Mobile marketers shoud be wary of low-cost campaign executions

November 6, 2008

Dan Flanegan is CEO of Brand Anywhere

As mobile marketing becomes more widespread, it seems that new providers are popping up everywhere.

Some of these providers are taking a predictable approach to the space, offering turnkey, self serve campaigns with what appear to be extremely low entry costs.

Here are five key things to keep in mind the next time you are tempted by a $199 mobile marketing campaign.

1) Flexibility. Think twice before going with a "do-it-yourself" solution. Most are extremely rigid in their structure and won't allow you to make changes to the program that could improve your performance or interaction with your customers.

2) Data Collection. One of the important aspects of mobile is the ability to measure response based on unique keywords that are associated with specific media. Most small self serve providers don't give you the option to "tag" your media with different keywords for measurement purposes, leaving you in the dark.

3) Carrier Approval. Can the provider really guarantee that your program is legally approved by all the wireless carriers? If not, you run the risk of being shut off during or even before your campaign/program starts. Are you willing to take this
risk?

4) Your Mobile Goals. In most cases, these providers embrace the self serve model because they want to limit contact with you, the client. Limited contact means low costs and better margins for them. But it doesn't always lead to the realization of your mobile goals. If you have been working in mobile for some time, this might be acceptable. If you are new to mobile, look for a provider that encourages collaboration and support.

5) Cost. It looks appealing... a campaign for only $199. What a bargain. But is it really? When you look at the cost on a per message basis, not to mention the lack of interaction with the provider, you actually might be spending more. Thirteen cents a message is almost three times what most established providers will charge.

So at the end of the day, think twice before engaging in low cost mobile campaign executions. True, they may work for very small campaigns (less than 5,000 messages) if you aren't concerned about the lack of measurement, personal assistance and consideration of your marketing goals.

SMS messaging might be a commodity, but mobile campaigns are not. Treat yourself to a mobile provider that can address these five items and the campaign should pay for itself.

Dan Flanegan is CEO of Brand Anywhere, San Diego, CA. Reach him at .