Over the past six months I have had numerous conversations with clients about Mobile Marketing. In the US, we are still in the very early stages of using smart phones as a marketing tool. Nielsen predicts smartphone ownership in the U.S. will exceed 50 percent this year, 2011. Using this number you can make a strong case that since smartphone users are generally more engaged with their devices, this 50 percent make up the most active in the mobile marketing network. In anther study by, Yankee Group, smartphone owners have an average household income of $85,000, with iPhone owners averaging $100,000! If we combine these two thoughts it should be assumed that the market is ripe for success in the mobile marketing arena and what an arena it is. What started with SMS, has continued to evolve through MMS, viewing web content, interacting with mobile web content, custom app development, and social media content. All this and we are is still in a stake of early adoption. The graphic below shows the evolution of of innovation as it moves toward a level of mass acceptance. I believe that we are beginning to see some standards in the mobile marketing arena but still have a long way to go.
The question becomes, Do you smell that? It is OPPORTUNITY and it is right here in front of us. One of the biggest opportunities is being made possible through the use of 2D barcodes. More specifically QR codes. One of my favorite newsletters comes from eMarketer.com. In March they wrote a nice piece about QRs. Two of the charts which are shown here support utilizing QR technology in your mobile marketing efforts.
It is obvious looking at the demographic data that the age, income and education levels of those who have scanned a QR are desirable. The actions taken also give us some clear insight into what the user scanned the QR for. The "call to action" was acted on because the user could benefit. This is the key to successful mobile marketing.
There are six basic principles to remember when developing a mobile marketing campaign that include a QR. These are:
- Call to action
- Robust planning
- Use open standards
- Integrate the code with your design/message
- Testing
- Dialouge
- Educate
- Analytics
I will expand on each of these principles in the upcoming month. Stay tuned as we break down these critical keys to mobile marketing success.
