Mobile phone marketing, otherwise known as SMS marketing, is the modern evolution of direct promotion. Direct promotion has always been chosen by businesses as a personalized and focused way of reaching potential customers and, with the popularity of cell phones, SMS marketing has risen in support. SMS marketing is perhaps best defined as the practice of marketing products and services using digital distribution channels to reach consumers in a quick, appropriate, personalized and economic way.
The most common form of mobile marketing is SMS marketing, which has expanded rapidly in Europe and Asia. It is estimated that several hundred million marketing messages are sent via SMS every month in Europe alone. SMS stands for ‘short message service’ and is a communication form unique to cell phones where a short message can be easily sent to any mobile holder. As well as sending content to consumers, advertisers can often encourage consumers to join in marketing and brand publicity promotions by encouraging consumers to SMS a specific number at an event in order to enter a competition, to receive a prize or to have their text displayed on a multimedia wall at an event. All of these methods engages the customer through the medium of SMS and creates brand awareness.
There are many other examples of mobile marketing. One example is sending messages via MMS, which is a multimedia version of SMS, allowing consumers to receive texts with color, pictures and video. There is also mobile web marketing, where businesses publicize marketing goals through websites accessed by cell phones. Promoters often make innovative use of SMS marketing such as location-based services where consumers are offered bespoke promotions and other network-related information and marketing material based on their location. With the range of methods and options available to businesses, it is to be expected that a recent marketing survey found that 89% of major brands planned to advertise their products through mobile marketing by the end of 2008.
SMS marketing is an example of what is known within the industry as “push” marketing. The idea behind push marketing is that that the business has to send (push) the messages to the customer in order for the information to be received. This is different to “pull” marketing, a passive form of promotion, where it is customers who seek out the content from sources such as websites or blogs.
There are many advantages to SMS marketing. Primarily, the attraction is that this mode of promotion can be tailored to the consumer. This is the ideal in marketing as it means getting the material specifically to the people it’s aimed at, instead of squandering dollars on an broad campaign. The specialization allowed by this mode of promotions, which results in a more cost-effective campaign, is one example why a high return on investment is possible with SMS marketing. Another advantage of SMS marketing is the detailed tracking and reporting of recipients it permits. Through this form, companies can track how many consumers saw their information and also access detailed data about each subscriber such as their name, their age, their demographic and where they’re located. This permits a marketer to develop profiles of their customers; data which then guides future promotional campaigns and, ideally, their success.
It is noted in the industry that push marketing, of which SMS marketing is a form, can help build new revenue and brand reinforcement if it is used correctly and appropriately. This is because it makes users aware of new changes that they may not think to seek out already and the way a message is written, and even the fact that the information is being sent by a innovative, hip medium such as SMS, can say a great deal about a brand and a company.
There are, however, some negatives to SMS marketing. Inherently, it requires a mechanism – the mobile – in order to send information. The company, as well, has to make use of specialized hardware and software in order to deliver the message to customers, which can involve considerable outlay. Another negative is the fact that SMS marketing is heavily regulated by the telecommunications industry in response to consumer concerns about what data and promotions they get shown. Most Western countries have laws in place that compel companies to gain the approval of customers before promotional content is sent to them and must clearly provide them with an ‘opt out’ clause if they want to stop receiving information. If companies are discovered to be in violation of these laws, network providers can block marketing material by companies.
As mobile technology develops, SMS marketing will certainly continue to gather in relevance.
