Feature: Wireless Marketing
The SMS revolution is well and truly underway in the UK and as the advertising downturn continues to take its toll on marketing budgets an increasing number of advertisers are realising that text messaging is an effective way of reaching consumers – particularly the elusive 18-24 year-old youth market.
Mobile phone penetration in the UK currently stands at 71%, according to figures from BMRBi and research from e-MORI shows that across all demographic groups the percentage of people that own a mobile phone is higher than the percentage of people who use the internet or have digital TV. Mobile marketing agency 12Snap claims SMS advertising allows brands to target specific consumer groups with personalised marketing messages and predicts that by 2002 SMS advertising will be an integral part of the marketing mix for most big brands. Mike Short, chairman of the Mobile Data Association, agrees: “Advertisers are beginning to examine the potential of the mobile screen as a cut down version of a TV screen, but more interactive and more relevant.”
The increasing popularity of text messaging highlights the potential of SMS advertising, according to Short. Figures from the Mobile Data Association show that the number of text messages sent each month in the UK has increased from 200 million in November 1999 to 1.2 billion in November 2001 and Short argues that text messaging has become entrenched in British youth culture.
Brands such as McDonalds, Sony and Nestle are using the medium to tap into the notoriously difficult youth market and with mobile phone penetration among 18-25 year-olds pushing 90% (Target NMI) they have been largely successful. According to managing director of 12Snap, Anne de Kerckhove, the average response rate for an SMS campaign is between 10% and 20%, with more complex campaigns generating recall rates as high as 40%. This compares with an average of 30% for TV and 15% for radio (Probe). Kerckhova says that the immediacy of the medium is its biggest advantage and with 70% of respondents reacting to an SMS advert in less than an hour, brands can track the success of their campaigns almost instantly.
2001 was a positive year for the wireless marketing industry. The WMA’s code of conduct was born, consumers began using text messages and responding to SMS campaigns on a large scale and mobile marketing firms began to come into their own. However, as a marketing channel the mobile is still a medium undeniably in its infancy and most brands and advertisers have yet to explore its full potential. Kerckhova says: “In 2002 the industry needs to create imaginative and interactive campaigns to get more brands on board and generate growing consumer interest.”
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