Mobile Marketing Coupons
Mobile Coupons, Part 1:
Igniting Immediate Holiday Promotion Responsiveness
Anyone with teen or tween kids on their family cellphone plan can attest to the popularity of text messaging. Chances are, those same parents have learned to communicate via texting as well. Recent studies are verifying that, indeed, texting as a medium and receptivity of mobile text-based offers is reaching critical mass.
In a July 2008 Direct Marketing Association study, 24 percent of consumers surveyed said they have responded to mobile coupon offers. Although this leaves about three-quarters that have not responded, there is more to consider.
“The big question is why? Why haven’t they responded yet?,” asked Eric Holmen, President of SmartReply during a recent webinar. “The biggest group within that, 33 percent, say that they would have responded but they’ve never received a text offer. So if you add that together with 24 percent of people that have been responding to text offers, you have a great universe – over half of the people with mobile phones in the U.S. – who are eager and/or have experience with responding to mobile messages.”
Separately, there is particular relevance in Mobile Coupons (or M-Coupons) for the current Holiday season. First, according to an ICOM study from February 2008, 67 percent of consumers are more likely to use coupons during a recession. Second, retailers often need to generate highly-responsive, last-minute promotional events during the Holiday and M-Coupons fit that requirement very well.
Here is the basic M-Coupon strategy, as recommended by Eric Holmen:
THE BASIC M-COUPON FORMULA
A. Focus on Your Existing Media Plans
“You don’t have to change anything in your media plan,” advises Holmen. “In fact you need to be very aware of the media plan you have and leverage that.” The good news for marketers who have most likely already set 90 percent of their plans for the Holiday…you’ll do well to use your traditional media in concert with M-Coupons. For example, radio spots can be used to announce an M-Coupon offer… “Just text ‘SANTA’ for a 15% off coupon – good only today and tomorrow!”
B. Add Mobile Sign-up to Everything
Add mobile sign up to all your media communications and in-store customer touch-points so the lure of Holiday excitement will encourage mobile marketing opt-in. “Mass media is not going to be here forever in the form it is today,” says Holmen. “So use it while you can to encourage customers to opt-in and build a text program this Holiday season, and whether you have a newspaper to work with next year or not, you’ll have a relationship with your customers.”
C. Deliver Special Value to Every Customer
Make your opt-in offers relevant to the time, place and situation. Whether in the shoe department or deli, the M-Coupon offer can directly relate and offer immediate gratification. Customers who opt-in for Holiday mobile coupons can be texted on Thanksgiving with last-minute Black Friday offers, generating instant buzz among family and friends.
Mobile Coupons, Part 2:
Engaging consumers in a long-term relationship
Yes, it was a bear of a holiday season. Although sobering for most retailers, some made the best of it by proactively reaching out to consumers in new ways – launching permission-based mobile marketing campaigns. The holidays are always a good time to build opt-in permission because consumers are eager for up-to-the-minute deals. But how should retailers capitalize on what they’ve started without jeopardizing the loyalty and trust of their consumers?
Eric Holmen, President of SmartReply, used an analogy to explain. He referred to a dating company called ‘It’s Just Lunch’ that uses a strategy of starting the matchmaking process with a simple, non-committal meal.
“And that’s how we see Mobile Coupons through the holidays,” said Holmen. “You’re just ‘asking your consumers to lunch.’ You’re not asking them to engage in a big, long-term relationship. You’re not beginning by promising big, sophisticated rewards and a mobile loyalty program.”
The question them becomes, “How do I transform that ‘trial relationship’ into a lasting one?” In this prospective relationship, marketers must now assume that the consumer will have the upper hand. Whereas at one time, TV and radio audiences had no choice but to sit through ads, now the consumer controls much of their exposure to messaging. Further, being that they’re bombarded with impositions all day long from marketers, consumers are getting very particular about which communications they opt-in to. In essence, marketers have a much greater challenge gaining access.
“Busy consumers will only maintain a certain number of business relationships,” according to Holmen. “Retailers with express permission are locking in the opportunity to be one of the elite few their customer is allowing into their inner circle, providing them with a first-mover advantage that can last a lifetime and expand out to their friends and family.” SmartReply makes the following recommendations for building and maintaining and effective permission marketing program:
RECOMMENDED STRATEGIES
- Utilize retail stores as data-gathering vehicles. “Instant” in-store offers, for example, can be a great incentive for gaining opt-ins.
- Give customers opt-in choices. Allow consumers to express how they want to receive their messages and what type of content is most relevant to them. Let them guide YOU.
- Create the least amount of steps possible for opting in. It’s tempting to try to gather a lot of demographic or preference data at once, but keep it to the bare essentials while staying compliant with standards.
- Separate permission by channel. Many will refuse to grant permission all together if they can’t control their choice of delivery media.
- Keep your message consistent, but vary the offer. Be creative, but don’t let your essential brand message become distorted.
- Have a separate opt-out option for each channel. Just because they’ve decided they’re getting too many emails doesn’t mean they don’t want to be contacted via text message or direct mail.
- Start asking for permission now. Remember the early adopter principle: the ability to gain entrée into their ‘inner circle’ gets considerably harder as time goes by.
source: RetailWire & Smart Reply
