Mobile: A Trillion Dollar Industry

$1 000 000 000 000. Say it like you mean it: “One trillion dollars.” The mobile industry is the world’s latest trillion dollar baby. What’s more profound is that it was achieved in slightly more than ten years.
How does it compare?
1. Combined with radio, the broadcasting industry is still nowhere near a trillion dollar industry, only about half of that.
2. Advertising is worth roughly half a trillion dollars, in very round terms.
3. The IT industry? Another half trillion there.
4. Air travel is also in the half trillion dollar range.
Does anything compare?
1. Cars,
2. the global food industry,
3. and believe it or not, the global weapons industry are all trillion dollar businesses.
4. Now add mobile to that list.
Where there’s money, there’s people. And where there’s people, there’s a target audience.
Back in 2001 when I got my first mobile phone, text messaging and calling was the only luxury we had. Mobile content was a pipe dream. However, on the 5th of December 2008, exactly 10 years prior, the first downloadable mobile content was launched, the ringtone. Unbeknown to the world population at large, a booming industry was born that day.
For anyone, any business in whatever shape or size not yet fully convinced that the future of digital marketing starts and ends with mobile, allow me to highlight some examples of this ridiculously growing industry (This is a long post, but you WILL be wow-ed, so bear with me):
1. The latest numbers reveal that the total number of unique mobile phone owners is now 3.05 billion (46% of the planet’s population do have a mobile phone, even after we remove the multiple subscriptions).

2. There are 1.4 billion TV sets in the world. But there are 2 billion mobile phones with a colour screen and at least 2.5G network connectivity, meaning they can display “streaming” ie live TV and video.

3. Of the four digital camera giants, only Canon and Nikon remain in the camera business, Konica and Minolta no longer exist in the camera market; and the world’s bestselling camera brand, since 2004, has been Nokia. (I have a phone with a 5 megapixel camera)

4. Music on mobile phones today, at the end of 2008, is passing the 11 billion dollar annual revenue level. When we bear in mind, that the total global music industry is only worth 30 billion dollars - it means that more than one in three dollars spent on music globally, is spent on the mobile phone.

5. 50 Cents with his smash hit, In da Club, in 2003 earned more as ringtone than all other music formats combined - and most annoyingly of course the Crazy Frog - to the tune of 500 million dollars of global sales of their ringtones and related services in 2005 – that’s one ringtone earning more than all of iTunes’ global sales that year.

6. A third of the mobile phone subscribers on the planet sends MMS picture messages - that is 1.3 billion people for those who are counting. Comparing that with 1.2 billion active users of email, and suddenly MMS is very interesting indeed. Worldwide, you can reach a larger audience if you put your content (or advertising) on an MMS picture message, than if you put it into email.

7. This year mobile social media passed $9 billion and next year will easily cross the 10 billion dollar level of annual revenues. From zero to 10 billion dollars in six years. Mobile social networking is by far the fastest-growing billion dollar industry ever. For comparison, the online internet side of social media is three times as old, and still hasn’t passed a billion dollars in total revenues - where most of that is advertising revenues. Mobile social networking sites are making oodles of cash, and many have already become profitable in this very short time.

8. In the past ten years, mobile content has turned into a global giant industry worth over 71 billion dollars of annual revenues. That is as big as all Hollywood box office revenues, plus all global music revenues, and all videogaming software revenues - put together. Hollywood and music are 100 year old industries. Videogaming is a 30 year old industry. But mobile has already grown bigger than all three, combined, in only ten years.

9. There are under 500 million newspapers sold daily. There are 900 million personal computers connected to the internet. There are 1.3 billion internet users. And 1.4 billion TV sets. But 1.5 billion people will receive ads on mobile phones this year. How many more will receive them next year?
I have a tip for you today. If you walk down the road and spot a public pay phone, take a picture of it, because, like in Finland, they’ll all be gone pretty soon.
My second tip is to get with the times and comprehend the superpowers of the mobile industry. The future of mankind’s commercial business models will rely on a piece of equipment you will rarely leave home without.
Thank you to Tomi Ahonen for his articles, content which I shamelessly copied and shortened for the convenience of my readers. If there are two articles you have to read before Christmas, it’s these two.
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Mobile and the Holidays

I’m away on vacation and what better way to entertain than to provide you with my “mobile and the holidays” snippets where I’ll explore the world of mobile communications, marketing and value added services that I pick up or conjure up during my vacation.
Getting right into it then. It is my brother’s birthday today and his phone has been ringing off the hook with text messages and congratulatory calls.
One such text message came through from his Medical Aid Service Provider. My immediate reaction was to commend them for the personal connection they have with each of their customers, if only until my brother mentioned that he had signed with another Medical Scheme more than a year ago.
Pity? Bad database management? Or a way to remind my brother that they’re still out there?
What do you think?

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Holiday Services: For when we forget about God

Unfortunately, the festive season also goes along with depression, loneliness, desperation and despair. While the majority of people are merrily basking away in the sun, drinking, sharing and laughing with family and friends, there are the selected few that, even with people around, are desperately seeking for some solace.
When we read “the selected few”, the word niche should pop into our heads immediately. During the festive season, there is an opportunity for churches, social services and even welfare to tap into this niche and provide some much needed solace, inspiration and in some cases, life saving services.
[Why churches still don’t keep databases of its flock is possibly still due to the ongoing debate among religions over whose god is real. It’s all about prioritizing isn’t it?]
Pity, because an opt in text message service for people in desperate need of reassurance, faith and guidance during these testing times would actually serve a much greater purpose as the bickering over which of us will actually make it into the pearly gates.
This service could also be categorised to include suicide messaging, either distributing constant support messages or have an actual representative of the church in various areas available on call-out for severe cases where SOS messages are sent in.
Only last week I found myself in a conversation of a person whose friend’s parents were killed in a freak car accident, and while friends and family are there to offer their love and support, it’s often in silence that these people suffer. A message service for people in morning and despair would add much needed solace during a season in which we are to celebrate.
What about fun? Festive ringtones, MMS message templates, jingles and literature could all add additional value to every person’s holidays. I found myself sending fifty text messages this morning to friends, family and clients wishing them the merriest of Christmas. Adding a fun element to the church helps keep the relationship active while we are away.
There are so many opportunities to add value to people’s lives during a time when our peers, our god and our churches are so easily forgotten.

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Large numbers and able brains

I struck a rather startling epiphany on New Year’s eve when I embarked on my annual ritual of sending celebratory text messages to almost my entire contact list on my phone. It has been documented ad infinitum that South Africa boasts with one of the most impressive mobile penetration rates in the world, with roughly 90% mobile phones held among the 49 million South Africans.
I was running a hypothesis through my mind at the time and while my numbers may be profoundly inaccurate, I believe that the crux of the idea is still a viable one to document.
What struck me as devastatingly obvious is that between the three major cellular networks, Vodacom, Cell C and MTN, their collective potential to aid to social responsibility in South Africa is ridiculously easy.
Assuming that every single mobile phone owner sends at least one text message during the period from December 24 to January 01, a long shot I know (but then, many of us send more than 20), and averaging the cost of a single text message at 30 cents, if the three cellular networks donated only three cents (3 cents for crying out loud) to charity, a respectable R 179 100 would have made it to people in dire need during the festive season.
Also assuming that half the mobile enabled population of South Africa sends at least one MMS message (cost thumbed at R 1.50) during the same time, with Vodacom, MTN and Cell C donating only 20 cents per MMS to charity, another respectable R 661 500 would have filled the coffers of charities in need.
Add a couple of cents for each call made, every e-mail sent and kilobytes browsed on smart phones and you’ll find yourself a handsome amount.
You see, large corporations have the advantage of numbers. And with very little effort, and undoubtedly an enormous boost in revenue during the festive season, that little effort each year could profoundly change the face of a third world country.
My hypothesis is a simple one, but with numbers like these and about half and hour for any able brained person, the benefits could be staggering.
Time to put on our thinking caps and for large corporations to join in on the responsibility we have toward the less fortunate.

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Mobile Prediction 2009: Healthcare

“South Africa is a hotbed of mobile social innovation. From a depression-and-anxiety group helping teens via SMS, to assisting with compliance for tuberculosis medication, and the ‘cellphones for HIV‘ programme we have described earlier, diverse health initiatives are findings ways of using mobile phones.” – MobileActive.org
(South) Africa is in that peculiar situation where our mobile uptake outranks every other communications medium available today. Figures vary between 75% penetration rates to about 90%.
It is therefore not surprising and rather pleasing to see various healthcare organizations realizing the value communication via the mobile phone could add to their service offering. It is been long overdue and I predict a massive flux of mobile oriented campaigns for 2009, especially in the healthcare industry.
From a device called SIMpill (see the play on the word simple), sending text messages to users as reminder to take critical medication, monitoring and tracking in real time to Cell-Life’s “Cellphones for HIV” project, collaborating with various institutes to provide a lower cost service to people suffering from this dreaded disease, we should see the awareness around our health and the betterment of our lives drastically improve through the integration of mobile and online.
The South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG) has launched a text message initiative especially developed for teens as many of them are reluctant to speak about the problems they experience, and this way they are able to anonymously communicate a cry for help to SADAG.
From their press release: “This service is a new and exciting way for teenagers around South Africa to reach out for help. Teenagers often prefer to communicate via sms, as they may feel uncomfortable expressing themselves verbally. This service is also instant, and a teen in crisis will never get a busy signal when he or she is in crisis. This service is also cheaper than a telephone call, as messages are charged at standard sms rates. In this way, teenagers around the country can get help, information, and practical advice on how to deal with depression and suicidal feelings. The teens can also request school talks and find mental health resources in their area.”
Unfortunately it seems that there was no outreach programme for this particular service, so no matter how effective the idea, if the execution lacks, the campaign falls flat on its face. I don’t believe teens will consciously search the net for help. They are afraid, reluctant and shy by nature and their problems worsen this feeling.
It is therefore critical to devise campaigns that deliver this initiative to them. There are social elements that cater for every teenager’s individual needs, Mxitand Facebook only but two of them. These channels should be embraced. Schools, public services and community outreach programmes should actively market this initiative as well.
While I believe this specific campaign has been around for a while and probably idling in the background, you can look forward to better execution and marketing of healthcare mobile services in 2009. Hopefully, including SADAG’s.
Important Update: Arrogance sometimes has its upside. I haven’t done my research on SADAG well enough, and subsequently received a phone call from the founder of SADAG, Zane Wilson, who has delightfully informed me on the astounding efforts they do to spread the message of their teenage text campaign. They visit a lot of schools where they give talks, hand out flyers and have appeared on various radio stations and television shows as well.
They also advertise in a variety of magazines, and while not necessarily addressing people through the media of my choice, their efforts certainly outperforms my wildest imagination. I apologise.
I have discussed where my expertise might complement their efforts though and I’m very happy to assist them in spreading the word through the media I specialise in. I look forward to everyone that’s ever been touched by this disease to help where they can. Leave a comment if you desire more information.

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Mobile phones are changing the face of marketing

From a rather unlikely source, a conversation around mobile phones has sparked a conclusion. There are four mobile phones doing the rounds that are bound to change the face of marketing and branding.
The Apple Iphone 3G, Samsung Omnia, Blackberry Storm and Nokia N96/97 all come standard with touch screen capabilities, wireless networking, RSS reading, 3G connectivity (some even more) and full internet browsing, of course including features like e-mail, Bluetooth and video calling, officially making it the long discussed complete computing alternative.
This goes to show that mobile computing has actually arrived. And this will have a dramatic impact on the thinking around marketing. It’s the “always on, always close by” personal communication device. And if you’re thinking it’s only for the elite businessmen and -women, think again.
Our society, especially the younger generation, lives in a time where their desired location demands connectivity. If you own a coffee shop, you better have a wireless connection, preferably free, because your competitor round the corner has.
If you’re thinking that this generation is not your critical target market, you’ll be in for a surprise too. Today’s youth is tomorrow’s business leaders. And they’re growing up fast. One only needs to browse the internet to find these twenty-somethings, sharing ideas, creating businesses with virtual partners and labeling themselves entrepreneurs. And you’ll find corporate companies foaming by the mouth in anticipation of buying in on these ideas.
Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social / business communities already have mobile platforms, all of them shortcuts on my phone, and guaranteed on most of my peers’. When I require ideas, resources or opinions, you’d better know that I’m not waiting for my laptop to fire up or until I’m at the office tomorrow morning. I want it now. And I can have it now.
So, whether you’re a product or service provider, have you paid thought to how the dynamics around your target audience have (have, not will) changed? Have you figured out a way to address your market in a manner that is non-obtrusive, permission based and in actual fact welcomed by them?
If you’re firing off push sms campaigns to random databases, you haven’t. Trust me. Smart companies have built mobile applications bridging the brand gap between desktop and mobile computing and extended their brand reach. I buy my electricity with my phone. I read my daily news on my phone whenever I feel like it.
If your cash register is not ticking over at your brick and mortar store, just pop onto the internet and check out your competitor’s website. His newfound transparent ways of doing business will reveal his successes since integrating with web and mobile.
Mobile marketing has opened up the doors to limitless branding and marketing opportunities. It is somewhat trickier, but once you get it, you will reap the rewards.
Mobile is the new black. And as it is in the fashion industry, it’s not why you wear it, but that you wear it.

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Cut the bull. It’s 2009.

For a company that’s in dire straits, Ford (in the US) seem be to extravagantly spending time and money on engaging niche markets with mobile marketing campaigns.
Of late, both the Ford Ka, focused on the youth market, and the Ford Flex, a monstrosity of a truck in the Dallas, Texas region (not surprisingly) have been ceremoniously praised for its mobile campaign initiatives.
The Ford Ka campaign in particular struck my interest. Direct mail packs were distributed among bars, music festivals, colleges and what not. Contained in these packs were material with QR codes (similar to a bar code which can be scanned with your mobile phone’s camera) and the objective of the campaign is for people to “Find it” (As in find the Ka obviously). Hence, once you spot one of these QR codes, by browsing your phone over the code, a picture of the Ford Ka will appear on your screen and an application will direct you to the Go Find It website.
Now, upon landing on this website, there are a bunch of things for the user to do. Things like customizing a Ford Ka, watching videos, placing your latest finds on the map for others in your region to see and a whole plethora of uhm…well, cool stuff.
There are a number of things I have derived from scanning this campaign:
1. The new Ford Ka is a very sexy little car.2. The campaign certainly seems to be a lot of fun. (If this is the kind of thing that you enjoy doing)3. Ford has gone out of their way to make this campaign what it is…nifty.
But nifty isn’t good enough for me. And I wouldn’t recommend nifty for 2009 either. ‘cause it’s recession time baby and companies aren’t supposed to a) have the money for these types of campaigns, b) spend these types of money when their financials read like a college dropout’s report card and c)have the audacity to spend these moneys while their Chief Executives are begging at the feet of local government for bailout money.
One would imagine, and this is rich even coming from me, that the main focus of these mobile campaigns should be geared either toward sales, value added services (which are monetized rather well these days) or if you’re really smart, a combination of the two.
Two things may happen though: One – the guys over at Branding Unbound will provide me with the stats of these campaigns, and the success of it will shock my socks off.
Or two – they might argue that the monetary ROI is irrelevant to the brand equity obtained through these campaigns.
One would reckon that a piece of pie on my face is not what you’d call a desired ending to this engagement. But…regardless, yes this is a bold statement, but regardless of the outcome of these two campaigns, I will go on my knees and beg of you (the businesses out there in these trying times) to keep it simple.
Keep it focused. Keep it niche. Keep it cost effective. Keep it convenience centric. Keep it easy for people to react – sales- or otherwise. Customers love outrageously cool things, but they also appreciate an honest, direct approach, especially so if they’re current customers of a company that’s facing extinction.

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Mobile Marketing Association Appoints Mike Wehrs as President and CEO

- Mobile Veteran Brings Wealth of Global Experience as MMA Expansion Continues in 2009 -
Video: Interview wth Mike Wehrs
New York; London, UK; Singapore and Sao Paulo, 12 January 2009 — The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) (www.mmaglobal.com) today announced that its Board of Directors has named mobile industry veteran Mike Wehrs as President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the association, effective immediately. In his previous role as Vice President of Industry Affairs and Evangelism at Nuance Communications, Inc., Mr. Wehrs was responsible for the company’s overall mobile business strategy, product strategy, industry and public policy and a key member of the mergers and acquisitions team. As President and CEO of the MMA, Mr. Wehrs will continue to promote its charter to build a sustainable ecosystem for the mobile marketing industry globally, focusing on delivering benefits to MMA members, establishing guidelines and best practices for future growth, and driving mobile adoption worldwide.
“The MMA has grown tremendously in recent years in terms of membership and our geographic footprint, so we needed a person with world-class leadership skills combined with relevant experience and business acumen to continue to drive our success. After an extensive search, we found Mike to be the best person to lead the association’s activities going forward,” said Russell Buckley, MMA Global Chairman and Vice President of Global Alliances at AdMob. “Mike is a proven leader with extensive international executive experience and an established track record within the global mobile industry.”
Appointed to lead MMA activities worldwide, Mr. Wehrs has a range of industry association experience, having served on the Board of Directors and Executive Committees for organisations, such as CTIA – The Wireless Association, Open Mobile Alliance (OMA), Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) and dotMobi Advisory Group, as well as being an active participant as board member or committee chair for many other industry bodies.
“The MMA is thriving -- representing the entire mobile ecosystem, experiencing a more than 15-fold membership increase and firmly establishing itself as the leading association for the mobile marketing industry worldwide,” said Tom Daly, MMA North American Chairman and Group Manager, The Coca-Cola Company. “Mike’s record of achievements is impressive. Under his leadership, we’re confident that the MMA will continue to lead and implement yet more positive industry advances, maintaining the MMA’s position at the forefront of mobile marketing education and guidelines.”
Prior to Nuance Communications, Mr. Wehrs served as Vice President, Product Management and Global Marketing for Tegic Communications, an AOL company. As the product management visionary for Tegic’s wireless platform and embedded products, and global marketing group leader, he also served as industry standards and public policy representative within a number of industry bodies. Prior to Tegic Communications, Mr. Wehrs worked for Microsoft Corporation, where he was responsible for driving industry adoption and business development opportunities in support of many of Microsoft’s Windows products. During his tenure at Microsoft, Mr. Wehrs held various senior roles, working on technology and standards, as well as directing market research and product planning for Microsoft’s Mobile and Embedded Devices division.
“I am honoured and excited to lead the MMA at such an important time in its history,” said Mike Wehrs, President and CEO of the MMA. “The mobile channel has been experiencing tremendous growth, and marketers worldwide are embracing mobile marketing as an essential component of their global advertising strategies, capitalizing on its capability to establish a direct link with consumers on a global scale. I look forward to working together with MMA member companies, MMA Board of Directors and other industry leaders to ensure a vibrant and healthy mobile marketing ecosystem for all.”

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Mobile Marketing Association Promotes Mobile Advertising Industry Collaboration and Research

New Mobile Advertising Research Initiative in Partnership with Aeneas Strategy
New York; London, UK; Singapore and Sao Paulo, 12 February 2009 — The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) today announced that it has formed an agreement with Aeneas Strategy Consulting and Management to participate in, guide and support their mobile advertising research project; conducted in collaboration with MSearchGroove and EverySingleOneOfUs. The agreement lays the foundation for an ongoing research partnership between the two organisations which will begin with a study of mobile advertising in the UK and plans to extend from there to other national mobile advertising markets in Europe.
Combining quantitative and qualitative research methodologies and encompassing the full mobile advertising value chain from advertisers and agencies through end consumers, the research project is well aligned with the MMA’s goal of promoting industry understanding and market development.
“The results of this study will significantly add to MMA members’ stock of knowledge about the trends, size, scope and current effectiveness of mobile advertising in the UK,” said Paul Berney, MMA Managing Director for Europe.
After extensive primary research into mobile advertising industry agencies, networks and consumers, the findings will be published in a Mobile Advertising UK Report and discussed at an Aeneas sponsored event in June. An important aspect of this research partnership will be its investigation into advertisers’ and agencies’ perceptions and activity around mobile advertising.
“We are very pleased to be working with the MMA, and to have its support for the Mobile Advertising UK study. This collaboration will be another important step in the education of the industry to help companies engage in the mobile medium, drive mobile advertising revenues and ensure brands are going where the consumers are,” said Tarik Fawzi, Director of Aeneas Strategy.
“The education of brands and advertisers on the opportunities and challenges within the mobile channel and insights into how advertisers view consumer engagement via mobile advertising is a key step towards enhancing brand participation in this rapidly growing industry,” continued Berney. “The MMA has long supported research into mobile marketing and advertising, and sees the partnership with Aeneas Strategy as being of great strategic importance for continued industry development.”

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Sprite and the King of Praise (pontomobi interactive)

BackgroundThe RMG in partnership with Pontomobi developed an interactive campaign for Sprite Zero that used the King of Praise, character who became famous on YouTube, to create a fun experience and to strengthen the relationship of the consumer with the product.GoalsTo invest in a campaign that links Sprite Zero with a funny interactive experience that the consumer has when he participates in the action. In addition to be very creative it also draws attention for being surprising to those who receive a call from the King of Praise, known for his statements that unbearable overflow adjectives.
SolutionsThe mobile interaction consists in sending to friends one audio recorded by the King of Praise. After hearing the call, the friend receives a SMS with the name of the person who sent the recorded call and then, is invited to visit the website of Sprite to participate on the action. A very similar dynamic compared to the other Sprite’s campaign with João Gordo.
ResultsThe campaign reached 223.000 interactions during the period it was in the air.

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The dreaded Nokia tune. Where did it come from?

I’m kicking off the day with a mixed bag of goodies ranging from the annoying (and world famous) Nokia tune, a feature film on mobile telephony (can you believe?) and something I’d like to call sound branding (sonic mnemonics for the tech gurus).
Annoying Nokia Tune
With billions of Nokia users across the planet and a smart marketing move by the manufacturers of Nokia phones, it is a default setting on the most popular phone brand in the world that’s got people intrigued, humming, cursing, jumping for an iPhone and some, yes, that selected annoying few, adjusting the volume on the most popular ringtone in the world.
But where did it all start? As with most sound related things in life, it came from a European composer.
Francisco de Asís Tárrega y Eixea (yes, that’s a name) was an influential Spanish composer and guitarist from Spain during the 1900s. He is often considered to be the father of modern classical guitar playing.
He is also the composer of what has been claimed to be “probably the world’s most heard tune.“
[Download [8 KB] the original piece and pay close attention to the 18 second mark – prepare to cringe]
Or
[Listen to a rendition of the piece on this video]
Roll out the red carpet
You may have noticed that it seems like a trailer for some sort of movie. And you’d be right. Last month at the BAFTA in London, Mobile Planet, a documentary on the social and economic impact of mobile telephony across the world, graced the red carpet.
Here’s a news cast on the documentary. Will it be available in South Africa soon?
Sound Branding
You have all experienced the effect sound has on the human mind at some stage or another during your life. Sound branding (or audio logo) is something I haven’t heard many marketers speak about and it’s also a subject not hotly debated by many of my peers, but it’s a fascinating experience once you manage to let your mind encompass it for a bit.
Just the other night, it was the audio logo of Musica while I was preparing supper that caught my attention. For a music loving generation, the three second Musica audio logo is highly distinguishable and causes an affinity with a brand more effectively than anything I have experienced in such a short time span.
Similarly, every single time I hear or see James Earl Jones, I think about his part in the BMW “pleasant motoring” commercial. (Although it might possibly be because I haven’t seen Star Wars and my love for advertising)
BMW also has a signature audio logo though. A very brief, subtle yet distinct sound that resembles a metallic pulsating heart. Classic. Two beats is all it takes for BMW to carry their brand to millions without any form of visual stimulation.
Have you paid any thought to your company’s audio logo? Do you know of any other popular brand that has established a strong presence through sound? I’d love to get this debate going.

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Mobile marketing will only happen through greater internet penetration

In recent times I have been of the opinion that mobile would soon become as a competitive marketing tool as the internet is shaping up to be, if not greater.
While mobile pull campaigns (encouraging the user to respond via their mobile phone) have been widely adopted by most of the mass media channels, (newspapers, magazines, television, billboards, radio and internet) it is still a far cry short of what has transpired in my mind.
Mobile as marketing campaign strategy means so much more than targeting naive teens in downloading ringtones to their mobile phones. It far outstretches entries to competitions. And it is certainly not the be all and end all of establishing a winner in national talent competitions.
But, unfortunately, the predominant forces behind driving mobile marketing campaigns in South Africa are still large corporations.
From one of the leading mobile marketing agency websites in South Africa:
“The mobile marketing channel is slowly becoming increasingly important as an essential part of the marketing mix. For this reason large companies are starting to recognise the advantages such as immediacy and savings in costs occurring as a result of the use of mobile marketing.”
Regardless of what some would regard as recognising the advantages, it is clear that there is a perception that mobile marketing is just another weapon in the armoury of large corporations, large corporations which have the budgetary advantages of combining mass media to launch these campaigns from.
(Television and radio being among the top players with the ability to reach mass audiences during prime time broadcasting.)
However, with the massive 50% hiked television commercial prices during Q4 of 2007 (Finweek, January 2008), it is the Small to Medium Enterprises that are left behind once again.
Progressive SMME’s have recently begun to tap into the wealth of opportunities on the internet, but with the high cost of broadband, it is mainly still deemed a luxury for the higher income bracket of the population. (Hence the internet could probably not even be regarded as mass media)
This leaves SMME’s with a single mass media to their disposal, but quite coincidentally, probably the strongest of them all.
So if there is an approximate 83% mobile penetration in South Africa, the question begs why the uptake of SMME’s have been rather slow?
By doing some research on the internet, I came to the following conclusions:
1. The disregard of internet as prominent communication and publishing platform by SMME’s
2. The lack of proper mobile marketing resources, documentation and elaborate case studies
3. The perception of mobile being the poor cousin of the internet, television and radio; thus deemed as inferior
4. The perception that mobile marketing is only effective in tandem with other mass media components
5. The lack of proactive utilisation of the internet to leverage off the higher income bracket to drive marketing campaigns to a broader mobile audience
6. A lack of understanding of technology and the convergence mechanics of traditional marketing with new media tools
In my opinion, the fundamental problem with the slow uptake in mobile communications and marketing though is due to the cost and availablility of broadband internet to the masses.
If we do not see a profound change in approach from our marketers (moving steadily towards digital anyways), SMME’s only saviour will be online penetration to the greater South African population.
Both of these seem to be happening, but at rather pedantic pace.

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Mobile Marketing, regardless of the Recession

Is anybody in the mood for an article about the recession? I bet you aren’t. And you can just imagine how excited I am to be writing it. Ironically, I pretty much have a free editorial reign, which subsequently suggests I am not obliged to even mention the recession here. But I’m going to, not because I want to, but simply to annoy anyone willing to venture past this paragraph.
It’s a simple test. I think those pushing through the inevitable bore that this article may well turn out to be are either desperate for answers in these trying times, or at least willing to keep an open mind. Let’s dig in then, shall we?
A smart man, evidently, some Vice President of Marketing at some mobile oriented company in the US, Mr. Jim Shilale, released an article on Friday (21st) addressing why advertisers should turn to mobile even during an economic slowdown. While marketing budgets are fed to the shredder, his article highlights key factors on why mobile marketing remains one of the pertinent channels to engage in.
Another smart guy, Michael something, bulleted three of the factors that are essential in your mobile marketing campaigns:
1. Combine the campaign with other channels. [I couldn’t agree more, but then I’ve been saying this for while now.]2. Make it simple and focus on the consumer experience. [Another valid point. Ironically, I’ve been known to mention this in the past as well. ]3. Offer an incentive or benefit for the consumer. [Low and behold…what do you know? There are even records of this in my archives too. ]
If you’ve managed to make it this far in the article, and have found a way to excuse my arrogance and cockiness, you would be well worth wondering why mobile marketing would be especially effective during the recession, given that Mr. Shilale’s 3 points have been covered ages ago, long before recession was even an acknowledged buzzword. The answer is that it won’t. It won’t be any more effective, and it won’t be any less. Mobile marketing simply is the best marketing channel to be used in conjunction with any other media format.
I wasn’t lying when I said that Mr. Shilale is a smart man. If you can manage to get your hands on a copy of his article, I suggest you do so. If you’re in a hurry though, and you trust me, then I’ll let you in on my 4 personal reasons why it’s critical for any business to complement their marketing strategy (prior, during and after the recession) with mobile campaigning.
1. Mobile marketing is not experimental. South Africa boasts with a 90% mobile penetration rate, one of the highest in the world. Not convinced yet? Move to point #2.2. It provides instant gratification. There’s something rather appealing about making a purchase, receiving additional information or even entering a competition without lifting a butt cheek off my couch.3. Despite economic turmoil, people simply won’t stop reading text messages, watching television, listening to the radio and reading newspapers and magazines. They won’t stop wanting and they won’t stop needing. If you can create a want or fulfill a need and combine it with instant gratification, you’re golden.4. If Barack Obama does it, then so should you.

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The role of the mobile phone in modern society

With mobile phone technology advancing rapidly, the critical role of citizens in today’s society has changed dramatically. People are becoming more involved through the mere fact that they are able to connect to a plethora of platforms using an array of media at the drop of a penny.
Citizen journalism, a term phrased for a society able to capture breaking news and distribute it immediately has seen many organisations embrace this new form of reporting. Arab news corporation, Al Jazeera has started incorporating mobile reporting into their repertoire of services.
With the quality of the mobile phone’s camera, the ability to connect through 3G, GPRS and Wi-Fi and location based services such as GPS capabilities, accurate portrayals of global happenings can now be distributed to the news corporations in an instant.
During the recent Mumbai terrorist attacks, one such citizen managed to capture a burning Taj Mahal and uploaded the images to his personal blog via his mobile phone.
From the New York Times: “At the peak of the violence, more than one message per second with the word “Mumbai” in it was being posted onto Twitter, a short-message service that has evolved from an oddity to a full-fledged news platform in just two years.”
“Some people transmitted video from inside the Taj hotel to news networks via cellphones. And reporters used cellphones to send text messages to hotel guests who had set up barricades in their rooms.”
In a time where the mobile phone continues to serve as value added device, an enormous advance from simply making phone calls and texting merely ten years ago, the role of marketing and communications are changing.
The mobile phone forms a critical part of everyday life now and companies should realize the potential this device poses to them.

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Samsung Omnia as Business Phone: Yes or No?

My latest phone, the Samsung Omnia, was a relatively easy choice for me to make. It is fully touch screen enabled, running Windows Mobile 6.1 which gives me the opportunity to customize just about every component for comfort, a clear, large screen for adequate multimedia experiences and not to mention the Garmin GPS software that came bundled with the phone.
Over and above all this cool gadgetry however is the fundamental use of it as a business phone. Our vocations are different, granted, but for me to consider a mobile phone adequate for business, easy typing capabilities are essential. I thought I’d put the Omnia to the test using the (rather sensitive) touch screen keyboard.
Without any editing, this is what I managed. (I did not capitalize any words as I was going for speed rather than accuracy. Editing is a process in its own.)
This will bbe my first fuull blown blog post from my samsung omnia mobbile telephone. Ll’ve nnow had the privilege to play arouunnd for various weeks with diferrent setttings to comme to a point where i’m in a position to revview the word processing potential of the omnia ppocket pc as miniiature ccoomputing alternative for buusy exxeccutives.
It has takenn me a great while to come to terms with the touch screen adaptation of the standard phyysiical keyboard. While it’s a space and weight saving triumph for the mobile computing industry, the relative sized screens coupled with the odd fat fingered adult, makes it quuite tthe achilles heel of advvanced mobile computiing.
Iincluding in the downside of touch sreen capabbilities llie the issue of sensitiivity. Finding a keyboard software applicatiion tht works well for your fingers is one thing (i did not find the standard omnia keyboard all that useful, and coonsiderinng the omnia ruuns on windows mobile 6.1, it lends vast capalitiies for third party applicatiions), managing to tap the correct letter as often times as possibble is another. Not to menntion the accidental doubble tap of letters ddue to the sensitive screen.
This is not only a point in case for the samsuung omnia, mind you, but a well documented issue with even the top of tthe pops apple iphone. It’s a rather unpleasant situatiion and one that is hard to foresee the manufactuurers overcome.
Only stiking to the tyyppewritingg capabbiliities of the touch sccreen pocket pc’s, the questiion i ccertinly need to answer is this: is thiis an executive’s phone, someone wiith basic emailiing and word processing rrequiiremennts? Judginng from the spelling issuues iin this artticcle, you’ll have to say no.
Buut does the ffact that iit took me only 20 minutes tto type this chnge anything? You bbe the juudge.

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