Education is key for mobile database marketing

February 6, 2008

Mobile CRM will be the result of communicating with an individual via their own personal communications network

Carriers are leading the drive toward mobile database marketing for obvious reasons – they have all the data on subscribers. But the opportunity to use this data for relevant and permission-based offers is growing.

Leland Kroll, president of Kroll Direct Marketing Inc., Plainsboro, NJ, is a direct marketing industry veteran. He sees multichannel use of mobile consumer data for outreach via mail, text and online marketing. He discusses the prospects of mobile database marketing with Mobile Marketer’s Lauren Mooney. Excerpts:

What is the key trend in mobile database marketing?
From our perspective, we’re seeing activity coming from mobile carriers looking for postal data so they can conduct competitive carrier campaigns.  Traction has yet to come from national advertisers as of yet to conduct mobile campaigns.

Do marketers really understand the concept of mobile database CRM?
Not at all.  Seems to be a lack of educational outlets or resources.  There is a lot to be absorbed with new players, suppliers and terms being introduced into the mix.

What is mobile CRM? How would you define it?
Mobile CRM will be the result of communicating with an individual via their own personal communications network or their cell phone and providing them with content that is relevant and has value to them.   The opportunities are unlimited.

Leland Kroll is president of Kroll Direct Marketing

Are there any good practitioners of mobile database marketing?
We haven’t run across any as of yet.  Probably too early in the lifecycle of mobile.

What strides do you expect to be made in mobile database marketing in 2008?
Once more players enter the marketplace from many different marketing sectors it will dramatically increase on the marketing side.

For non-marketing purposes – those seeking data to be used as an additional touch-point – they understand the value and use of the data.  Dramatic increases will continue to come from that sector as well.  More data will become available as well.

What is the size of the market?
We currently have about 90 million domestic and over 76 million international records to utilize.  There are tens of millions of additional records being tested, unduplicated and validated as we speak.

What’s the purpose of building this database?
For both marketing and non-marketing applications. Mobile alert programs, premium content, polling, contests, political and driving retail or Web site traffic can all be conducted.

Do consumers actually want to build a relationship with marketers over mobile?
Good question.  There is a 100 percent deliverability rate, 90 percent-plus open rate, 25 percent viral marketing and upwards of 6 percent to 12 percent action rate.  Yes, it does need to be relevant but the audience right now is receptive.

Does mobile database marketing have to work in conjunction with other channels?
It doesn’t have to but it certainly can’t stand alone.  The privacy policy needs to be posted somewhere so immediately a Web site is drawn into the equation.

What challenges do you see ahead for mobile database marketing?
Education, education and education.  Once the current hurdle is crossed, the perception that mobile is like email and that it should be priced real low, which it’s not or shouldn’t be or will be perceived as spam to the consumer.  The only direction for mobile to go is up. The entire marketing channel is in its infancy.

At the same time, what’s the risk that marketers run if they don’t have a mobile CRM plan?

They need to secure a vanity 5- or 6-digit short code and integrate it into all marketing channels.  Collect opt-in data and start deploying CRM or value-added campaigns.