Will the Apple iPhone save us from mobile marketing oblivion?

A lot has been said in the past about mobile marketing in South Africa being the next best thing. With a penetration rate of 80-90% in this country, I have asked why it has not yet been acknowledged by businesses as a powerful marketing medium.

My question today is: Will the Apple iPhone launch in South Africa together with Vodacom remedy all this? I think it could.

It’s fair to say that the iPhone brings virtually nothing new to scene, except for a few limitations.

GPS, Wi-Fi, 3G and full screen web browsing have been around for a while now and for a phone that only has one battery for life and no buttoned keyboard, the launch here should be anything but festival-like.

But of course it will be. And the reason for this is simple. Apple and Vodacom are uber cool. Now, concatenating coolness with corporate marketing methods is rather difficult. Scrap that line; joining these two terms is virtually impossible.

The pin striped powers of corporate South Africa carry with them a certain archaism. These companies were built on antiquated foundations and a visit to these multi-floored monstrosities will reveal an image far removed from glamour magazine decor, Feng Sui furnished boardrooms and freshly ground Brazilian coffee.

When your national electricity supplier creates such turmoil in the online press because of a catchy billboard ad, you’ll realise that creativity is not something that goes hand in hand with them.

Neither does technology. And these days, technology and coolness go together like 7de Laan and Riaan Cruywagen.

What can Apple bring to the fore?

There’s already an unprecedented hype around the iPhone launch in South Africa and that should work in our favour.

Better phones have been around for ages and Nokia will in most likelihood continue to be the world leader in this department. Publicity wise however, the mobile marketing fraternity should cast their hopes on Apple and Vodacom’s marketing and advertising to shake the foundation of corporate South Africa.

I bet that the 7 mass media channels will be inundated with advertising, viral campaigns and social networking drives from these two players. With Facebook, Youtube and Mxit under the belt, the pressure to adapt is getting stronger.

While the iPhone’s target market will be set on yuppie executives and TechLeaders, how quickly we integrate this piece of technology could redefine the mobile marketing scope.

The wheel of corporate marketing is turning and the next generation leaders, familiar with technology and inspired by creativity should bring with them the savvy to quickly employ the mobile phone into their marketing equations.

We’re slowly seeing evidence of this already, but dare I ask if we’re on the verge of a mobile marketing eruption?

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