Mobile is not about devices, carriers or subscriptions: Brand In Hand exec

By Chris Harnick

September 18, 2009

From left to right: Eric Bader of Brand In Hand, Phil Reding of Cha Cha and Tom Foran from Crisp Wireless

NEW YORK— In order to promote their products, brands need to look at several different mobile ad units—running the spectrum from SMS to rich media.

That was a key point at the digiday: Mobile conference at the W Hotel in New York. The panel discussed the differences between ad campaigns run on various channels and which ad formats are driving the future of mobile marketing.

“Innovation should always occur,” said Jordan Greene, principal and mobile media at Mella Media, New York. “Brands need to get into the flow of consumers' lives.”

The panel was moderated by John Gaffney, senior editor of digiday: Daily.

Tom Foran, chief revenue officer at Crisp Wireless, New York, said that brands need to incorporate all channels and platforms into their mix to reach campaign objectives.

Robert Samuels of The New York Times

Now that smartphones allow for location-targeted ads, Phil Reding, vice president of national advertising sales at ChaCha, Indianapolis, was quick to point out brands should not overlook the power of SMS.

Of the approximately 270 million mobile devices, Mr. Reding said that only about 15 percent can access the mobile Web. But, all of those mobile devices can send and receive SMS, and therefore are able to access ChaCha’s service.

“This allows users with dumbphones to text a response code and connect directly to a sales team,” Mr. Reding said.

Tom Foran from Crisp Wireless and Jordan Greene of Mella Media

ChaCha now features a text-to-call feature. Brand advertisers ofter use ChaCha's platform to build their  opt-in SMS databases.

The trajectory of text from the past 12-18 months shows incredible growth for a sector that some brands have moved away from in favor of applications or the mobile Web.

There is no question that the reach of SMS continues to grow. In 2008, a trillion messages were sent and received.

ChaCha's core user base is 13-24 year olds, people who use text messaging more than voice on mobile devices, making SMS still a very viable marketing channel for brands.

Sign of the Times
The New York Times’ ad sales team covers its three channels, print, online and mobile. Robert Samuels, director of mobile products at The New York Times, New York, said that this helps brands who are just getting their feet wet with mobile.

The New York Times reaches out to its advertisers and facilitates development so the company gets a proper destination site.

The Times produces content on several channels including mobile Web, SMS and its application. The newspaper's service aims to meet consumers' needs.

For example, the Times' iPhone platform lets users read news even when they are without mobile service such as while on the subway or on a plane.

Brands should look beyond applications to market themselves, as more rich media is being brought to mobile browsers and wireless networks improve.

The growth of display advertising on mobile sites proves that researchers cannot put their finger on a permanent trend shift towards apps. Mr. Samuels said he is seeing recurring ad buys on the Times' mobile site.

Mobile is not about devices, carriers or subscriptions. It is about consumers, per Eric Bader, president and cofounder of Brand In Hand. He said mobile marketing consists of consumers allowing brands to have a personal relationship with them via their handsets.

“Branding is just another brick in the total wall they are trying to build,” Mr. Bader said.

Mobile is an excellent way to reach people at various times and improve brand loyalty.

To enhance the brand relationship, marketers need to learn everything they can about consumer behavior and that means listening to customers on all levels of communication including email, Twitter and mobile usage.

Brands are on the sidelines and companies have to get excited about mobile, but they must look beyond rich media and banner ads to get chief marketing officers excited about mobile as an efficient medium to interact with consumers, per Mr. Foran.

To further woo a chief marketing officer, a shift needs to occur away from pitting SMS and rich display against each other. There should not be an emphasis on novelty, only on results.

Mr. Foran said he is excited about the futre of rich media on WAP sites, MMS advances and GPS ad units. GPS ad units will open the door for the retail sector by enabling location-based targeting.

Mr. Greene said it is important to find the right approach for each client in terms of usage and to maximize their budget, but campaigns advertising free content or items with significant discounts always do the best.

The panelists agreed that brands need to embrace all aspects of the mobile platform, including SMS, mobile sites and applications.

To them, mobile marketing is just beginning.

“Rich media is a huge part of the equation, but not the only part,” Mr. Foran said. "SMS is still a valuable channel."