  Purchase can be on the phone (for mobile “consumables” like ringtones, games and applications), in-store with vouchers and coupons, or on a Web site using a mobile code.  Retail brands should plan now for mobile-oriented POS programs, as 2007 will see the first large-scale, fraud-proof and trackable mobile couponing programs.  Lastly, the mobile device is a great tool for building brand loyalty.  It’s a much more convenient device for tracking and redeeming point accruals, and can be integrated relatively simply with your existing programs.  Of course, loyalty also is a by-product of a successful opt-in brand touch program, as consumers experience your brand as a service and you increase the number of brand impressions on the consumer personal device.    

7.        Capitalize on time targeting.  The beauty of mobile is its unmatched ability for targeting by demographic, location and time of day.  Because it is always on and an uncluttered channel, mobile surpasses all other media, including email, for precise time targeting.  Text messaging is a perfect tactic for driving retail traffic during specific day parts.  For example, A&E turned to mobile to promote one of its most popular shows, “Dog the Bounty Hunter,” and found that mobile programs drive tune-in, network loyalty and word-of-mouth exposure.  Viewers can sign up for weekly messages from Dog on their mobile phones, receive show reminders and interact with the show by texting into a short code.

8.        Use rich media to make a compelling impression.  Americans are proving that you don’t have to be European to use messaging, especially when it comes to Picture Messaging (MMS).  A full 15% of US mobile users are active picture messengers, and MMS subscriber numbers are climbing faster than those for text messaging. Not surprising considering the on-line proliferation of digital photos and the emotional openness one feels when sharing pictures.  Now promotional marketing campaigns using multimedia are just beginning to gain traction. Brand-sponsored multimedia messages are like mini slide shows that include rich graphics, audio and even video. Marketers who are successfully developing entertaining promotional messaging are reaping the viral benefits of the medium, as consumers happily share their messages with their friends.

9.        Provide instant gratification.  If you’re engaging a consumer through a mobile contest, don’t drive them back to another media to see if they’ve won.  One of the huge benefits of mobile is instant gratification – with peers and with brands.  Keep that in mind when planning your integrated marketing campaign – the mobile can enable instant gratification for the consumer, but also instant insight to the brand.   Don’t reduce the power of that tool. 

10.     Look to Las Vegas.  And to the principle of random rewards.  Whether at a slot machine, in a board room, or on the playground, humans respond favorably to positive reinforcement.  With text-to-win contests, publish the contest results so that consumers connect with the reality of winning.  For instance, Pepsi ran an on-pack text to win promotion and promoted the fact that every third bottle cap contained a winning code.  With millions of entries over the course of the contest period, Pepsi was able to connect with its key youth demographics targeted by the campaign.

Keep these 10 golden rules of mobile marketing in mind, and you’ll be at the head of the pack as mobile marketing moves with consumers from the fringe to the mainstream.

Mike Baker is Chief Executive Officer of Enpocket (www.enpocket.com).  A seasoned executive with more than 16 years in digital media, Baker has been at the forefront of interactive communications in the wireless, Internet and multi-channel video markets.  He brings his experience pioneering interactive advertising and analytics technologies to drive the emergence of a new, more personal and relevant form of advertising through mobile devices.

Mike joined Enpocket in 2004 from GrandBanks Capital.  Prior to that, Mike was Executive Vice President at Engage Technologies, Inc. where he guided the company through its IPO, international expansion and series of acquisitions. He joined Engage from CMGI. Mike began his career as a corporate attorney in Washington, DC representing media, telecommunications and technology companies.

Music Gone <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Mobile

By Laura Marriott | January 25, 2007 | ClickZ

To View the Direct Article, please click HERE.

Ring tones, text to screen, and text alerts: these are the wireless media types we think of most when we think of music and artists engaging the mobile channel. Music represents the lion's share of mobile data revenue today, with artists and labels working to engage new digital channels in their marketing initiatives. They don't just use mobile (which is my mantra), but all interactive media. Music videos, ads, and banners all drive loyal fans to music informational sites and music venues.

Music provides an immediate ability to customize and entertain. Ring tones and ringback tones allow consumers to show the world their affinities and perhaps a bit of their personalities. Major brands know that integrating recording artists with their media campaigns targets a new brand of consumers, such as Ford and Jay-Z; Madonna and iPod; and Snoop Dogg and XM Satellite Radio.

At MidemNet Forum this past weekend, the music industry came together to discuss how it can offer consumers more choices and take advantage of digital delivery and new technologies. The program featured great debates over DRM and how creators and enablers can come together to leverage new technologies.

IPods, iPhones, Zune, Chocolate... mobile devices are a big element of the conversation. As Chris Anderson, author of "The Long Tail" stated, the record's function is shifting with every laptop out there. Consumers can now record, mix, market, and distribute from their PCs. Artists have newfound opportunities to market their brands and gain access to consumers they never would have reached before. Anderson believes it's going to be harder to target broad audiences (the commonalities). The recording industry must instead reach smaller audiences with unique preferences. There is now "no Top 40, but many top 40s all over the world," said Anderson. The grassroots are rising, and all players in the ecosystem -- from artist to supplier to consumer -- win.

Where does that leave mobile? According to Terry McBride, CEO of Nettwerk Music Group, "Don't tell the consumer how to consume. Be everywhere where they are so they have the choice, not us." Mobile distribution through the consumer is key, and MySpace is just the beginning. Consumers and word-of-mouth (or P2P) marketing is emerging like never before.

The music market can create the best for consumers: the best price, the best opportunity, the best choice (read: catalogue), and the best experience. Artists are learning how to market themselves and reach consumers through the channels they use most, and new channels are helping underserved artists to find their audience.

Case in point: Canada's Steve Page from the Bare Naked Ladies (BNL) discussed how the band is using all distribution forms of digital and physical marketing to get messages out before and after events. BNL has learned how to make fans part of the benefit. Über-fans become a distribution channel eager to share in the band's success. "[We] cannot punish fans for what technology has brought them" says Page. "Let's give them more through every channel."

I participated on a mobile advertising panel in which we discussed the impact mobile advertising will have on the music industry. Mobile presents an opportunity for fans to gain access to richer music content but also allows musicians and labels to generate more revenue through the emerging channel.

Will consumers soon have unlimited access to free music on mobile devices? Some players will undoubtedly offer this model. But more than likely, we'll see an evolution into some free services and some pay services. Ultimately, it's putting choice and control in consumers' hands. We're in the early days of mobile advertising. Creating a set of tools the industry can deploy quickly is paramount.

Music is already available through mobile. Ad-supported music is already available through mobile. The models and media channels are becoming more sophisticated, and industry models are evolving as we protect the interests of both artist and consumer.

Imagine you're watching a music video on your mobile device and at the end of the video you have the opportunity, through a single click experience, to buy the artist's T-shirts, CDs, live tracks not available through any other media, or event posters. It's everything you could possibly imagine, all through one multimedia device: your phone.

This scenario isn't for next year. It's here now.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

Growing Consumer Interest in <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Mobile Marketing
By Laura Marriott | January 11, 2007 | ClickZ

To View the Direct Article, please click HERE.

Over the last week, we've seen a fair bit of coverage related to consumers' perception of mobile marketing. So today, I'll review the results of the Mobile Marketing Association’s (MMA's) annual attitude and usage study on mobile marketing effectiveness, released to MMA members in December.

The MMA's annual attitude and usage study, conducted with market research firm Synovate, measures not only perceptions and usage for wireless and text messaging but also overall receptiveness and participation in mobile marketing initiatives. These statistics are hot off the press for ClickZ readers.

Over 1,800 consumers between the ages of 13 and 65 were queried regarding their attitudes on and usage around mobile marketing in the United States using the Synovate online ePanel. Below, a few highlights from the study.

Overall Wireless Usage<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

• Forty-eight percent of the sample reported their wireless phone usage increased significantly over the last year.
• The mobile phone has become an important part of everyday life. Seventy-nine percent of respondents report being highly to moderately dependent on the mobile phone.
• The average consumer uses approximately 4.8 features on his mobile phone.

Text Messaging Usage

• Text messaging is used by 69 percent of survey respondents, and 44 percent use the functionality daily (up from 41 percent in 2005).
• Sixteen percent of respondents use text messaging for interactive voting (have you seen "Deal or No Deal" yet?)
• Common Short Codes are used as the primary means for engaging in mobile marketing campaigns. Although short codes were known throughout the respondent group, the highest familiarity and usage were in the 25-34 age segment.

Perceptions on Mobile Marketing

• Overall, consumer attitudes toward mobile marketing trended down slightly, with 21 percent reporting they're highly or moderately interested (compared to 25 percent in 2005).
• The youth market reported the highest rate of interest and usage, ranging from 30 to 40 percent.
• Of the total base queried, approximately 2 percent had engaged in a mobile marketing initiative.
• The number of respondents with experience in mobile marketing campaigns who participated in voting campaigns increased strongly from 8 percent in 2005 to 29 percent in 2006.
• The highest regarded mobile services include downloads, coupons, and alert-based services.

Conclusion

Although mobile marketing participation rates may be down, mobile consumers are becoming more educated about the features and functionality of their devices and are engaging more frequently in mobile marketing campaigns. The mobile phone is becoming an essential element in a consumer's everyday life. This increased dependency on the mobile phone is expected to lead to increased utilization.

One obstacle is the consumer belief that mobile marketing and mobile advertising involve push-based initiatives that are sent to this highly personal device on an ad hoc basis. Yet unlike e-mail or the Internet, mobile marketing is permission-based; consumers are able to proactively select the mobile initiatives they'd like to participate in. The bulk of players in the ecosystem adhere to the MMA's guidelines and best practices, which protect consumer privacy and ensure a high-quality consumer experience based on consumer opt-in.

Education on all fronts will be paramount to our industry's growth. "The success of mobile marketing efforts will be maximized by educating consumers on the key benefits they will realize from participation," said Beth Ritchey, VP of tech and telecom for Synovate. "Accentuating how participation in mobile marketing will give adopters an inside track to information, savings, downloads, special offers, etc., is vital to generating interest and participation."

Because this is a highly personal, highly available device through which marketers can now reach consumers, we must ensure we collectively educate the consumer on the guidelines and best practices to increase awareness surrounding a mobile marketing initiative.

My friend and colleague Michael Becker from iLoop Mobile points out the mobile marketing environment is best summarized by Gerry Purdy: "Probably the most important medium for advertising in the 21st century is going to be the cell phone, not print media, not billboards. It's just a matter of time -- there are just too many of them."

The MMA's annual attitude and usage study is available free to all MMA members.

The Key to Mobile Content Adoption: A Great User Experience
By:  DP Venkatesh, CEO of mPortal

It is safe to say that mobile content consumption has not reached its potential in the <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />United States. Despite occasional “bubbles” of popularity for some mobile applications and content, consumer adoption has been less than stellar. Some blame the “walled garden” carrier set-up in the United States that prevented third-party content providers from easily offering content to users. With the walled gardens now a memory and mobile content consumption still not up, we need to examine the real root cause: usability. Beyond mobile content profitability, there is a greater potential cost of the usability challenge: without customer adoption of content and other applications, the innovative nature of mobile technology will not be fully realized in the United States. What operators and handset manufacturers need is a unified approach that will make mobile content easy to find, preview and buy.

Finding content or “discovery” remains the biggest problem with mobile content purchases. Mobile content today is not organized in the way most consumers think, intuitively.  Instead, content is organized into silos, with separate menus for ringtones, wallpapers, and games. This is in contrast to web and other types of content which are grouped according to theme – actor, artist, genre – for example.

Success requires a two-part approach. First, the organizational aspect needs to be addressed. Content needs to be re-organized according to themes, menus should be pre-populated, and the ability for related content to be suggested needs to be built-in. Second, the user interface needs to be examined. User interfaces vary by carrier and device. A consistent interface with content discovery options for prominence on idle screens and keypads for one-touch access should be mandatory.

Allowing a consumer to preview content is the next step in usability. People are not likely to buy something if they have any doubts as to whether or not they want it. For those consumers that have preview option, content is slow to arrive because of the architecture. You have to use the browser to find a link, click on it, go to a site, download another menu and so on. It's a back-and-forth, jerky way of getting the preview content.  A single click preview with local caching of information and menus no more than three level deep coupled with access to the network only for critical data may be just the right answer for most of the users.  With an effective user interface design, content previews could become a rich media experience where different applications are linked.

The last phase – purchasing – seems to be self explanatory, but today’s mobile consumers must go through a lengthy process to purchase content only to repeat that process if they want to buy something else. Even if they are buying a similar piece of content (say a wallpaper featuring the artist whose ringtone they just bought), they have to start over. A one-click purchase process is a good first step in making mobile content more user friendly. Extra features, such as reminders so that users do not purchase the same content again or recommendations for additional content that might be of interest, will bring mobile content purchasing up to the level of online buying.

Overall, when designing services, service providers and handset manufacturers need to start by thinking about the customer experience, not how to protect their turf. A good plan would be to work backward from the consumer’s perspective and look to make the experience as easy and intuitive as possible. There is always a need for compelling content at good prices but without an improved user experience the best content in the world would be useless.  Most people don't buy today because the process is confusing and slow. Not until ease-of-use in discovery, previewing, and purchasing content come together will there be mass-market take-up. Also, until usability is addressed, the mobile marketing and advertising campaigns will not recognize their full potential.

D.P. Venkatesh, Founder and CEO, has more than seventeen years experience in the telecommunications industry across Wireless, Internet, and Media sectors. His roles have varied from executive management to strategic planning and business development.

As CEO of mPortal, Mr. Venkatesh oversees all aspects of strategy, sales, and marketing for mPortal. Over the past five years, he has led the company through its various growth stages.

Prior to founding mPortal, Mr. Venkatesh was with McKinsey & Company in their Hong Kong Office as part of their global Telecommunications Practice and worked with several leading global communication providers as a strategic consultant to their Boards and Management teams. Mr. Venkatesh holds an MS in Industrial Engineering and an MBA both from the University of Cincinnati, as well as well as a BS in Chemical Engineering from Anna University.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

Mobile Marketing 101: Best Practices
By Laura Marriott | December 14, 2006 | ClickZ

To View Direct Link to Article, please click HERE.

When discussing mobile marketing basics, we must consider the Mobile Marketing Association's (MMA's) "Consumer Best Practices (CBP) Guidelines.”  I initially wrote about the "CBP Guidelines" in May. The guidelines were updated in November, so let's review the areas of significant change.

"CBP Guidelines" has become the baseline for cross-carrier mobile marketing initiatives in the <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />U.S. The document compiles accepted industry practices and wireless carrier policies and is based on regulatory guidance given to representative members of the off-network ecosystem. While the guidelines committee strives to implement policies that encourage off-net industry growth, its primary focus is on consumer protection and privacy, as industry growth without consumer satisfaction isn't sustainable. The guidelines have been integrated into carrier contractual agreements with aggregators and content providers and, as such, are enforced by all players. For those in mobile marketing, the "CBP Guidelines" are a must know

According to David Oberholzer, associate director of content programming for Verizon Wireless and the guidelines committee chairman, "'The Consumer Best Practices Guidelines' continue to set the standard by which carriers, aggregators, and content providers offer services in our emerging mobile marketing industry. The MMA CBP Committee continues to stay abreast of issues that impact our industry and respond in a collaborative, consistent manner to ensure a positive consumer experience."

The Committee comprises leading mobile marketing providers, including wireless carriers, aggregators, content providers, and agencies.

The guidelines are published every six months and highlight important areas to ensure a sustainable mobile channel. Highlights from the recent update include the key areas below.

Advertising and Promotion

The most significant modifications to advertising and promotion regard terms and conditions (T&Cs) language and the provision of adequate information to subscribers about the services. Highlights include:<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

• If the T&Cs materially change the consumer offer, the T&Cs must be highlighted and presented at front of offer.
• Prechecked T&Cs aren't permissible. Consumers must indicate their acknowledgment by manually selecting the T&Cs.

Language about marketing to children was added. The guidelines state that all marketing campaigns targeted at children must comply with all state and federal regulations, including COPPA regulations.

Also added was language around the use of "free" terminology in advertising and promotional materials. Of particular note in this section are the following:

• A program isn't to be promoted as "free'" when subscribers will pay premium fees with a reasonable level of participation in the program.
• If there are obligations associated with the term "free," the full commercial offer should be disclosed in the same manner at point of the free promotion. The entire offer must be presented in same place (e.g., banner ad, top of ad, etc).

Customer Care

• Processing of recycled and deactivation files. These processes should ensure when a user is given a new phone number, he isn't delivered or billed for mobile content programs subscribed to by the number's previous holders. Content providers and aggregators should process deactivation information within three business days of receipt.
• Spending cap limits. The committee also set some guidelines around spending cap limits for both chat and non-chat services. Though the policies around spending cap limits are set by individual carriers, the guidelines recommend caps be per short code on a monthly basis and require consumers to opt in again when their specific carrier caps are reached. The caps will ultimately help protect the consumer experience with short code services.
• Bill face descriptions. Billing detail standardization will help provide subscribers with information on the programs they are subscribed to. It's hoped greater bill information recognition will result in fewer billing disputes. The information to be provided on carrier bills now includes short code, brand name and/or brief program description, toll-free help number, and purchase type.

Viral Marketing

The guidelines now also define viral, or word-of-mouth, marketing and set out permissible and non-permissible campaign types. Viral marketing is communication via text message or other mobile content, including ring tones, games, and wallpaper. Consumer A receives the message, identifies consumer B as someone interested in the message, and initiates a process (e.g., inputting a phone number) through which consumer B automatically receives the message.

All participants in the ecosystem must adhere to all the latest updates to the CBP Guidelines within 90 days of release (in this case, by February 2007).

Industry Forum

Each year, the MMA hosts a Consumer Best Practices Industry Forum, where industry leaders discuss the issues, challenges, and opportunities in creating a professional, sustainable mobile marketing industry. The topics discussed are considered for integration in future revisions of the CBP Guidelines. The next forum will be in Denver on January 11. Topics to be covered include interactive voice response (IVR), WAP off-deck, mobile sweepstakes, and iTV. If you're interested in helping define the guidelines for our mobile marketing industry, plan to attend.

Mobile Marketing: Back to the Basics
By Laura Marriott | November 16, 2006 | ClickZ

To View Direct Article, please click HERE.

Though there's much excitement around mobile marketing's advanced features, some of the most asked questions I receive regard the basics: What is mobile marketing? How do I get involved? What mobile marketing tactics should I utilize? What tactics are best suited for my brand category? Who do I call to get started? And even, what is a short code?

We're still in the early days of the mobile marketing industry, so the market must continue to be educated on the options and opportunities available to it. Although there is a large base of providers experienced in all marketing tactics, many are just starting to dip their toes in. I spoke at a J.D. Power & Associates event two weeks ago, and it was interesting to hear how many automotive manufacturers are recognizing that mobile has become an integral element in their campaigns, due primarily to the ability to connect with the consumer in real time.

The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) defines "mobile marketing" as "the use of wireless media as an integrated content delivery and direct response vehicle within a cross-media marketing communications program." This means mobile is one of many media channels and the key to success is integrating mobile with other traditional and digital media elements. Mobile integrated with print, on-pack, TV, radio, and so on drives interest and response from your target demographic. Today, mobile marketing doesn't stand alone; it's best when integrated into those other media channels.

Define Mobile Marketing Goals
Some goals or objectives for mobile marketing are increasing brand awareness; generating a customer opt-in database (although the database can only be used by the brand for the specific purpose that's confirmed with the consumer); driving attendance or participation in events, visits, or purchases; increasing revenues; and improving customer loyalty. One of the most important places to begin in defining your mobile campaign or initiative is to clearly identify your campaign's strategic goals and objectives. Once these objectives are determined, it will be easier to determine what mobile tactics work best -- as well as what measurement criteria can be used to evaluate the campaign's success.

Select a Mobile Marketing Partner
After you define your goals, you must select a mobile marketing partner. The mobile partner can be in one of the following areas:<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

• An agency, such as Isobar, R/GA, and Ogilvy, or a mobile-specific agency, like Kikucall, ipsh, and Enpocket
• An aggregator, such as mBlox, m-Qube (VeriSign), and SinglePoint
• A mobile application service provider (MASP), like iLoop Mobile, Vibes Media, Air2Web, and Soapbox Mobile

Be wary: carriers have a number of relationships (direct connections) with aggregators and will counsel you to approach one of the folks in the above categories. You can choose to partner with an MMA member instead.  This ensures your partner will adhere to and be aware of the industry's best practices and guidelines.

Select Mobile Marketing Tactics
Next, select your mobile marketing tactics. The most common tactics to date include sweepstakes, instant win, polling/voting, picture messaging, WAP, text to buy, participation TV, trivia, alerts, coupons, text to screen, and mobile content promotions (ring tones, video, wallpapers). Each of these will deliver a different value and experience to your target consumer. Work with your mobile marketing partner to determine what's best for you to achieve your specific goals and objectives.

Richard Ting from R/GA recommends brands keep the following in mind when choosing their tactics:

• Mobile is a unique medium, and campaigns should be developed and designed with that in mind. The mobile medium has its own unique set of interactions and learned behaviors. Leverage them in your executions.
• Don't just repurpose content from other media. Create experiences that are mobile specific.
• Experiment with the medium. Every medium should be treated as emerging, and this truly applies to mobile. See what works. Innovative ideas will generate buzz and PR for a brand while pushing the medium forward.
• Don't forget the user. Make it usable!

Your mobile marketing partner will not only help you define your tactics and ensure your approach to the consumer is sound but also help you define promotion flow; manage the database; procure a short code, if required; conduct testing; provide ongoing customer support and monitoring; and provide campaign reporting and analysis. Most important, however, your partner will help ensure your campaign follows industry rules and best practices to protect the consumer experience and consumer privacy.

Good luck!

Show me the money – why the download experience is critical in building mobile brands
Submitted to the MMA by Ericsson IPX

Modern brands aren’t just about a logo or a catchy name – these days they’re all about experience. The nature of many products and services has changed in recent years, so that brands are moving away from the traditional vendor/seller relationship. Instead, they’re creating an ongoing global dialogue with their consumers through a combination of advertising, interactivity and branded channels. This means that successful brands create deeper customer loyalty for a longer period (ideally for life), and they get the benefit of consumers giving active feedback on how to make their products and services even better and even more targeted.

To companies looking at mobile as an opportunity, it seems a tantalizing world of hundreds of millions of subscribers and billion dollar revenues.  But the reality of launching mobile channels can be fraught with complexities that differ from country to country. To counter this, a growing number of companies are providing readymade services that can be branded and customized to suit any need.

Slowly but surely, more and more traditional media companies are extending their marketing campaigns to mobile. Even something as simple as an SMS short code can be extremely effective in generating responses and awareness, but the mobile experience is still very poor compared to web. If mobile is to generate significant revenues, this experience needs to match the ease and simplicity that consumers have become used to online.

Ericsson has created just this kind of service, called Internet Payment eXchange, or IPX. The IPX platform has been designed to be a virtual ‘broker’ between content and the consumer. IPX acts as a delivery and payment system for all forms of mobile content, meaning that companies and brands that use IPX receive monthly revenue share payments directly from IPX, without the need to deal directly with individual operators. Crucially, IPX also handles the operational, financial and legal relationships with operators globally, as well as enabling the delivery and billing.

IPX aims to provide companies with a robust pipe into as many operators as possible, so that brands can maximise their reach through a single connection. Customers benefit both from the quick and reliable collection of revenues from mobile operators as well as dependable access to millions mobile phone users the world over. Ericsson has seen completed purchases increase by up to 50% when customers who have moved to IPX from a proprietary platform, just through delivering a more intuitive purchase process.

This kind of increase is possible when you understand where the mobile content industry is today; few companies have successfully grasped the complexities of getting real value out of mobile. Often, mobile is treated as an afterthought or a quick extension to an existing promotion or campaign. But by treating mobile as a long-term commitment, it can be easier where mobile revenues fit into an overall strategy.    

And in order to generate real revenues, it’s essential that mobile starts to deliver on this promise of a seamless experience. This doesn’t mean it has to be graphically rich, with all the bells and whistles of the latest websites. Instead, standardization and familiarity is key. It’s no accident that the growth of web commerce over recent years has been driven by the evolution of ‘best practice’ design standards, and it’s clear that consumers will spend money if they are comfortable with the purchase process. That means that a similar level of simplicity and clarity needs to be at the heart of a successful mobile channel.

Brands are clearly taking mobile seriously as the media landscape moves away from static media and focuses on the interactive worlds of mobile, online and TV. For companies like Ericsson who have watched these changes evolve, the next few years present a huge opportunity. Brands are seeing the growth of mobile, and are realizing that their future revenues may depend on it. If companies the tools they need to go mobile, then everyone in the food chain, from hardware manufacturers to content publishers, will benefit.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

Opening the Door to the Mobile Internet
Bringing Down Walled Gardens
By Alexa Raad, VP of Marketing and Business Development, dotMobi

Since the emergence of the Internet in the early 1990s, the ultimate promise of mobile phones has been anytime, anywhere access to rich interactive content and real-time communication. In short, all the features of an Internet-equipped PC combined with voice/messaging functionality in a tiny portable package. But as we all know, the graphics-rich, multimedia browsing experience that people associate with surfing the Web is still nearly exclusively a PC or laptop-only experience. But this no longer needs to be the case with the .mobi domain, the first ever industry-supported domain name for the mobile Internet.

With more than 165,000 .mobi domains registered since launching in May 2006, including some of the biggest brands in the world, dotMobi is creating a link between mobile operators, Internet content providers and the millions of mobile users seeking a consistent, reliable and enjoyable Internet experience. The domain, and the rationale behind its creation and guidelines, is supported by some of the largest mobile operators, handset manufacturers, content companies and mobile organizations in the world, including Microsoft, Google, Vodafone, Telefonica, TIM, T Mobile, Samsung, Nokia and Syniverse, and has the support of major mobile associations such as GSMA, CTIA, MMA and more.

Recently, however, dotMobi was criticized in the media by a spokesperson at Verizon.  The source sought for these comments was an Associate General Counsel whose responsibilities are not content nor growth of a mobile channel, but rather protection of Verizon's IP and trademark -- in other words, minimizing risk and ensuring the status quo.

The reaction caused no surprise to industry experts or to executives from dotMobi, who claimed, there are a few operators, Verizon being only one example, that have simply not embraced the idea that their customers should be able to freely access mobile Internet content outside their walled gardens. Efforts to delay the improvement and availability of open, reliable and uncontrolled content to mobile users are something that unsettles many mobile operators.

As a collective group of mobile experts and industry leaders for a better mobile Internet experience, we know that traditional gatekeepers hold initial resistance to initiatives like dotMobi.   Specifically, many players try to keep the status quo if they feel an open Internet and consumer choice represents a risk to their present interests.

Recently a colleague brought to our attention a 1995 article, which first appeared in Wired magazine.  The article points out that “on-line experience”, then in infancy, was once controlled by the then power-player AOL. AOL as a service provider was a closed and proprietary network.  We invite those from the mobile community to read the piece (http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/3.09/aol_pr.html) and draw their own parallels between 2006 and the proprietary walled gardens from a decade ago. Below is a quote from AOL founder Steve Case, who once said,

"The success of pay-per-view has been dismal. So the cable phenomenon is really a phenomenon that's been driven by simple, affordable bundled pricing. Why would it be any different in the online world?"

Prophetic words back in 1995. Oh how far we’ve come.

By creating a registry service to the .mobi domain, all stakeholders in the mobile Internet value chain—end-users, networks, device manufacturers, software companies, content and service providers—will have a reliable, recognizable and common mechanism for the mobile Internet experience. Consumers will immediately know that if a site has a .mobi address it will be optimized for, and reliably work on, a mobile phone. And just as importantly, service providers and content developers will have a clear framework within which to reach out and serve mobile users.

One of the most important benefits of the dotMobi initiative is that it will enhance and improve the ease of use of mobile Internet services through discoverability, predictability and reliability. Since the .mobi domain makes it easier for search engines to crawl and catalog mobile sites, users will be able to find content from sites they know and trust, creating a mobile Internet experience that retains the look and feel of PC-based browsing.

Like the early days of the Internet, .mobi is a chance for companies of all sizes to stake out territory in a fast-growing market and embrace more profitable business models. This means content providers no longer have to give away a major share of their revenue to be included in the menu of options selected by the operator for the customers.  For consumers, they finally will have the freedom of accessing Web sites easily and cost-effectively on mobile devices.

After all, history is a great teacher, in the end, open, standards-based non-proprietary platforms are always preferable, and consumer is always king.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />