Mobile Marketing

Mobile marketing can refer to either the traditional form of making use of moving billboards and road shows or the more advanced form of using cell phones. Since the millennium began, mobile marketing though cell phone has become very popular. Short message service, popularly known as SMS, has made this type of marketing much easier.

Initially, some problems were encountered as unwanted information was being sent out. Most of the SMS that were passed around was spam and it received an international negative media response. This was due to the fact that some of the advertisers had bought list of mobile users and began sending them unsolicited messages. These advertisers were stopped when strict security measures and laws were passed. The marketing industry saw the potential of mobile marketing and fully utilized it. The mobile service providers coded guidelines and laws that later became a legal advertising channel. The Mobile Marketing Association and Interactive Advertising Bureau also came up with guidelines for the proper functioning of mobile marketing.

Mobile marketing quickly became popular in Asia and Europe due to its novelty. In Europe alone, hundreds of millions of pounds have been invested in SMS advertising. Now SMS has become the most famous type of mobile marketing. Because of the popularity of short codes, this method has become much easier, creating a new way to reach out to potential customers. Now mobile short codes are looked upon as mobile domain names by global advertisers, as their brands are advertised whenever a message is sent.

In America, the first SMS short code campaign was started in 2002. It is easier to send complete information with short codes, which are usually numbers assigned to mobile operators of a particular location, which they use for brand campaigning and other purposes. They contain few words. These numbers are scrutinized by the service provider and all messages are monitored to ensure that they remain original.

Like opt-in emails, customers have to opt for SMSes in order for advertisers to send more promotions. Some mobile operators ask for a double opt-in form from the receiver. Making opting out easier for the customer. When the customer wishes to terminate receiving messages, they have to send the word "STOP" via SMS. All these guidelines have been laid by the Mobile Marketing Association.

Service providers provide customers with the option of sending SMS to email addresses, while others offer mobile games and ringtones, which are used for promotional purposes. This has lead to the invention of MMS or Multi-media Message Service, which can send short promotional videos and animations. Bluetooth is another good technology that was developed in 2003, and many companies in Europe have found it useful. When a message is send via Bluetooth, the receiver has to accept the incoming message, making this method legitimate. The message transfer speed is high and is also free due to its radio-based technology.

The method of sending out SMS advertisements based on geographical location is known as location based service. The customer is tracked by a GPS chip built into the phone. Radiolocation signals from the nearest cell phone towers are used for this purpose.

Mobile marketing is a safe marketing strategy, as it is customer opted. The short message sent through this method is known as mobile originated or MO message. If the advertisement is done through a call, the call is known as mobile terminated or MT message. The rise in the number of mobile phone users makes this method very profitable.

By: dreamhobbiz

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