Rethinking the Datacenter Sponsored by HP
Today's datacenters need to increase utilization, get control over power and cooling costs, and align with business objectives. Download this eBook to learn about the challenges facing the data center in a world where digital information is growing at a torrid pace and costs are being held in check. Learn more. »
Putting the Green into IT Sponsored by HP
Electricity use in data centers is skyrocketing, sending energy bills through the roof, creating environmental concerns and generating negative publicity. "Going Green" means looking to technologies like virtualization, energy-efficient chips and racks, and implementing policies that extend beyond the data center. Learn more. »
Managing the Modern Network Sponsored by HP
In a global economy where information crosses the globe in an instant, and where Web-based applications power business, it's more important than ever to ensure your network is safe from threats and optimized to deliver the data your business needs. »
Evaluating Software as a Service for Your Business
Sponsored by Webroot
Is Software as a Service just hype, or is something really going on here? See if your company can benefit as SaaS tries to change the face of the enterprise.
»
Is Your Disaster Recovery Plan Good Enough? Sponsored by HP
Preparing for a disaster is more often than not part of the storage planning process, and it is one of the most difficult tasks, since it includes local hardware and software, networking equipment, and a test plan. Learn how to get disaster recovery right. »
ECommerce-Guide Essentials
eBiz FAQ Everything you need to know to start your own successful e-business.
Selling on eBay How to make money in the online marketplace.
Will Mobile Marketing Work for your E-Business? By James A. Martin
August 22, 2007
Mobile marketing is a viable new way to create customer loyalty, boost sales and increase awareness about your e-commerce business. But a mobile marketing campaign can be expensive — and if handled improperly — it can backfire.
There are several forms of mobile marketing, according to Neil Strother, analyst for Jupiter Research. Opt-in SMS (Short Message Service) campaigns, in which a consumer provides a business with his or her cell phone number in exchange for special offers or alerts delivered via text message, is one option. For example, a cosmetics retailer on eBay may send SMS alerts to customers, reminding them when it's time to reorder and offering a 15 percent discount coupon if they buy now.
Ads designed specifically for mobile Web pages are another form of mobile marketing and can be used to drive traffic to your brick-and-mortar business. In a mobile Web campaign, a consumer using Google on a cell phone to locate athletic equipment may find among the search results an ad for a nearby sporting goods store. The consumer could click on the ad for more information or to call the store.
One reason why the mobile marketing trend is gaining traction is that its growth potential is enormous. There are currently over 2.8 billion mobile phone subscribers, according to the Market Intelligence Center. The U.S. alone had some 233 million mobile phone subscribers as of December 2006-more than 76 percent of the population, according to the Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association (CTIA). During December 2006, some 18.7 billion SMS messages were sent in the U.S., an increase of 92 percent from a year earlier, CTIA reports. Globally, the mobile ad market will reach $9.5 billion in revenues by 2011, according to EJL Wireless Research, with the U.S. market reaching $2.3 billion.
The Potential of Mobile Marketing Though still primarily used by large corporations, mobile marketing is increasingly attracting interest from small e-tailers and retailers, said Strother. "The mobile phone is a very personal device. People take it with them everywhere they go — especially people 35 and under. So you can easily develop a one-to-one relationship with your customers through their mobile phones." Messages sent to a mobile phone are much more likely to be read than e-mail sent to a PC, which may get routed to a spam folder, Strother adds.
The result: Mobile marketing can be more effective than other forms of marketing, said Bob Gold, CEO of Gold Mobile, a mobile marketing solutions company. Because mobile campaigns are highly targeted and opt-in, Gold said consumers typically redeem 5 to 20 percent of coupons delivered to their cell phones, compared to only 1 to 3 percent of coupons received through direct mail or e-mail.
Mobile marketing also helps e-tailers gather valuable data, such as cell phone numbers, on consumers who are interested in their products or services. "Once you get your customers to opt in (to receive an offer or alert via text message), you can capture them in your database and use that information later for loyalty marketing and customer retention," Gold said.
In addition, he said mobile marketing can help you generate buzz about your products or services. And your offers reach consumers while they're actively shopping or socializing — instead of when they're at home or at work.
Avoid the Pitfalls: Tips for a Successful Campaign For a mobile marketing campaign to succeed, Gold said, you must first understand your customers. For example, are your customers heavy text message users? Do they frequently use their cell phones to find products and services? If not, a mobile campaign may not be an effective strategy for your marketing efforts.
If you do decide to go mobile, every mobile marketing campaign should be opt-in, Gold adds. Otherwise, you risk alienating — if not angering — your customers. A Forrester Research report suggests that 79 percent of consumers say mobile marketing is annoying, so use it wisely.
Budgeting for Mobile Marketing Mobile marketing campaigns can be expensive, though low-cost options exist. At the low end, you may be able to find a service provider that lets you send or receive a batch of SMS messages for less than $200. For example, Salon.TextAlert.com, which gives hair and beauty salons the ability to send promotional text messages to clients, requires no set up fees and charges only for blocks of messages. A block of 1,000 messages is $181.84.
Typically, more sophisticated SMS marketing services start around $3,000 or more to launch, Gold said. This includes hosted, Web-based mobile messaging campaign software, which provides a dashboard-like interface, reports, a customer database and other tools. Expect to spend another $100 to $300 monthly for hosting fees and up to 10 cents per message.
Mobile Web ad campaigns cost $5,000 to $10,000 and up, according to Jeff Janer, chief marketing officer of mobile ad firm Third Screen Media. With the least expensive campaigns, called "blind buys," you can't specify the mobile sites on which your ad will appear. Such campaigns can be quickly launched, however, sometimes within a day. More expensive campaigns take more time to launch but allow you to specify the sites where your ad will be displayed.
Looking Forward While it's not essential now for e-tailers to market directly to customers' cell phones, the practice is only going to grow, Strother said. He advises that small e-tailers learn about their customers' behavior, get a sense of what they will respond to and what will turn them off and then give mobile marketing a try. "If you don't," he said, "chances are that, down the line, your competitors will."
San Francisco-based James A. Martin has decades of experience covering technology and is a new contributor to ECommerce-Guide.com.
Do you have a comment or question about this article or other e-commerce topics in general? Speak out in the SmallBusinessComputing.com E-Commerce Forum. Join the discussion today!
Tools:
Add ecommerce-guide.com to your favorites Add ecommerce-guide.com to your browser search box IE 7 | Firefox 2.0 | Firefox 1.5.xReceive news via our XML/RSS feed
Rethinking the Datacenter
Putting the Green into IT
Managing the Modern Network
Evaluating Software as a Service for Your Business
Is Your Disaster Recovery Plan Good Enough? 
IE 7
Firefox 2.0
