The following post was written by guest blogger Kathleen D. Rogers. Please read her bio after the post.
The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) held its Forum New York on March 17-18. The two-day conference brought together hundreds of marketers to discuss the latest innovations, opportunities and challenges of mobile marketing. After taking a week to review everything that was discussed at the Mobile Marketing Association’s Forum in New York, there are a couple of key takeaways, but there is also an overall message to marketers.
The message to marketers is that they should strive to understand consumer interaction with all screens holistically. This broader approach will enable marketers to encourage consumer behavior that will translate to sales and avoid micro-managing data. Marketers should be encouraged to evaluate their current mobile integration and how it can move towards a more seamless/enhanced experience for consumers.
SMOX – Best Practices for Mobile
The SMOX (Smart Mobile Cross Marketing) Effectiveness Research program is one of the largest studies focused on sharing data and insights on the ROI of mobile. The first five studies were held in partnership with AT&T, MasterCard, and Coca Cola. The goal was “to develop a new approach to scientifically assess the value of mobile in the mix using real in-market campaigns, an approach that did not exist prior.”
The findings show that marketers should invest in larger size ad units, audio, and mobile video. In addition, the study supports the use of customization opportunities that mobile offers like specific time and location ad serving. Testing of multiple ad units was shown to garner stronger results as well. Check out the full study here.
The Importance of apps
Several presenters at the Forum mentioned the Flurry Analytics Study from Yahoo! that tracked time spent on iOS and Android Connected Devices, 86% on Apps vs. 14% on Browsers. Ian Sefferman from TUNE in a breakout session spoke to the topic How Brands Succeed in the App Store. He gave suggestions on app development as well as how to track app performance.
Apps must give consumers an experience or serve a purpose. The best ways to gauge app performance is to look at how an app is ranking on Top Charts, access if the app is easily found in searches, and evaluate the reviews/ratings for the app. Sefferman gave several examples of successful apps including: Starbucks, L’Oréal, Nike, and Quicken Loans.
YouTube Influencers, powerful brand advocates
Tom Beeby, Founder of Beeby, Clark+Meyler and Charlie King, Group Marketing Director, Schick Intuition shared their successful YouTube influencer campaign and how they choose their brand advocates. Beeby selected two YouTube Influencers by looking at their fan base on YouTube, as well as their personality, tone, manner and the way they connected with the brand. The two influencers, Brittani Louise Taylor and Weylie Hoang achieved meaningful sales lifts for Schick Intuition and higher levels of engagement versus banner ads.
-Post by guest blogger Kathleen D. Rogers-
Kathleen has ten years of marketing experience working on major brands in Tampa and New York. She took a break to raise her kids and she’s currently looking for a marketing position in Tampa. Check out her profile on Linkedin.
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