Big Potential for In-Store Mobile Marketing
“Consumers have already demonstrated that they like to research products online before buying them in a store,” said Jeffrey Grau, eMarketer senior analyst and author of the new report “Mobile Shopping from In-Store: A Potential Game-Changer.” “Until now, researching online and buying in a store have been sequential activities that take place hours, days or even weeks apart. But customers who bring their Web-enabled mobile phones with them into a store can do online research at the point of a purchase decision.”
Opinion: A New Publishing Frontier
For advertisers and marketers, e-readers — which captivate with their convenience, portability and access to a huge library of content — represent an exciting new avenue to connect with consumers. Already, owners of devices such as the Kindle, Sony Reader and Barnes & Noble’s Nook say e-readers are prompting them to read and access an increased amount of text. Apple’s iPad continues the devices’ evolution. But what do consumers want and expect from e-readers? Our research reveals insights into both this and how businesses can tap into this growing market. Here, our key findings:
A mobile strategy does not just mean rolling out an app: panelist
Although having a mobile strategy is critical, most companies do not actually have one, according to a speaker at the Luxury Interactive 2010 Conference. A lot of brands have an application and call it a mobile strategy. Companies such as Nike, Sephora and Ralph Lauren have applications and are incorporating other aspects of mobile into their multi-channel campaigns.
7 in 10 Consumers Act upon Mobile Email
Sixty-eight percent of global consumers act upon email they receive on a mobile device while using a desktop PC, according to [pdf] a new report from digital marketing firm e-Dialog.Majority of Consumers across Regions Act upon Mobile Email at PC. While the PC remains the primary manner in which consumers access their email, analysis from “Global Perspectives” indicates mobile email activity presents new challenges and opportunities for email marketers.
How the Entertainment Industry Can Move Beyond the Click
Interaction time translates to real-world branding impacts. Online marketers recognize the inadequacy of the clickthrough as an ad performance metric but still rely on it for its simplicity and ease of use. A joint study from comScore and MediaMind (formerly Eyeblaster) gives marketers in the entertainment industry reason to look further, to measures of interaction and dwell time, for a more accurate indication of performance.
Mobile coupons: What those savings really cost you
Invented over a century ago as anonymous pieces of paper that could be traded for discounts, coupons have evolved into tracking devices for companies that want to learn more about their customers’ habits. Although they might look similar to those in Sunday newspaper circulars, many of today’s digital versions use bar codes packed with information about the coupon: the date and time it was obtained, viewed and redeemed; the store where it was used; perhaps even the search terms typed to find it. Increasingly, retailers are marrying this data with information discovered online and off, such as guesses about your age, sex and income, your buying history, what websites you’ve visited, and your current location or geographic routine — creating profiles of customers that are more detailed than ever, according to marketing companies.
Obama Proposes to Double Airwaves for Mobile Internet
President Barack Obama proposed today almost doubling the airwaves available for smartphones, laptop connections to the Internet and new wireless devices. Obama signed a memorandum that commits the U.S. to free up 500 megahertz of government and commercial spectrum in the next decade to meet demands for mobile access to broadband services. The proposals may face resistance from television station owners such as CBS Corp. and News Corp.’s Fox Broadcasting that gave up airwaves as part of their switch to digital signals last year, and have sought to keep their remaining allocation. Wireless carriers led by AT&T Inc. are seeking more spectrum.
More China Challenges For Google
If 2010 is anything, it is the year the Internet went mobile. In the U.S., the fast acceptance of the iPad, and then the iPhone 4, has shown that what was missing was not people’s willingness to go mobile, but the lack of good mobile infrastructure and user-friendly products. Now, Google’s Android mobile OS has joined the fray, offering Apple good solid competition, and offering consumers a wealth of products to choose from. Ever since Google launched Adwords in June 2002, the company has become a literal cash machine, offering consumers everywhere the capability, as advertisers, to launch highly targeted ad campaigns globally.
Mobile Web browsing volume greatest during evening hours: Opera
Marketers in the mobile space should pay special attention to the four-hour block from 8 p.m. to midnight, according to a new report released by Opera Software ASA. Opera’s State of the Mobile Web Report for May 2010 detailed usage statistics for a number of worldwide mobile Web browsing trends. Among key findings was the discovery that the hours from 8 p.m. to midnight see a disproportionate amount of the mobile traffic over the course of a day on the Opera Mini mobile Web browser.
Mobile Provides Valuable Link To Hispanic Demographic
The Hispanic population is a very mobile-savvy demographic, ripe with potential for brands reaching out to them, a new report published today by eMarketer suggests. Hispanics have their mobile phones with them more than African Americans and even more than non-Hispanic whites, the report suggests, adding that marketers who are just turning to mobile will “find a market well ahead of them.”
Mobile coupons help retailers track customers
Last month, Tara Kuczykowski walked into a Target store in Columbus, Ohio, pulled out her mobile phone and handed it to the cashier. The cashier scanned the digital coupon on the phone’s tiny screen, and Kuczykowski got $1 off sandwich-size Ziploc bags. Target got something, too: another entry in its database about her. Invented over a century ago as anonymous pieces of paper that could be traded for discounts, coupons have evolved into tracking devices for companies that want to learn more about the habits of their customers. Although they might look similar to the ones in Sunday newspaper circulars, many of today’s digital versions use special bar codes that are packed with information about the life of the coupon: the dates and times it was obtained, viewed and, ultimately, redeemed; the store where it was used; perhaps even the search terms typed to find it.
Frost and Sullivan Research Analyst, Mervin Miemoukanda, emphasized that the key drivers in the country’s communications market are high disposable income, a vibrant tourism industry, the increasing demand for mobile broadband and multimedia, and the diminishing costs of handsets.”
