7steps mobile-marketing-smart-insights

Mobile Marketing7 Steps Guide

Authors: Rob Thurner and Dave Chaffey

Published: March 2013

Plan > Reach > Act > Convert > Engage

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© Smart Insights (Marketing Intelligence) Limited. Please go to www.smartinsights.com to feedback or access our other guides.

7 Steps mobile marketing guide

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Mobile Marketing

7 Steps Guide

Table of contents

3 Introduction Why mobile is a must for focus in 2013

8 ONE Making the business case for mobile

18 TWO Mobile marketing strategy

28 THREE Create compelling mobile experiences

56 FOUR Reaching mobile users through search marketing advertising and customer communications

72 FIVE Mobile commerce and mobile payments

86 SIX Mobile CRM and mobile coupons

104 SEVEN Integrating mobile, local and social

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Introduction Why mobile is a must for focus in 2013Anyone who works in digital marketing or e-commerce cannot have failed to have seen the forecast predicting that by 2014 mobile Internet should overtake desktop Internet usage.1 This has certainly been a call to action for focusing more attention on mobile marketing.

We believe that mobile device use has already transformed the way consumers access online content and services for entertainment, socialising and purchase decisions. At the same time, we want companies to make the right investments in digital marketing, so we always try to present a balanced picture to help guide investment. As a counterpoint to the simplistic ‘mobile use will overtake the desktop’ by 2014 hype we published this summary of global mobile traffic as part of our 2012 compilation of statistics to show a more realistic state of mobile usage. See our Mobile Statistics compilation for the latest data2.

Mobile browsing traffic worldwide. Source: PingdomAs you would expect, this compilation shows that across all regions we are some way off mobile traffic superseding desktop traffic, although in Asia and Africa, mobile traffic proportions are higher since mobile penetration is relatively high compared with desktop or laptop computer usage.

Strategy recommendation 1 Don’t blindly invest in mobile because of the hype Yes, mobile marketing has already transformed the way the Internet is used by many for some activities, but it doesn’t mean every business has to have a mobile app or a fully mobile-optimised site – you have to choose the cost-effective option for your business.

To be realistic about the impact of mobile Internet usage, we also have to consider the activities that are commonly performed on mobile. The two most common mobile usage activities are accessing email and using social networks, often through mobile apps.

To understand consumer demand for using online services it is dangerous to consider potential usage of services from research questions like ‘have you ever purchased using

1 Smart Insights: 2013 Mobile marketing statistics compilation.2 Smart Insights: comScore 2013 Mobile Future in Focus compilation for multiple countries

http://www.smartinsights.com/mobile-marketing/mobile-marketing-analytics/mobile-marketing-statistics/

http://www.smartinsights.com/marketplace-analysis/customer-analysis/new-free-worldwide-digital-media-statistics-reports-starting-with-uk-us-and-europe/

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a mobile phone’ or ‘do you intend to use your smartphone for purchase’. Instead, panel data looking at actual usage is preferable. We recommend taking a look at the comScore MobiLens compilations. These show that across these European countries, although nearly half of mobile users have used a smartphone (48.8 per cent), but there is still a significant proportion of users that are not using smartphones. Ths results in the majority of page views still being served onto desktop computers. However, the UK, Ireland and Russian Federation are ahead of the other countries in mobile adoption.

Mobile use in Europe. Percentage share of Page Views Source: comScore MobiLens3

The data presented above is for smartphone usage, we also have to think through the implications of increased use of tablets, often alongside TV as part of multi-screening.4 This research shows that 67 per cent of people have used multiple devices to shop online, with smartphones often prompting spontaneous purchase.

The opportunities from mobile interactions for brandsWhen thinking about how we can use mobile devices and media for marketing there is a tendency to limit our thinking to mobile commerce transactions. There are certainly great opportunities for mobile commerce shown by the early, enthusiastic adopters like Amazon and eBay.

Amazon’s continued success online is today underpinned by a strong mobile performance, with sales via its mobile site and app reaching $1 billion in 2011. eBay predicted sales of $8 billion in 2012, a 25 per cent increase on mobile sales in 2011. eBay’s senior director for EU mobile Olivier Ropars, reminds us of the real threat mobile presents to traditional retailers:

‘Almost 50% of people with smartphones will check prices in-store. When something isn’t available on the rail, the smartphone is a more efficient way of shopping. The smartphone is giving a lot of power to the consumer.’

3 Smart Insights: Comscore Mobile Future in Focus compilation for multiple countries4 Smart Insights: Summary of Google research on multi-screening.

http://www.smartinsights.com/marketplace-analysis/customer-analysis/new-free-worldwide-digital-media-statistics-reports-starting-with-uk-us-and-europe/

http://www.smartinsights.com/mobile-marketing/multiscreen-matters-to-your-consumer-it-should-to-you/

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What are the main brand interactions?To help make the case for mobile and make the most of the opportunities, you need to explain the full range of interactions beyond mobile commerce. As we will see in Step 4, mobile search volumes are increasing rapidly, while in Step 7 we see that mobile use of social networks and location-based services is increasing.

Google infographic summarising the new multiscreen world

We recommend that you start developing your strategy, not by thinking about mobile sites or apps, but instead thinking about the different situations where consumers use mobiles. For example, as they follow up on a TV ad as they sit at home; search for a restaurant in town; scan barcodes or action codes in a store or simply read their emails as they commute to work. Don’t think smartphones, but smart users, ask ‘How are our early adopters using smartphones and tablets in practical and innovative ways?’

The next diagram shows how we see the many mobile touchpoints and the opportunities they give for brands to interact in new or different ways with their customers.

Your mobile marketing strategy should be split into reviewing the best investments for mobile brand discovery which are the options for mobile marketing communications through messaging and other sites and mobile brand experiences which is where you create mobile-optimised sites, apps or mobile commerce sites to interact more deeply with customers. Mobile brand discovery mainly involves promotional push to encourage adoption of mobile services and interaction with the brand, plus pull via search engine optimisation (SEO) as customers use search, publisher sites, messaging and offline ads (for example through QR

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(Quick Response) codes).

The core mobile marketing touchpoints requiring managementWe’re not saying you need to work on all these activities! Instead, this shows your range of options for mobile interactions for which you will review the balance of investment as part of your mobile strategy.

This table shows how you can summarise your mobile plan. It defines the options you have selected for interacting with mobile users across the RACE customer lifecycle.

Funnel stage

Key mobile marketing activities KPIs

Reach Mobile discovery and promotion of mobile services

þ Mobile search marketing þ Mobile display þ Offline prompts through action

codes

þ Mobile share of search (% of site visits referred through mobile)

þ Mobile reach through display þ Unique visits to mobile sites

Act Encouraging mobile consumer interactions

þ Mobile-optimised sites þ Mobile-specific content þ Mobile-specific offers þ App downloads

þ n, % of mobile opt-ins þ n, % of app downloads

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Funnel stage

Key mobile marketing activities KPIs

Convert Online and offline sales delivered by mobile

þ Mobile commerce sites þ Transactional mobile apps þ Mobile voucher campaigns

þ Mobile conversion rates and average order value

þ Mobile channel sales and profit contribution

þ Offline sales referred by mobile vouchers

Engage Creating customer loyalty and advocacy

þ Social commerce interactions þ Mobile CRM þ Mobile messaging

þ Repeat mobile commerce sales þ Repeat app usage þ Mobile satisfaction ratings þ Mobile messaging response rates

and value generated

In later sections of this guide we will explore, in more detail, how mobile marketing activities can be used to support each of the areas of RACE.

About the Lead author, Rob ThurnerRob Thurner is an established mobile consultant, author, trainer, and speaker.

He is Founding Partner of Burner Mobile, the consultancy business which helps solve clients’ business problems with innovative, future-proof mobile solutions.

Rob design and runs intermediate and advanced mobile workshops for marketers of all levels of expertise across Europe and the USA. His business partners include the IDM, IPM, Econsultancy, The Knowledge Engineers, Smart Insights and the IAB where he was a founding member of the Mobile Leadership Council. He‘s also course Tutor on The IDM’s Diploma in Digital Marketing.

His interactive mobile training sessions are informed by hands-on experience developing mobile strategies for clients like American Express, Barclaycard, Betfair, Carphone Warehouse, Heineken, Jaguar M&S and Virgin Media.

Following a BSc (Honours) in Politics from Bristol University, Rob began his career as a journalist and then public affairs consultant before joining media start up TDI (now CBS Outdoor) as Marketing Manager. He moved to Clear Channel International and served as Group Marketing Director for the company’s Business Units in over 40 countries throughout the EMEA and APAC regions.

http://www.burnermobile.com

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ONE Making the business case for mobile

r Q. Have we created a business case to prove the case for investment in mobile marketing?

Despite the excitement around the potential of mobile marketing, the reality is that it hasn’t resulted in whole new marketing budgets being created. We’re in tough economic times and budgets are, if anything, lower than in previous years. You will need to convince more senior colleagues in marketing, finance or the main person that mobile warrants more investment. So we are, in reality, talking about substitution or reallocation of budget for mobile. Often, what you will be proposing is to shift money out of desktop site development budgets and reassigning a portion of the media budget to activate a response to advertising via mobile devices.

Strategy recommendation 2 Make the business case for investment in mobile The reality is that budgets typically need to be reallocated or substituted for investment in mobile marketing, so you have to show superior commercial value from the new digital media. Yet many companies haven’t done this.

A survey by the Chief Marketing Officer Council among 250 global marketers revealed that just 16 per cent have developed a mobile strategy aimed at building customer engagement.5 The ‘Engage at Every Stage’ report looked at how brands view their mobile marketing initiatives. Brands represented in the results include marketers from Coca-Cola, Anheuser-Busch, JP Morgan Chase and Unilever. Only 14 per cent are happy with their mobile strategy.

The report goes further and states that only 15 per cent are using mobile to trigger consumption, 18 per cent use it for reactivating or acquiring customers and 18 per cent use it for transactions.

Like others who have been immersed in the world of mobile for 10 years or more, this comes as no surprise to us. At the time of writing, the vast majority of brands have yet to optimise their sites for mobile – despite clear evidence that globally 2013 will be the year that Internet access via mobile overtakes access via PC, and most still approach mobile in a tactical way rather than grasping the opportunity to transform their businesses with the mobile channel and integrate mobile into their broader business strategy.

How to make the business case for mobile marketing investmentWe recommend these six steps to help develop the business case for mobile:

þ 1. Define the scope of mobile marketing investment. þ 2. Review current and predicted future consumer use of mobile channels. þ 3. Benchmark competitor use of mobile. þ 4. Create mobile return-on-investment models for investment options. þ 5. Select and prioritise mobile options and create a mobile roadmap. þ 6. Write the business case.

5 Mobile Marketer: Study - 16 percent of marketers have a formal mobile strategy - study.

http://www.mobilemarketer.com/cms/news/research/13963.html

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1. Define the scope of mobile marketing investmentOne of the difficulties with creating a mobile strategy is that it is so wide ranging. You need to communicate to colleagues that it’s not just about a mobile site or app and that mobile technology has its own ecosystem of technologies and suppliers that you have to participate in. The next diagram shows some of this complexity. We have to consider:

1. Operating system platforms. Different manufacturers support different technologies. Because of consumer use of these platforms you should consider supporting both Apple’s iOS and the Google-supported Android which most Samsung, HTC and Motorola handsets now operate. Larger companies will want to support the Windows Phone platform used by Nokia Lumia and some Samsung and HTC models, and Symbian also from Nokia.

2. Devices. Although you should make sure your mobile site or app can work on the core operating systems, you should also check the capabilities of the most popular smartphones, tablets and the long tail of legacy ‘feature phones’ to make sure you optimise the user experience of all your mobile customers, whatever device they use.

3. Wireless technology platforms. Development of sites and apps is usually independent of individual device specifications, and the major mobile carriers. The fast growing range of multichannel retailers must also support customers using Wi-Fi in-home, in-store and in other Wi-Fi hotspot locations to give them a better browser experience.

4. Mobile ad networks and portals. To reach audiences online you will have to consider specialist ad networks and the portals offered by the operators, for example using O2 More to offer coupon-based rewards programmes for mobile users.

5. Payment services. The traditional payments market, dominated historically by the banks and credit card providers, is now been challenged by players in the mobile carrier, handset and payments technology industries. We will review these in Step 5.

6. Location-based services. Foursquare is the best known independent location option but Facebook and Google have local services to consider in order to deliver precise geo-targeting campaigns and services.

The main components of the mobile marketing ecosystemThe diverse range of stakeholders have been working hard to monetise the mobile opportunity – device manufacturers, technology providers, digital service providers, payments providers, mobile platforms and ad networks.

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Mobile operators developed the infrastructure upon which the whole mobile ecosystem has thrived. However, the explosion in native apps and rapid roll-out of Wi-Fi networks in-home, in-store, in education, in leisure and in transport hubs now deliver a broad range of Internet-based communication platforms, including Skype, WhatsApp, iMessenger and Viber. For the first time in 20 years operators are now seeing a drop in SMS use.

So how are the mobile operators responding to the challenges posed by other players in the mobile ecosystem? In a word, through collaboration. The UK is the first market globally where the operators have combined forces to deliver a one-stop-shop mobile commerce solution. This is Weve which aims to give businesses access to a single, consolidated consumer base, via a single set of services, based on robust, smart anonymised data tracking subscribers’ mobile behaviour.

What is it? WeveWeve is a joint venture between the UK’s three largest mobile network operators EE, Telefonica UK (O2) and Vodafone UK. Between them, they represent over 80 per cent of UK mobile customers, a user base unmatched by any single handset vendor or technology company.

Often the UK is the test market in mobile for the global operators to test, learn and adapt the model before rolling out to other markets. Weve required EC approval – which took 20 months (because it is seen as a precedent decision) – with the potential to set a global template for other mobile commerce ventures across Europe.

At launch Weve has an opted-in base of 15 million customers. Its shareholders, EE, Telefonica UK and Vodafone, comprise 80 per cent of UK mobile customers. Weve has identified four distinct areas to assist brands understand and deliver the customer journey. These correspond broadly to the Smart Insights RACE framework.

The core mobile marketing activities – weaving mobile touchpoints through the customer journeyEach of these areas is supported by smart anonymised data that allows Weve to provide a rich, relevant mobile experience based on data drive targeting.

þ Media – mobile marketing (REACH stage). Weve combines multiple communications technologies, including Location, push messaging via SMS, push messaging via video,

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apps discovery and display advertising. þ Incentives – new customers (ACT stage). Weve combines the intelligence and

experience of its joint-venture partners to deliver time- and location-based incentives to encourage customer interactions with participating online and traditional brands. O2 Priority Moments is the best known ‘operator’ mobile loyalty programme.

þ Payments – wallet/transactions (CONVERT stage). Weve is a neutral host/platform, which is not tied to a particular wallet system or to a particular software platform or handset, and provides a single point of technical integration, and a single contact point for mobile users to contact for mobile users should they have questions or require support whilst building confidence in mobile payments.

þ Loyalty – long-term customer retention/loyalty programmes (ENGAGE stage). Weve will seek to capitalise on the trend for consumers to replace their plastic loyalty cards with mobile alternatives. Research from Mercator Advisory Group reveals four per cent of consumers have replaced loyalty cards with mobile apps, and 53 per cent are interested in doing so.6 Weve plans to add mobile functionality to existing programmes to enhance the consumer experience. In addition, Weve will offer a fully managed and hosted mobile-centric loyalty solution.

The operators start from a position of strength, in owning the customer relationship, and accessing vast amounts of anonymised customer data as the basis of highly targeted services to fast track mobile adoption by UK companies. It will be fascinating to see the lessons learned and business generated.

2. Review current and predicted future consumer use of mobile channelsUsing analytics and, in particular, advanced segments is the key to understanding the effectiveness of mobile sites and optimising them.

Example of mobile site growth taken from AnalyticsThis anonymous example provided by an Expert member shows the rate at which mobile growth is occurring in their consumer segment.

Strategy recommendation 3 Use your analytics as the starting point for the business case Use the trends in your analytics to review your growth in visits. You will find that bounce rates are likely higher and conversion rates lower for mobile visits which should be used to argue the need for investment in mobile.

6 Peter Buck: Payment gateways presentation.

http://www.slideshare.net/peterbuck/emerging-payments-mobile-contactless-gateways-v-1ppt

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You can use the Audience Mobile devices report in Google Analytics to find relevant consumer usage.

Best Practice Tip 1 Use advanced segments to isolate the mobile audience and then review their behaviourUsing advanced segments in Google Analytics will help you isolate visits from different mobile devices and show the volume and behaviour of these visits. Advanced segments are essentially a filter that can be set for each visitor type including device to understand behaviour with a specific technology. You can segment through these standard advanced segments:

þ Mobile device info (i.e. model of mobile). þ Mobile device branding (i.e. company). þ Service provider (i.e. network or Internet service provider). þ Mobile input selector (i.e. touchscreen or gaming). þ Operating system (i.e. iOS or Android versions). þ Other (includes screen resolution).

You will also need to make sure you have the tracking set up correctly for reviewing. If you’re running an e-commerce site, selling online, then the tracking in Google Analytics of sales transaction is almost always set up by the e-commerce provider, although there are often teething problems with accuracy or managing international sites.

Recommended resource? 7 Steps Guide to Google Analytics The 7 Steps Guide to Google Analytics explains goal set up and advanced segments.

For an e-commerce site, your main goal is simple. It’s a sale registered through the checkout completion page. But that’s the end of the funnel process, so you also need goals for other points in the funnel, for example:

þ Browse products þ Search products þ Add to basket þ Start checkout þ Individual checkout steps.

Best Practice Tip 2 Use published statistics to support your caseThere are many country- and sector-based reports on consumer mobile adoption. We have a page we update with the latest Mobile Marketing Statistics. Check the latest from our resources there.

Ensure you can report on the percentage of mobile visitors performing all these activities to help build your case. Even for a non-transactional e-commerce site these categories of goals are relevant.

If you run a transactional consumer site, this recent data from network Affiliate Window across their range of UK retail clients shows the growing importance of handset sales – useful for benchmarking your mobile sales projections against. Note that desktop is on the left axis and still 72 per cent of sales on Christmas day, when mobile device sales (right axis)

http://www.smartinsights.com/guides/google-analytics-7-steps-guide/

http://www.smartinsights.com/mobile-marketing/mobile-marketing-analytics/mobile-marketing-statistics/

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peaked with 16 per cent of total.

Christmas 2012 – New Year 2013 Sales by device. Source: Affiliate WindowThe latest IAB statistics show that 25.2 million UK mobile users (52 per cent) are actively engaged in mobile commerce. Smartphone users are 63 per cent more likely to engage in mobile commerce than non-smartphone users. According to Google, 17 per cent of mobile users have changed their mind about purchasing a product or service in store as a result of information gathered using a smartphone. Please refer to Google resources: The Mobile Playbook and The Mobile Planet.

We could quote a lot more statistics at you and it’s likely they would be impressive, but statistics date quickly. Instead, we will direct you to three of the best sources for regularly updated mobile statistics so that you can see for different countries and demographics which the most relevant are.

Mini-case study: The TicketsNow mobile siteThe TicketsNow success story shows the benefits that can be delivered through applying conversion rate optimisation (CRO) to a new mobile-optimised site. For example TicketsNow combines a mobile-optimised site with Google mobile ads to boost mobile sales 100 per cent in the first month. Research from Google showed that more than 25 per cent of ticketing-re-lated search queries occur on mobile devices. Sachin Gadhvi, Director of Search and Mobile Marketing explains the requirement for them to focus on a mobile-optimised platform:

‘Search queries and purchases in our space are migrating to mobile at a rapid pace. Mobile is where consumers are now and increasingly where they’re headed, so that’s where we need to be.’

To start with TicketsNow asked the ‘mobile site or an app’ question we will cover in section 3. It was felt that since search is one of the company’s biggest channels for customer acquisition, it made the most sense to lead with a mobile site and provide a streamlined user experience. A mobile site would also reach the broadest audience rather than having to develop apps one by one for the most popular platforms.

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The TicketsNow mobile site

3. Benchmark competitor use of mobileTo make your case you can also use an emotional argument to colleagues based on fear of competitors getting an edge. Competitor benchmarking of mobile usage based on features developed and level of use of their mobile services can be effective here. You can use the techniques described in this guide.7

Best Practice Tip 3 Benchmark Fear of falling behind competitors can add to your case. Show the success of competitors or out-of-sector companies in using mobile sites, apps and campaigns.

This is particularly important in mobile as your new generation of customers will expect a positive mobile experience. Mobile friendly brands are perceived as innovative and fun, and well positioned to gain share of voice through social media sharing. Mobile friendly brands also benefit from the halo effect of attracting high-calibre staff and retaining them.

4. Create mobile return-on-investment models for investment optionsBut, how do you PROVE that investment in mobile marketing is worthwhile?

The commercial argument will be strongest in many organisations if you create mobile return on investment (ROI) models. You should create conversion-based models to illustrate the ROI. These should show how increasing the level of mobile visitors or conversion rate by a anticipated percentage can increase the revenue generated. Take a look at this summary of what Venda has found8 amongst its clients which you can use for your business case models. Damon Mannion suggests that you should use these types of insights to inform creation of a business case:

þ A mobile-optimised site will convert at around half the rate of a desktop site, however... þ A non mobile-optimised site will convert at around half the rate of the mobile-optimised

site.

7 Smart Insights: Competitor benchmarking guide.8 Figaro Digital: Damon Mannion of Venda on modelling mobile conversion increments.

http://www.smartinsights.com/guides/competitor-benchmarking-guide/

http://www.smartinsights.com/guides/digital-marketing-strategy/making-the-business-case-for-investment-in-digital-marketing/

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þ Of people who research on their mobile device, 39 per cent go on to purchase on their desktop advice and 24 per cent go on to purchase in-store.

þ Around 30 per cent of consumers use their mobile in-store to inform purchases through in-store Wi-Fi or scanning barcodes.

þ Overall this will give rise to a 2 per cent increment in sales from creating a mobile-opti-mised site.

A summary of differences in proportions of screen usage and conversion rates. Source: VendaAs explained above, to help develop these models you should look at trends in current usage of your sites on smartphones and tablets using mobile segments in analytics.

For mobile marketing for transactional e-commerce sites, you can create revenue models showing sales uplift and online profit contribution from:

þ 1. Increased online conversion rates from a mobile-optimised site. Using analytics for your desktop site you can show how conversion rates differ for site visitors using mobile devices and estimate an increase in conversion. Bear in mind that the situation in which users access mobile sites differs, so mobile conversions will typically always be lower than those for desktop platforms except in situations particularly suited to mobile transactions (e.g. booking a taxi or reserving a table).

þ 2. Increased online leads and sales from mobile app(s). This part of the mobile revenue estimate is only relevant if you are considering creating a mobile-optimised site AND developing a mobile app. In this case you can estimate sales referred by the mobile app by calculating a sales prediction based on numbers of app downloads, conversion rates to sale and frequency of usage of apps. You can tap into the insights from retailers like Amazon and eBay who find the simplicity of apps results in higher conversion rates and revenue per mobile user. You may need to consider online app-based sales generated from app features and services which are part of the offline shopping experience. For example, if app users scan prices or offers offline from QR codes, that will generate online sales (although there may be cannibalisation from offline sales).

þ 3. Increased offline sales from online research. This is known as the ‘ROPO effect’ related to multichannel customer journeys.

What is it? ROPO

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ROPO stands for ‘Research Online, Purchase Offline’. Although Research Offline-Pur-chase Online is another behaviour which is increasingly important through mobile since customers use their smartphones to scan online prices in-store.

þ 4. Increased online purchases from in-store research. Consumers are increasingly using mobile devices to research purchases in-store, either over their carrier networks, in-store Wi-Fi or mobile scanning. The figure shows a useful matrix for summarising these multichannel behaviours. This study9 reviewed the role of the Internet in the decision process for mobile and broadband contracts involving the Vodafone website and stores in Germany based on a panel of 16,000 web users and questionnaires about their intent and purchase. For both of these services, the contract was signed online by around one-third of the audience. However, a significant proportion signed the contract offline.

Example ROPO model for Vodafone Germany. Source: Google.This and similar research has been sponsored by Google to show the importance of investing in AdWords and display advertising. Consumer behaviour will vary dramatically by sector, so we suggest you complete research to estimate how this matrix looks for you.

5. Select and prioritise mobile options and create a mobile roadmapWith the range of mobile options we have discussed in this section, it’s likely you wont be creating a single mobile case for investment for a single year. Mobile requires a long-term commitment so we recommend creating a long-term roadmap using the format contained in our Digital Marketing Strategy Toolkit.10

For example, Debenhams, a leading UK retail adopter of mobile shared this retrospective of their mobile development over the last two years or so. Their mobile manager, Sarah Bailie explains, ‘Integrating online in store should be top priority for all multichannel retailers looking to create an experiential and destination shopping experience. Debenhams’ most valuable customers engage with the brand via multiple channels.’

9 Smart Insights: Vodafone ROPO example.10 Smart Insights: Digital Marketing Strategy toolkit.

http://www.smartinsights.com/analytics-conversion-optimisation-alerts/multichannel-customer-journeys-ropo

http://www.smartinsights.com/guides/digital-strategy-template-toolkit/

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Debenhams mobile marketing roadmap. Source: Sarah Bailie, Mobile commerce manager at Debenhams

6. Write the business caseAccording to digital strategy consultant Mike Berry writing in the Smart Insights guide to Making the Business Case for Investment in Digital Marketing:11 ‘From a commercial viewpoint, there are really only 2 reasons for organisations to spend money on digital marketing:

(a) it delivers immediate ROI (or at least within a measurable time frame)

or

(b) it’s becoming increasingly important, so it will in time deliver that ROI, which means that brand owners need to get involved now and “learn how to do it” or they’ll be left behind when it really takes off.’

Recommended resource? Smart Insights Business Case Template and health check

Our Business case template gives a structure for creating a business case and there are more ideas in the companion ebook.

The mobile healthcheck is a useful place to start when making the business case for mobile is to establish your current position: how user-friendly is your business for customers accessing your content on their mobile and tablet devices? It’s available in an interactive form and as a spreadsheet. Managers of digital marketing and e-commerce use our audits to assess their capabilities and then present to colleagues a summary of current status and areas that need to be improved.

The audit is a simple Excel spreadsheet with these worksheets:

þ A ‘Read me’ worksheet explaining how to complete the audit. þ A worksheet listing key questions covering your mobile activities spanning the Reach-

Act-Convert-Engage (RACE) model to assess your current performance, which can be mapped against your competitors.

þ A scoring system summarises your capabilities using a radar chart covering each step of this guide.

11 Smart Insights: Making the business case for digital marketing.

http://www.smartinsights.com/guides/business-case-template/

http://www.smartinsights.com/mobile-marketing/

http://www.smartinsights.com/guides/digital-marketing-strategy/making-the-business-case-for-investment-in-digital-marketing/

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TWO Mobile marketing strategy

r Q. Have we developed a long-term mobile strategy?

We have seen that increased consumer use of smartphones and tablets gives a huge opportunity for marketers because usage of mobile has increased dramatically. We believe that to make the most of this opportunity requires a proper plan. Without a long-term plan and roadmap of initiatives, you will likely fail to make sufficient investment in mobile or perhaps, worse still, make the wrong type of investment. Put simply, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail.

Strategy recommendation 4 Develop an overall mobile strategy using a planning process framework like SOSTAC® combined with RACEWhile most companies will invest in making their mobile sites compatible, far fewer have a strategy as suggested by the research in the previous section which showed that just 16 per cent have developed a mobile strategy aimed at building customer engagement. We recommend reviewing how you can generate value at each stage of customer interaction from RACE: Reach-Act-Convert-Engage as we will explain shortly.

A strategic approach to mobile is also important to encourage your existing customers to use mobile in their interactions with the brand. Betfair provide an excellent example of a well-defined mobile value proposition. Speaking at Mobile Marketing Live 2012 Ben Carter, global head of online marketing at betfair, revealed to delegates that the volume of bets placed on mobile in 2012 doubled to almost £2 billion. Mobile users on the sporting exchange have risen to 275,000, up 122 per cent year-on-year, and now account for 15 per cent of total revenue. Half of all UK betfair customers, Carter added, have placed a bet on the exchange via mobile.

Betfair mobile proposition and activation landing page. Source: betfair mobile site

http://www.betfair.com/onmobile/index.html

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The company has encouraged use of different mobile platforms through integrating campaigns including email, text and website personalisation. The landing page on the desktop site clearly explains the proposition and encourages mobile activation through SMS.

Using SOSTAC® to structure and manage your mobile marketingSOSTAC® is a strategic framework incorporating planning tools first laid out by PR Smith. SOSTAC® stands for Situation, Objectives and Strategy, Tactics, Action and Control. You will have seen it if you have read our 7 Steps Guide to developing a digital strategy.

We recommend you follow this, or a similar planning framework since if you don’t, you will be pulled in many different directions by the many different mobile marketing options. As the diagram on the next page shows, Control is a key part of SOSTAC® since it links to the objective setting where you create a budget model and you use it to check that your strategy and tactics are on track.

What is it? SOSTAC®SOSTAC® is a planning process framework to help structure and manage implementation of plans. It stands for Situation, Objectives and Strategy, Tactics, Action and Control originally developed by PR Smith for marketing communications planning. In Emarketing Excellence Dave Chaffey and Paul Smith have adapted the SOSTAC® framework to apply it to digital marketing as shown in the diagram on the next page.

Here are some specific approaches we recommend for creating your mobile strategy:

þ Situation – where are we now? Use analytics to assess current mobile usage and extrapolate trends in leads and sales. You also need to review competitor services.

þ Objectives – where do we want to be? You should create conversion-based models based on the market insight from situation analysis to create SMART commercial objectives for mobile prompted online and offline referred leads and sales.

þ Strategy – how do we get there? This isn’t tactics, this is your mobile brand strategy. Start by considering key mobile audience segments based on customer personas and use cases. You should then define how mobile services will enhance the brand in a way that supports its existing positioning. This is your mobile value proposition.

þ Tactics – how exactly do we get there? These are the core digital tactics which are part of the RACE framework which we introduced at the start of this ebook and use to describe specific tactics later in this guide. These include: Reach (using offline ads and touchpoints, search marketing and display marketing; Act (defining content, offers and calls to action to engage); Convert (creating efficient registration and checkout) and Engage (customer communications through app notifications, email and social networks).

þ Action – what is our plan to implement the tactics? Development and campaign plans. þ Control – did we get there? Mobile is arguably more measurable than other digital media,

so take advantage of it to test, learn and refine to get better results.

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PR Smith’s SOSTAC® planning system applied to digital marketing. SOSTAC ® is a regis-tered trade mark of PR Smith (www.PRSmith.org)

http://www.prsmith.org

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Combining SOSTAC® with RACE For each step of SOSTAC® you should consider the range of mobile interactions with customers as part of RACE. In this section we will suggest the main issues to consider for each as a checklist based on our combined SOSTAC® - RACE tool that we recommend for downloading.

Recommended resource? SOSTAC® – RACE review template The Smart Insights digital marketing toolkit contains a one page SOSTAC® Word template to create an initial or summary plan. It also contains more in-depth SOSTAC® – RACE templates to prepare a customised plan for your business or your clients.

A checklist for developing a digital mobile strategyOur coverage of mobile strategy won’t go into detail on the core concepts of revenue models, proposition development and targeting that you will know from our strategy guide. Instead, we will provide a checklist for you to quickly scan. This is based on our mobile marketing audit which you may want to check if you’re doing a detailed review for your company or a client.

Situation analysis r Q. Has the range of mobile marketing options been defined?

These are defined by our diagram in STEP 1. They should be reviewed across RACE.

r Q. Have we created a mobile-specific digital SWOT? This is available in our strategy toolkit as a template. We recommend the TOWs matrix.

r Q. Has customer use of mobile platforms been assessed using advanced segments? This should review the full mobile funnel broken down into microsteps as described in Step 1.

r Q. Has competitor use of mobile platforms been defined? This is a marketplace review assessing use of mobile platforms supported for mobile sites, apps, mobile media used for activation, mobile propositions and use of mobile coupons and mobile customer relationship management (CRM). It should include direct and indirect competitors and also out-of-sector mobile leaders to assess future trends.




http://www.smartinsights.com/guides/mobile-marketing-audit/

http://www.smartinsights.com/guides/mobile-marketing-audit/

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Objective settingApplying SOSTAC is an iterative process, so you will need to reviewed the Strategy section and model your objectives before the objectives can be finalised.

r Q. Has a business case for mobile been developed?

r Q. Do you have a roadmap of what you want to develop in the future?

r Q. Have objectives been set for the level of support for different mobile platforms and devices?

r Q. Have SMART objectives been set for each of the RACE customer interactions? Conversion or funnel-based models should be created so you can have a quantitative assessment of how many you can Reach by mobile, Encourage interaction, Convert and keep engaged through mobile CRM.

Best Practice Tip 4 Build models based on all steps of the conversion funnelReview how mobile site visitors and app users progress through the purchase funnel. What proportion of them are browsing categories, doing searches and adding to basket?

These micro-conversions in the e-retail sales funnel should be modelled and reported

StrategyReturning to the first question we raised in this book – making the business case for mobile – let’s consider whether mobile needs its own strategy, or whether mobile should be built into the broader business strategy.

When we consider the power of mobile in activating customer response to other marketing activity (Step 4) providing a conversion channel to sales (Steps 3 and 5) and long-term engagement (Step 6), you could argue that a stand-alone mobile strategy is unlikely to succeed. To be really effective mobile must be fully integrated into other business processes, and form part of business strategy.

There’s no question that mobile is already a board level agenda item for leading companies, which realise its strategic importance on their business success. Market leaders are aware that consumer behaviour has shifted throughout the purchase cycle thanks to mobile and tablet adoption. Just look at your web log files and track the proportion of visitors now accessing you via their mobiles.

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Consumers are leading the charge, and companies must match their demands.

Yet to realise its full potential, companies must build consensus for a top-down mobile agenda. It’s simply not enough to expect a mobile champion or mobile task force to introduce and execute the company’s mobile agenda without Board level support. Consider the number and range of senior stakeholders shown in the diagram who can feel highly threatened by the mobile revolution. These ‘digital migrants’, who match the 45–54 or 55+ demographic profile boxes, may see the disruptive threat direct mobile poses, but lack the knowledge base to take advantage of the opportunity to gain competitive advantage for themselves and for their companies.

Multiple stakeholders’ view of mobile: opportunity or threat? Source: Burner Mobile

Working with stakeholders in a large organisation to agree change process r Q. Agreed stakeholder management and change management process in a larger

organisation?

Getting agreement in a small organisation is relatively straightforward, but what about a larger company? Board or senior management support for the mobile team mitigates this risk.

Strategy recommendation 5 Obtain stakeholder buy-in for change management process required by mobile Working in concert, and following a single mobile agenda, carefully selected stakeholders can accelerate the productivity of the mobile champion or mobile taskforce. However, they all have the ability to sabotage mobile progress.

To fully embrace mobile, change management programs should be set in place also. The Gleicher Formula outlines the three necessary preconditions for change programmes to be successful in overcoming the resistance to change that is natural to humans and

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organisations. If any one of the three of D, V, or F are not present, then no change will happen.

Managing change: The Gleicher Formula. Source: David GleicherIn addition to a compelling vision, we would suggest that the mobile strategy should also outline an urgent case for change as well as clarity on the first steps needed once the Vision has been bought into – so as to secure maximum chances of buy-in and mobilisation around the vision.

Delivering the mobile strategy requires engagement across the business in order to achieve buy-in. We’ve all experienced managers who simply tell us what to do without bringing us into the decision-making process, or sell us their preferred solution. Some of us have enjoyed working for more enlightened managers who share the vision, consult us and give us the resources to device the solution. The fortunate few will have enjoyed working with managers who help co-create the solution.

This change management model applies to mobile adoption: the more we share the vision and involve others, the more likely they are to engage and buy into the mobile solution.

Managing stakeholders: Tell, Sell, Test, Consult and Co-create. Source: Peter Senge. The Fifth DisciplineYou can get a better idea of the types of activities that form each of these areas in the change management process.

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Techniques for managing change relevant to a mobile marketing implementationIn addition to these key issues of buy-in and change management, there are also more practical issues of mobile strategy to review that we will discuss later in this book. These include:

r Q. Act and Convert strategies. Have value propositions for mobile marketing been reviewed and defined? This will include content and promotions strategies to activate use of mobile channels as shown through the betfair example at the start of this step.

r Q. Has our mobile platform strategy been defined? This defines the level of support for different mobile platforms and devices on a roadmap of developments.

r Q. Has our Reach strategy been defined to maximise awareness of mobile and encourage mobile activation? This shows how you will use mobile-specific media, desktop digital media and traditional media to target audiences to raise awareness, engagement and transactions.

r Q. Has our engagement strategy defining customer and user communications been defined? Mobile CRM. Contact policy of the type and frequency of messaging.

r Q. Have the multichannel journeys encouraged by mobile marketing been reviewed? The ROPO experience must be prompted and tracked through mobile.

Tactics, Action and ControlThese activities for implementing the chosen mobile solutions can be further broken down by RACE. These are simply listed here briefly since they are covered in more depth in later sections of this book.

Reach r Q. Have we reviewed the effectiveness of our SEO on mobile platforms?

r Q. Are we using mobile-specific AdWords campaigns?

r Q. Are we using mobile advertising networks to drive traffic?

r Q. Have we created awareness of our mobile platforms through offline communications?

Act

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r Q. Has a decision about the need for a mobile-optimised site been taken?

r Q. Has a decision about mobile app propositions been taken?

r Q. Have actions for encouraging mobile usage in physical locations been taken?

r Q. Has action been taken on the creation of mobile-specific content assets?

r Q. Have we personalised our offers to individuals in mobile channels to encourage conversion?

Convert r Q. Can we track and segment conversion microsteps in mobile channels?

r Q. Is our mobile search and browse merchandising effective?

r Q. Has product selection through the shopping basket been optimised?

r Q. Has our mobile checkout or registration form process been optimised?

r Q. Have offline conversions referred by mobile channels been tracked and their use encouraged?

Engage r Q. Have customer communications been used to encourage use of mobile services?

r Q. Is our mobile CRM strategy defined and operational? This includes a contact policy defining the type and frequency of communications.

r Q. Do our emails work effectively on mobile devices?

r Q. Have our options for mobile couponing and use of mobile operator customer loyalty services been reviewed?

r Q. Have we reviewed the options for permission-based text messaging?

To summarise your mobile strategy we recommend you use the strategy summary table in our digital strategy toolkit applied to mobile. Here is an example for a transactional online mobile site (not including an app).

Objectives Substantiation (informed by situation analysis or insight, example)

Strategies to achieve goals

Key performance indi-cators (critical success factors)

1. Reach objectives.

Deliver 2 million

mobile site visitors in

year.

Extrapolation of current

growth in mobile segments

on current site plus +25%

increment from promotion in

other digital channels.

• Start investment in

Google AdWords for

mobile and mobile display

networks.

• Use device detection to

access mobile site.

• Promotion in store.

Click-through rates from

mobile-specific campaigns and

impression share delivered by

AdWords.

2. Act objectives.

• 4% add to basket

visit conversion

rate from mobile.

This conversion rate is around

two-thirds of desktop site

conversion. Consistent with

reporting industry examples.

• Develop mobile

site-specific search.

• Mobile site merchandising.

Mobile site search % and add

to basket rates.

Promo click-through rates.

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Objectives Substantiation (informed by situation analysis or insight, example)

Strategies to achieve goals

Key performance indi-cators (critical success factors)

3. Convert objectives.

• Mobile AOV = £35

• Mobile Visit to

sale conversion

= 2%

This conversion rate is around

two-thirds of desktop site

conversion. Consistent with

reporting industry examples.

Initial implementation of mobile

checkout. This will be optimised

in future years.

Microstep conversion within

checkout process.

Registration process for new

customers.

4. Engagement

objectives.

Customer satisfaction

ratings of mobile

experience at 80% of

online.

Reviews placed and

repeat customer

conversion at 80% of

offline rates.

It is expected with the new

mobile site that satisfaction

ratings and repeat purchase

percentages will be slightly

lower, but this is unknown.

We need to check emails are

still successful in generating

reviews.

Combination of strategies:

• Email and mobile

messaging specific to

mobile site purchasers.

• Mobile couponing.

% of reviews.

With regards to the objectives for conversion and engagement, it’s important you keep a close eye on the conversion rates and satisfaction for different stages in the funnel. This is shown by the Debenhams ratings on page 28.

Average order will likely also be lower for mobile channels and this should be considered in projections. Retailer M&S features discounts and offers more prominently through its mobile site and app since this is most effective given when and where the mobile channels are used.

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THREE Create compelling mobile experiences

r Q. To develop brand engagement and commercial benefits through mobile, should we invest in apps, mobile-optimised sites, or both?

This step looks at the challenges presented by each and practical tips to maximise user experience. We start this section by reviewing the options available for app development. We also look at the impact of HTML5 and the likely effect of Responsive Design in delivering superior UX for all mobile Internet users.

Best Practice Tip 5 Review your mobile experience satisfaction scores carefully Given the form factor of mobile devices, the usage situation and relative new technology it is tough to create mobile experiences which rival those of the desktop. So it’s important you keep a close eye on the conversion rates and satisfaction for different mobile platforms against desktop at different stages in the funnel.

This relative performance of the Debenhams mobile site shared by Sarah Bailie shows how satisfaction rating are significantly lower even for quite well-established mobile experiences.

Comparison of mobile and desktop experiences. Source: With thanks to Sarah Bailie, Mobile commerce manager at Debenhams

Making the case for designing mobile-optimised sitesThe mobile Internet is the vital heart around which the whole mobile ecosystem operates. Investment in mobile advertising and search make it easier for consumers to find you on the mobile Internet, but to encourage new mobile users to interact an effective mobile experience is critical. As 4G spectrum spreads from the advanced mobile markets in Asia to Europe and the USA, we argue that a mobile-optimised site is the critical starting point for all brands building their mobile presence.

What is it? The mobile InternetThe mobile Internet refers to browser-based access to the Internet from a featurephone, a smartphone or tablet computer, connected over a wireless network or via Wi-Fi.

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Morgan Stanley forecaster Mary Meeker rattled the cages of marketers, mobile bloggers and tweeters back in 2009 when she predicted that Internet browsing via mobile devices would exceed PC-based Internet browsing by 2014.12 Mobile Internet browsing is growing 150 per cent year-on-year, and mobile analysts predict mobile browsing will surpass PC browsing in 2013, yet the vast majority of marketers are yet to optimise their sites for mobile.

Why does this matter? Well, it depends how you want your brand to be perceived by your existing customers, whose browsing behaviour is being changed radically by smarter handsets and tablets and, critically, by the younger generation of tech-savvy consumers who have never known the world without a mobile phone by their sides 24/7 and have expectations about engaging with brands on their mobiles. A survey conducted by John Lewis shows one-third of those questioned would shift allegiance to another retailer if their incumbent retailer’s mobile site offers a poor user experience.

Let’s look at the evidence. According to Google estimates, only 20 per cent of brands have optimised their sites for mobile, which shows an uncanny correlation with their site analytics revealing average mobile site ‘bounce’ rates of 79 per cent. The message here is that if you simply serve up your full mobile site onto customers’ mobile phones, they will bounce off your site immediately, and seek a competitor’s site which has been made for mobile.

Strategy recommendation 6 Mobile-optimised sites are critical for brands wanting to retain customers and to prevent mobile-savvy competitors from eroding their market share A recent survey of shoppers using mobile retail sites shows 30 per cent would switch allegiance to a rival retailer which provides a better mobile user experience.

Optimising your site for mobile is no longer a ‘nice to have’. Failing to optimise your site has the same effect as closing your High Street shop for two shopping days each week – you’re closing your doors on potential customers.

When designing and building for the mobile Internet, user experience is everything. Let’s consider the two key reasons:

Reason 1. Consumer intentOur browsing intent on mobile is very different on mobile, compared with PC. A study by Microsoft suggests the Internet purchase funnel from initial search to task completion is one month on PC, and one hour on mobile. Whilst this will depend on the product and service in question (high involvement car purchase or mortgage selection versus ‘impulse’ clothing, confectionery or entertainment purchases), the point is that on mobile, we want to find, access and buy quickly and easily. With limited screen size, navigation on the mobile web must be quick, easy and intuitive.

Reason 2. Handset and screen size diversity In the UK alone, there are over 600 different types of handsets with five core operating systems in regular daily use. iPhone users will be well aware that they can’t view Flash files on their handsets, BlackBerry users probably won’t reach for their BlackBerry when wanting to browse the web, and those with legacy Nokias and the long, long tail of ‘feature phones’ will probably question what the fuss is all about as their browsing experience is limited by screen size and processing speeds. You need to cater for the handset in question, maximising the handset’s capabilities, and not simply design and build for the lowest common denominator.

12 Morgan Stanley: Mary Meeker forecast.

http://www.morganstanley.com/institutional/techresearch/mobile_internet_report122009.html

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So where do you start? In the next section we will take you through seven key issues to consider.

Mobile-optimised site development – key issues to considerThere’s much conjecture about the proportion of web traffic which is mobile. Many B2B brands we meet reckon the figure is less than five per cent. Retail and lifestyle brands are seeing much more significant mobile traffic on their sites: Subway is detecting 50 per cent of traffic to its site on mobiles between 12.00 and 1.00pm on weekdays. Facebook is seeing roughly half of all browsing sessions on its site conducted on mobiles. As we’ve said before, check your analytics and look for day-part and seasonal variations.

The ‘accepted’ average figure for mobile hits on sites stands at around 20 per cent. It’s worth noting that Google Analytics is likely to under-estimate the proportion of mobile traffic as their servers are not detecting all the Java Script calls by some mobile devices.

In this section we will consider six key issues to consider when working with your technical team or agency to review the options for creating mobile sites. In the section on design and build we will review different technical alternatives for creating the mobile site. We will give examples throughout, but highly recommend you take a look at this compilation of Mobile Design Patterns.13

1. Identify whether the browser is using a PC or mobile device r Q. Are mobile site redirects in place?

This is straightforward and no capable agency would create a mobile site without this. It’s as well to be aware how they work.

For an example of this, take a look at www.autoglass.co.uk which uses a wide range of mobile within their detection scripts. Ticketsnow.com gives another example we will return to in a moment. If you take a look at the mobile home pages of http://m.autoglass.co.uk or http://m.ticketsnow.com you will see a simple auto detection script in action.

Best Practice Tip 6 Detect mobile traffic and auto re-direct to a mobile URL The first task is to identify whether the browser hitting your site is using a PC or a mobile device. Adding a script on your site will detect the PC browsers – who should be served the ‘full fat’ version of the site – and the mobile browsers – who will be redirected to a mobile-optimised version of the site. There is no need at this stage to use a separate URL.

Craig Sullivan,14 Ebusiness manager of Belron explains that for Autoglass they use network-level packet sniffing to detect the user’s device and redirect to the relevant site. They also use cookies to remember these preferences for future visits, but with flexibility for the user to change to their preferred mode. Here is one example of a script to detect mobile browsers.15

2. Define supported handset and handset capabilities r Q. Have supported handsets been defined?

Closely related to the first issue, you will need to decide which set of handsets your mobile site will be compatible with.

13 Smashing Magazine: Mobile Design Patterns.14 Craig Sullivan freely shares his experience of mobile usability on Slideshare.15 Example browser detection script.

http://www.autoglass.co.uk

http://m.autoglass.co.uk

http://m.ticketsnow.com

http://uxdesign.smashingmagazine.com/2012/12/19/boost-your-mobile-e-commerce-sales-with-mobile-design-patterns/

www.slideshare.net/sullivac

http://detectmobilebrowsers.mobi/%23usage

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Best Practice Tip 7 Define target handsetsWith the wide range of mobile devices, mobile operating systems and browsers it won’t be possible to select all, so you will have to set the balance to improve experience on some devices against the number of users.

The most popular handset, the iPhone, has achieved a market share of 12 per cent, but that leaves 88 per cent of mobile users owning other handsets, with different screen sizes, user interfaces and operating systems. The 10 most prevalent handsets comprise less than 25 per cent of mobile users, which means there’s a long tail of legacy handsets.

So how do you deliver an engaging user experience for each and every handset? The key is to identify the handset from the first browsing session on your server, which can be done instantly by matching the handset’s profile against a live, constantly updated database of mobile handsets. Device Atlas is one of several open source databases which contain handset profiles.

Perhaps you only have a 95 per cent coverage of key devices and need to expand your coverage further? The Keynote Device Anywhere16 test center can help to review your coverage here:

DeviceAnywhere

3. Define how content will be repurposed for mobile r Q. Have we specified how content will be redefined for mobile handsets?

While you can present the same content to mobile users as desktop users, you will typically want to reduce the volume of content. It may be possible to do this in a dynamic way, but otherwise separate content for each device may need to be defined.

16 Device Anywhere test center.

http://tce.deviceanywhere.com/home

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You should be aiming to build and maintain one content management system (CMS), which populates both the PC and mobile version of the site. To deliver consistent content, whether a content catalogue, journey planner or rich media library, it makes sense to integrate the data held in the existing CMS back end with the PC Internet site and mobile site front ends.

Once you’ve identified the handset you will know which content you can deliver to that handset, and how to present the content. The most obvious example is video content, which should be delivered to iPhones in a format other than Flash, for example, using MP4 files. Space does not allow a detailed examination of the tools provided by mobile web build specialists. For example, Netbiscuits.com or Mfabrik.com.

Best Practice Tip 8 Repurpose content dynamicallyTo deliver a good user experience, play to the handset’s display capabilities and suppress content which won’t render properly.

4. Design and build r Q. Does the mobile design follow best practice?

This is probably the most demanding step, and the one which distinguishes the average, vanilla-looking, templated sites from the high-end sites with complete customisation, which offer a richer and more compelling browsing experience for users.

Content must be quick and easy to find, as mobile browsers have limited time, and immediate ‘intent’. Navigation is critical. Content should always be accessible within three clicks, and mobile sites should be built ‘on-tracks’, i.e. scrolling should be vertical only, not horizontal.

You need to carefully consider best practices for mobile usability which share much in common with desktop usability. Remember that usability is based on:

þ Time to complete a defined task. þ User satisfaction with completing a task.

For a home page this means simplicity is key. Let’s take a look at an example:

TicketsNow mobile home pageThis example is arguably too simple, but it shows how a simple home page was created by

http://www.netbiscuits.com

http://www.mfabrik.com

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Tickets Now who we introduced in Step 1. This enables browsing, search and support brand information – links to explain the marketplace and the guarantee.

Strategy recommendation 7 Ensure the mobile site EASILY supports top user tasksThe main user tasks that should be supported on mobile are similar to a desktop site, but there must be fewer: KISS! The main tasks on the home page for a retailer are typically:

þ 1. Browse. Decide on the key categories to display. M&S (see previous step) use a grid rather than simple ‘rails’ to enable more categories to be displayed.

þ 2. Search. Determine whether browse or search is most popular for your brand. For a ticketing site, search is usually most important, but browsing is more important in retail typically.

þ 3. Branding messages. These can explain the brand heritage, why it can be trusted, and if it’s an unusual service (like Autoglass below), how the service works.

þ 4. Merchandising. Promotions and recommendations about products. þ 5. Support. Usually below the fold, but customer service is always important.

Some may also consider social sharing essential, but this makes more sense in the context of content to share

Autoglass brand-related messages accessed via the About page

We will now review four common options for mobile site development:

þ Mobile site design option A. Simple mobile site (different content). þ Mobile site design option B. Screen-scrape (same content).

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þ Mobile site option C. Responsive Design (same content, different mobile styling). þ Mobile site option D. HTML5 site (same content, different mobile styling).

These are not mutually exclusive, so an HTML5 site would typically offer Responsive Design too.

Mobile site design option A. Simple mobile siteThe quickest method of creating a mobile site is perhaps to create a completely separate mobile site on a domain http://m.company.com which has a different design, build, hosting and content. This option may be appropriate for very small businesses who want a simple mobile site which they don’t update frequently, but we would advise this not a viable long-term option for most companies for these reasons:

ý Updates to content have to be duplicated across each site.

ý Different tools and resources often needed to manage each site.

ý Future updates to styling have to be duplicated too.

ý May not give a consistent brand experience for users.

Best Practice Tip 9 Use the http://m.<domain-name>.com standard for naming mobile sitesCompanies have adopted this informal standard, simply because the ‘m’ subdomain is shorter to type than ‘mobile’.

Mobile site design option B. Screen-scrape Although it’s not the option we recommend, it’s worth noting that a number of high profile brands have opted for a temporary ‘screen-scrape’ approach, which involves dropping existing web content into a basic mobile site template without opting for back end integration. The advantage of the screen-scrape approach is that it presents a quick route to market, and avoids contact potential conflict between PC web and mobile web developers.

Example ‘Screen-scraped sites’(Many are being updated to give a more personalised experi-ence at the time of writing)Think through the widespread disadvantages of screen scraping when compared with the fully integrated approach, which provides the better long-term solution.

ý The screen-scrape option incurs additional time and cost to manage the site, as changes to the back end CMS will need to be updated manually on the mobile site, rather than benefitting from automatic updates.

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ý A quick look at ‘screen-scrape’ sites reveals an alarming degree of standardisation across the sites, and lacks the differentiation brands demand across their PC websites. Take a look at the four retail sites below, cover the headers, and you’ll see they all follow an identical template.

Mobile site design option C. Responsive Design Today’s multiple-device using consumers need content in the right format in real time, which presents challenges as the form factor and operating system varies across most of their devices. Enter Responsive Design, which automates the overlay of contextually relevant content matching the profiles of mobile users – allowing you to access social media feeds, loyalty offers and other data feeds triggered by your preferences to maximise engagement and to optimise sales conversion.

First introduced as a concept in 2010, Responsive Design is the principle web developers deploy to design one website that adapts to any device using modern web development methods like CSS3 and image scaling.

Responsive Design can also automate the overlay of contextually relevant content matching the profiles of mobile users. For example, if you’re targeting heavy social media users, Responsive Design allows you to import, automatically, customers’ social media feeds to display product recommendations. If you’re after deal junkies, you can hook into their loyalty programmes and deliver time and location sensitive mobile coupon offers to optimise sales conversion.

The main proponents are web front end developers who can use Responsive Design to remove the need for separate sites and teams and they can claim to support all channels. Although there are thousands of examples of websites based on Responsive Design, only a limited number of big companies have adopted it.

Responsive Design is an increasingly popular approach to building mobile sites since it enables a single version of the site and content to be maintained which adapts for different resolutions. It’s value is best illustrated by an example. This simple example illustrates it well.

You can see that the full-screen desktop version has two main columns while the iPad and iPhone examples have a single column with the menus wrapping around (a limitation of this example).

Contrast this to what we often see when browsing using a smartphone: tiny text and difficult to select buttons and navigation which require us to zoom in to select the next page.

What is it? Responsive Design

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A design approach where the layout of the page adapts to the current screen resolution whether desktop, tablet or mobile screens based on a single version of the site content. This contrasts with a traditional approach where the design is developed for a fixed number of pixels for each type of device.

Technically speaking, Responsive Design uses cascading styles sheets, in particular an approach called media queries17 to specify how the page is laid out. If you want a more technical briefing on Responsive Design we recommend this briefing from Smashing Magazine.18

The alternative to Responsive Design is a fixed-width template specifically designed for a mobile site.

The reason that most major companies have not embraced Responsive Design is that although it’s technically straightforward, it complicates the layout of pages and information architecture. Designers have to plan for the most common denominator between different devices which will usually lead to a compromise. The ongoing trade-off remains the same: any website should be as responsive as possible without compromising the user experience for desktop, tablet and mobile screens, which brings us back to the main theme in the section: user experience based on intent and context.

If your customers are accessing your site on their smartphones whilst out shopping, their intent will be seeking store locations, product ranges, price comparison, offers. When browsing at home on their PCs, laptops and tablets, they will be seeking more detailed product information, ratings and reviews. We believe the primary goal of the site must be to deliver the content optimised for the context and intent of their browsing experience. This trumps ease of managing the design and build process.

Mobile site design option D. HTML5We argue that the real potential of the mobile Internet for retailers lies ahead. The major game changer for brands creating a mobile web presence is HTML5, the browser technology which comes pre-installed on every smartphone. Companies operating in the main sectors now using mobile – retail, packaged goods, travel, financial services, publishing – are turning to HTML5 ‘web apps’ in order to build once and target all mobile platforms at once. This is more cost-effective and less labour-intensive than building different native apps for iOS, Android, Windows Phone and BlackBerry.

HTML5 blurs the line between sites and apps, and challenges the prominence and cashflow of the appstore hosts. According to Bernstein Research, the widespread adoption of HTML5 for web apps could cut Apple’s operating profit growth by 30 per cent by 2015.

HTML5 browsers provide clear benefits for brands and users alike, including better provision of rich media, the ability to access and use data submitted in previous browsing sessions, and accessibility regardless of signal strength.

Mobile commentators watch the effects on the HTML5 on the industry closely, says Jeffrey Hammond, principal analyst at Forrester Research: ‘With more and more companies investing in HTML5 sites, we will see a reduction in porting costs to support other platforms like Android and Windows 8. This will erode, but not eliminate Apple’s first mover advantage.’

From the commercial perspective, HTML5 allows developers and publishers to circumnavigate the 30 per cent commission charged by Apple and Google on app download

17 World wide web consortium: media queries.18 Smashing Magazine: introduction to responsive design.

http://www.w3.org/TR/css3-mediaqueries/

http://coding.smashingmagazine.com/2011/01/12/guidelines-for-responsive-web-design/

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costs and a further 30 per cent on products and subscriptions sold ‘in-app’. Both costs can be eliminated with HTML5-based sites.

From the technical perspective, HTML5 apps have some problems that native apps do not. HTML5 apps are typically slower than native apps. The switch from native apps to HTML5 apps will not happen overnight, but its potential to transform mobile Internet browsing is immense.

HTML5 case study – FT.comFT.com proves that HTML5 web apps are now providing clear benefits over OS-specific apps.

The success of the FT.com web app shows that developing mobile platform-specific apps isn’t the only option; in future, the dependence on app stores for each mobile native OS may seem quaint. The figures on digital publishing by FT.com a year after the app was launched certainly show the importance of mobile:

þ Digital subscriptions to the title, which operate behind a metered paywall increased 31 per cent year-on-year to more than 300,000.

þ The number of registered users climbed 29 per cent to 4.8 million. þ Mobile devices account for 25 per cent of traffic to FT.com, while there are 2.7 million FT

web app users.

FT.com HTML5 mobile site, it’s not a native mobile appThe FT does a great job in explaining the benefits of non-OS apps. Under the heading, ‘a better, faster app’, the FT explains these benefits:

þ Web browser access – No app store download needed. þ Automatic enhancements – No need to visit an app store for the latest version. þ Reading offline – The latest edition is automatically stored for offline access (this is

possible with native OS apps). þ Speed – Improved performance on most connections.

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þ Greater range of content – Including video on iPhone – this get’s around the problem of Flash players.

þ Use your existing account – no additional registration required.Of course, the other big benefit for publishers, not mentioned here, is that they can take a bigger share of subscription revenues. The app was launched in June 2011 in response to Apple’s introduction of new rules governing subscription-based iOS apps – Apple is looking for a 30 per cent cut of subscription revenues for people signing up from its native app and keeping access to those subscribers.

Rob Grimshaw of FT.com told The Guardian that switching to HTML5 wasn’t just about a spat with Apple, but was an attempt to ensure the FT could scale quickly across different devices and platforms: ‘The origins of the web app come from thinking more broadly about our mobile strategy, and particularly how we are going to cope with developing for numerous different platforms,’ he said.’There are at least five [native mobile platforms] out there that you reasonably have to cover, and a web app is the obvious solution. We just accelerated it because of some of the things Apple did with their subscriptions.’

5. Consider personalisation options r Q. Have mobile personalisation options been considered?

Mobile sites featuring personalisation are still relatively unusual. This is surprising if you consider that one phone has one user. Ask a group of strangers to pass their phones round the room and you’ll detect a potent sense of anxiety. We don’t share our phones, with anyone. We don’t want others seeing the texts we send and receive, the photos we’ve taken, our social media pages, the sites we’ve browsed or the apps we’ve downloaded.

This means that we can develop highly personalised and customised sites. Back end integration, with application programming interfaces (APIs) exposing individual customer records, can be used to build bespoke sites which match the profile of each user. Look no further than Amazon to see how brands can use purchase history data and apply intelligence to develop sites with highly targeted product offers. To make your sites highly relevant to users, you can apply behavioural targeting, with time and location sensitive messaging.

A personalised mobile-optimised site has the benefit that specific features can be developed for mobile users. This is not the case with a basic Responsive Design approach. Back end integration enabling linkage to individual customer records, can be used to build bespoke sites which match the profile of each user. Amazon is well known for integrating purchase history data and apply intelligence to its desktop site with highly targeted product offers. Of course, it now also does this for its mobile site.

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Amazon home page personalised recommendationsTo make your site(s) highly relevant to users, you can apply behavioural targeting, with time and location sensitive messaging.

Best Practice Tip 10 Use personalisation to increase relevance of mobile sitesPersonalise your mobile site to serve content matching users’ customer profiles with product, and even time- and location-based updates.

This is the way the designs above could look if the designs were more personalised:

Wireframes of personalised site alternatives

6. Measurement and conversion rate optimisation r Q. Are measurement and CRO in place?

Mobile provides a time- and location-rich data trail – in realtime – for you to track interactions, and fine tune to maximise conversion.

Mobile web analytics allow us to track the origin of browsers, their handset profiles, and their browsing patterns, broken down to unique users, repeat users, page views, dwell time per page and per session. We can also review bounce rates, which average 80 per cent for mobile sites, weighted by the majority which remain non-optimised for mobile. As for desktop

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sites, we need to define our conversion points and KPIs for each conversion step as shown.

Conversion funnel steps and KPIs for each

Measuring interactions is important, but the real value comes in using that data to nudge users down the purchase funnel. To boost sales on mobile, we should examine drop-off between those putting goods in their virtual carts and those completing the transaction.

When building mobile commerce sites, keep the user experience as simple and as ‘frictionless’ as possible to reduce drop-offs. Having analysed drop-off statistics, you can target those who came close to making the purchase by re-targeting with SMS reminders, with mobile surveys, with timely banner ads and offers encouraging them to return to your site.

To boost offline sales conversion, share with your retail store, car dealer or equivalent the browsing profile of the potential and returning customer. Consider how much more likely it is that the car dealer will close the deal with the prospect if he knows in advance about the prospect’s browsing behaviour. Consider the improved prospects of a car dealer closing the deal when the prospect comes to the dealership for his test drive if the dealer has already received meta-data of previous web browsing sessions, which allows him to open the conversation on the performance, security or energy efficiency topics which matter most to the prospect.

Best Practice Tip 11 Plan ahead for mobile CROConversion rate optimisation is becoming more established for desktop sites and is needed for mobile sites too. Make sure the solution you choose for building your mobile site enables you to track and report on site effectiveness.

You may think you know what your customers will find most interesting and engaging on your site. Reviewing your web traffic will confirm or refute this. If you see significant page views for some sections of you site, you should be allocating resource and space to that section, if you’re seeing other sections being ignored, either demote the position of that section to ‘below the fold’, or omit it from the site altogether, and focus on the more popular sections.

Recommended resource? Improving your site with Google Analytics

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The Seven Step Guide to Google Analytics guides you through common questions to ask through analytics to improve a site. These also apply to a mobile site and should be compared with the main site. Key questions to ask include:

þ 1. Q. What are the main referring traffic sources? þ 2. Q. What are the main entry points? (Home page will be higher for a mobile site

typically.) þ 3. Q. What are the common customer journeys from the entry points? (The search v

browse behaviour will be different for mobile.) þ 4. Q. Which customer paths and content help generate the most value? þ 5. Q. What are the comparative conversion point drop-offs?

Specialist mobile analytics toolsGoogle Analytics will provide similar information about site performance for a mobile site as it will for a desktop site. Some mobile site owners look for more detailed insight from specialist suppliers. Examples of the some of the most popular specialist mobile analytics services include:

þ Flurry Analytics (www.flurry.com). This free service is used by over 75,000 companies to measure audience reach, engagement, retention, conversions and revenue for apps. Flurry tracks 37 billion app sessions each month (1.8 billion daily) based on over 20 million live app users worldwide.

þ Bango Analytics. One of the main features is unique visitor identification that can be used to understand repeat usage across devices and detailed information about access through devices and operators.

þ Velti mGAGE. A focus on campaign metrics reviewing multichannel metrics. þ Mixpanel. A real-time analytics service popular with publishers which provides mobile

analytics including apps through segments.

Qualitative assessments of the site experienceYou can only get so much insight from the hard numbers available in a web analytics system; getting feedback from customers will help explain why you may have problems with customer journeys highlighted by analytics. As we showed in the Debenhams example at the start of the Step, you should report on satisfaction ratings across your site.

Visitor intent surveys are particularly important for mobile since you can see the main reasons for a visit to a site. A visitor intent survey involves asking the user why they visited the site through an exit survey and whether it was effective for them. We think they’re essential since your web analytics will only tell you so much – what visitors DO, not what they FEEL. See this article for the full range of tools available.19

Five top tips for producing great mobile sites As a summary to this section, review the five following common challenges brands face when building a mobile web presence. Which do you have covered and which don’t you?

19 Smart Insights: Online qualitative feedback tools.

http://www.smartinsights.com/guides/google-analytics-7-steps-guide/

http://www.flurry.com

http://bit.ly/smartfeedback

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Challenge Issue Solution One site or two?

Should you transcode (‘screen-scrape’)

your main website into a standard mobile

template to create a separate site or

optimise your site for mobile?

Create one site, hosted on one URL, fed by one

CMS rather than building a separate site, which

requires duplicated content updates.

Right content Agree on a clearly defined content plan

(news and info, entertainment, mobile

commerce).

Offer content which mobile users want to access

on their handsets: maps, info, shopping, social

networking and coupons are most popular mobile

Internet activities.

UX Smaller screen size and lack of keyboard

make easy, simple navigation critical.

Use simple navigation; vertical not horizontal

navigation. Icons are easier to access than text

links, and appear more ‘app-like’.

Personalisation Personalised content maximises page views,

extends dwell time, attracts repeat visits.

Build in behavioural-, location- and time-based

components. See Responsive Design section

below.

Promotion Mobile users want to find you quickly and

easily on the mobile Internet.

Use all media channels to drive traffic; use

trackable links to detect which evaluate channel

efficiency

The case for designing mobile appsThe logic for investing in mobile apps is compelling, but there are significant costs. With the advances in the browser-based mobile Internet option, there are now serious questions about the ongoing role of native apps. The benefits include:

þ Personalisation. When I download an app, it becomes ‘mine’, creating an easy, convenient, instant one-to-one shortcut to the chosen brand.

þ Payment channel. iTunes or alternatives give a convenient, secure and trusted channel for mobile users to pay for music, games and other entertainment using app downloads and in-app purchases.

þ Preference. The majority of mobile time by users is spent using apps rather than mobile: time spent with apps measures 90 minutes per day against 75 minutes for sites.

Strategy recommendation 8 Don’t feel obliged to build an app because everyone else isIf you’re a large brand an app will be worthwhile since you will get the returns from a faster experience and clearer navigation. However, remember that 85 per cent of apps are opened only once. Be clear about the consumer and business benefit upfront.

With the advances in the browser-based mobile Internet option, there are now serious questions about the ongoing role of native apps.

Let’s rewind the clock to 2007 when Apple made its debut in mobile with the iPhone launch, and imagine how different the mobile landscape looked. Clunky handsets, costly data and poor browsing technology rendered the mobile Internet a non-viable option for brands seeking to build a robust mobile presence. This created a vacuum for apps to gain traction and multiply, rapidly.

Apps have enjoyed a meteoric rise to prominence in their short lifetime, having first appeared on the screens of early adopting iPhone users back in July 2008. By March 2012, Apple reported 25 billion app downloads, with app downloads tracking at 1 billion per month, a number matched by its major app store competitor, Google Play. Apps have made a healthy contribution to Apple’s revenues, generating an estimated $6 billion, which includes the 30

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per cent Apple takes in its share of app download spend, charges from in-App payments and revenue from iAd, its in-app advertising business.

What is it? Mobile appsDesigned to run on smartphones and tablet computers, apps provide users with rich mobile content by deploying the handset’s multiple native capabilities. Apps are available for download from app stores hosted by the mobile operating systems (e.g. iTunes for iOS, Google Play for Android, Microsoft App Store, BlackBerry App World).

Specific benefits of appsFor the marketer, the logic for investing in apps is compelling.

þ 1. Personalisation. Mobile is the ultimate personalised marketing channel: we don’t share our handsets, and most of us never part company with our phones. When I download an app, it becomes ‘mine’, creating an easy, convenient, instant one-to-one shortcut to the chosen brand through a bookmarked icon on my handset or tablet which can be accessed 24/7, in all locations, with or without Wi-Fi access or cellular signal.

þ 2. Payment channel. Through iTunes, Apple established a convenient, secure and trusted channel for music lovers to download and pay for music. iTunes users set up their accounts online, add credit card details just once, and agreed terms and conditions authorising Apple to charge them via their mobile bills for multiple purchases, typically at low transactions costs (79p–£3.00). iTunes then added books, other goodies and apps, to be paid for using the same payment channel. This payment model has since been replicated by Android and Microsoft.

þ 3. Adoption levels and preferences. The statistics seem to show that users prefer apps when given the choice. Data from Flurry shows that the majority of mobile time by users is spent using apps rather than mobile: 83 per cent of mobile user time involves apps, and daily time spent with apps v sites stands at 90 mins v 75 mins, closing in on time spent with TV.

As you hear so often, ‘there’s an app for that’. There’s a staggering range of apps, ranging from the single purpose Flashlight, which helps you decipher that bill in the dark corner of the restaurant to the weather app which tells you in an instant whether the weather will be kind on your next holiday or business trip. Add to these the special interest apps like ‘Brushes’, which allowed David Hockney to display his genius through iPad- and iPhone-generated drawings for his acclaimed Fresh Flowers exhibition, and the ubiquitous Facebook app, which provides all the features you need to keep up with friends and post updates, photos and videos.

Apps are a truly global phenomenon, with mass consumer appeal, and have made a healthy contribution to Apple’s revenues, generating an estimated $6 billion, comprising the 30 per cent Apple takes in the cost of app downloads, charges from in-app payments, and revenue from iAd, its in-App advertising business.

Best Practice Tip 12 Don’t under-estimate the importance of Google Pla The number of apps available in Google Play, caught up with those in Apple’s iTunes in Q3 2012 (680,000 each), and as we’ll see later, Android, offers some distinct advantages over Apple for brands seeking a quick route to market on apps.

It’s true that Nokia developed its app store before Apple took its first game changing moves in mobile. It’s also true that Microsoft offers mobile customers an app store with some 25,000 featured apps. And it’s true that BlackBerry users can access apps through the BlackBerry

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World app store. But the real challenger to Apple comes from Google. Its Google Play app store has established real scale, is growing faster than Apple’s iTunes, and poses the real threat to Apple’s dominance. So, you can see that the app world is no longer an enduring love affair between Apple and its adoring iPhone and iPad users.

Google Play matching iTunes for number of apps hosted. Source: XylogicPart of the reason for the rapid ascent of Android is the lack of vetting by Google of Android apps. There is no approval process so anyone can (and does) push apps live. But it’s worth noting that Android’s momentum has actually slowed in recent months (particularly in the US) in favour of Apple.

iOS users tend to have a better demographic for most brands than Android users. It may be an oversimplification, but Android demographics reflect a very strange double-ended demographic comprising: 1) highly knowledgeable/sophisticated techies (small in number) who object to Apple’s ‘control’ over their handsets; and 2) people who can’t afford an iPhone (much bigger number).

Key issues in mobile app developmentSo, what are the key issues to consider when developing an app for marketing purposes? Here are seven tips to keep you on the right path.

1. Be honest about whether you need an appPush back on the boss who demands a ‘me too’ app regardless of function or target audience.

Best Practice Tip 13 Think carefully about the need for your appStart by questioning the goal of the app, and the boss who feels he or she really must have one, without being able to explain why. For most organisations, this will be to increase awareness and sales, or for publishers revenue from advertising or subscriptions. The incremental benefits should be significant to justify creating an app.

For many companies, this won’t be a priority because they will have to put budget into higher priority areas such as improving the experience on site or in their social network presence.

Owing to the volume of users reached through these other platforms small improvements and optimisations here are likely to give better returns. So, your start point should be optimising your website for mobile before considering an app. And if you are building an app, ensure you

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have a compelling app idea which fits your brand proposition. If you‘re not convinced, your app is unlikely to deliver remarkable results.

Strategy recommendation 9 Be clear which strategic challenge your app addressesCustomer acquisition, customer loyalty, transaction or all three? It’s highly unlikely prospective customers will download your app speculatively, unless it has been recommended and promises an excellent service, news or entertainment. For customer acquisition, focus your efforts on your mobile site, and extend the experience to apps to build long-term loyalty. Mobile commerce can and should be explored on both the site and the app, but be aware that the app stores will be monetising transaction costs.

With apps, as with other areas of mobile, it’s vital to ask the important questions before jumping on the latest band wagon to placate the enthusiastic CEO or marketing director who feels a presence in the app stores is essential. That said, if you have a large consumer audience providing customer choice and visibility on a handset through an app which offers similar functionality to the mobile site may be sufficient argument. Witness many retailers who have developed apps.

For example, we looked before at Autoglass whose primary mobile platform is a mobile-opti-mised site, yet they have also created a simple app with similar functionality.

Autoglass iPhone App

2. Assess the consumer benefit r Q. Has the consumer benefit relative to the mobile-optimised site been reviewed?

Ask yourself the toughest question of all: would YOU bother to download and use your app, and would you recommend it to your friends?

Best Practice Tip 14 Make sure there’s a compelling consumer benefit and communicate it clearlyTo be deemed a success, apps need to achieve high download numbers, and high frequency of use.

The essence of apps is that they should make our lives easier or more fun than alternatives. If

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you’re struggling to tick one or more of the following boxes, your app is unlikely to hit the mark with download volumes or frequency of use.

Checklist – scoring your consumer benefits r Deliverable. Consumer benefit relative to other platforms. Score: ________?

r Utility. E.g. access bank details, get insurance quote. Score: ________?

r Entertainment. E.g. games, music or film downloads. Score: _______?

r Information. E.g. football scores, weather updates. Score: ________?

Smart Insights Expert commentator Imran Farooq shared his experience on developing an app for marketers in this post.20 He says you should ask these questions when brainstorming this with your team.

þ Does your app idea solve a unique problem? þ Does your app serve a specific niche? þ What value will your app bring to your audience? þ Will it make people laugh? þ Are you building a better app than one that exists already in the app store? þ Will it be highly interactive? þ How will your app present information to your audience?

Kim Watson, Managing Director at publisher group MIlliivres Prowler Group, also writing on Smart Insights21 remind us to keep focus:

‘Strive to launch an app that does one thing really well instead of a few things moderately well. Keep it fast to deliver and easy to use to be effective.’

This retail app shows how additional functionality can be highlighted through an app. In addition to standard browse, search and buy, a barcode scanner, gift and store finder are highlighted.

This is how the proposition is explained in the App Store:

þ Download the free Debenhams iPhone app to shop the full Debenhams range on your phone, wherever you are 24/7.

þ Buy items from the Debenhams app for delivery to your door or for collection in store.* þ Use the barcode scanner like a virtual assistant in store to see further product details and

reviews, to buy items from the phone or to save items to your wish list or gift lists. þ Personalise the app to your needs with ‘My Debenhams’ by selecting the categories and

sizes you want to shop. þ View product pages with full product details, multiple image views and zoom images, and

product reviews and ratings. þ Add favourite items to your wish list and be notified when stock runs low. þ Share products with friends on Facebook or by email. þ Watch the latest videos from Debenhams TV and shop the products in each video. þ Find your nearest store with the store finder and check store guides for details of ranges

and opening times. þ Receive alerts on the latest trends and products from Debenhams, and exclusive special

offers.

20 Smart Insights: Developing and Launching an App.21 Smart Insights: 10 tips for developing successful iPhone/iPad Apps.

http://www.smartinsights.com/mobile-marketing/app-marketing/how-to-develop-and-launch-your-own-iphoneipad-app/

http://www.smartinsights.com/mobile-marketing/app-marketing/how-to-develop-and-launch-iphone-and-ipad-apps/

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This mobile app brings you the best of Debenhams fashion, beauty, gifts, toys, home accessories and furniture straight to your phone.

*Debenhams currently delivers to the UK, France, Germany, Spain, Sweden, United States, Australia and New Zealand. Collect from store is free and is available to ALL stores in the UK.

Debenhams iPhone appFor new brands, if you get in at the right time, with the right proposition, the rewards can be sensational. Take Angry Birds, Rovio’s legendary app, which has hit 1 billion downloads, engaging the world’s smartphone users with the cumulative play time of 25 years’ gaming EVERY DAY and generates monthly in app ad revenues of $1 million. It’s interesting to speculate on the value a brand could have gained through sponsoring or developing this app.

We won’t cite examples of apps which fail on every count, and deliver predictably dismal downloads – the reviews section of the app stores reveal the winners from the ‘also rans’.

3. Review app revenue model r Q. What is the revenue model for the app?

The choice are essentially free, free but with online purchases, paid, ad funded or sponsored.

For most brands, the goal of making money from an app is not a realistic goal. According to Flurry, 95 per cent of app users have no intention of paying for app downloads of interactions. The reason to build an app is probably only to make doing business with the brand easier – e.g. the Ocado iPhone app is easier to use than their mobile website, so conversion can be higher. An app can also be more visible on the user’s handset (although mobile sites can have equivalent bookmarks/icons).

Maybe you’re not working for a brand through, or you are exploring new revenue models. If this is you, and you’re looking at ways to monetise your app development cost, you have three options:

1. Download fee Charge customers to download the app, and set a pricepoint you believe they will bear based

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on competing apps. Remember, charging for apps creates an immediate barrier where you’re up against competing free apps. Remember that the app store keeps a healthy portion of the download cost (e.g. Apple and Android take 30 per cent, Microsoft takes 20 per cent). On the flip side, paid-for apps tend to stay on the handset longer than free ones, which are the first to be deleted when smartphone users purge their apps.

On a personal note, I have over 80 apps on my phone. Other than the two folders of kids’ games for which I have paid the princely sum of £0.99 each to keep my daughters entertained, I have paid for only one app for personal use. It’s the Guardian’s highly acclaimed news app, which provides 30 sections of news and video, can be accessed on smartphone and iPad. I make the exception thanks to the app’s exceptional content, photography and ease of navigation.

Case study – The Guardian appsInitially, the Guardian offered free apps only. It continues to offer these for iOS and Android, with the intention to encourage upgrade. Here is an example of the Google Play offering.

Guardian Free Android app to encourage adoption of the paid appThere was some conjecture among Guardian Media Group’s management about charging for the app.

Says Tim Brooks, former MD: ‘Nobody had charged for a news app before. Some of the team felt we should be free on principle; others felt there was no logic in charging for content which was, and remains, freely accessible on the Guardian’s mobile-enabled website. However in the end the view which prevailed was that the marriage of the app’s functionality (for instance, the ability to download sections to read offline; or to reprioritise the order in which sections appear) with the “free” content, created new value for which people would pay. And we all agreed that if we were going to charge, we must do so at the outset – it’s no good educating your early adopters to think something is free, then turning round and asking them to pay for it. You will disappoint them and lose them. Hundreds of thousands of readers, happily, did pay.’

Brands offering entertainment will likely also go the free route to increase customer engagement.

Most brands which have paid apps and subsequently make them free have increased

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downloads by a factor of about 20.

2. In app advertising At a high level, it’s clear that apps provide an excellent environment for advertisers to reach a captive audience who are already in the mindset to engage in rich mobile media.

Apps allow for targeting by behaviour segment, handset type, location and day-part. It’s evident that those browsing apps for wedding publications are in the market for wedding-related products and services. However, you’ve got to be providing a worthwhile incentive to distract app users from the primary purpose of their app time. For more detail on mobile advertising options, see Step 4.

An interesting example is the in-app advertising campaign by Perrier in France, which took the curious on a quick sejourn around the playground mansion of brand ambassador Dita von Teese.

Those interested in a more engaging brand experience can click on the ad to download the app, assuming they satisfy the age verification criteria, and input contact details of like-minded friends to share those moments with Dita themselves, thereby adding viral firepower to the promotion. The campaign was rewarded with click-through results 40 times better than any other digital advertising by the brand.

3. Sponsored As the app developer, you may want to underwrite development costs by finding a sponsor partner with the right brand fit. Brands considering their own app should be asking whether they need to build your own when you can sponsor an existing app.

The partnership between P&G’s Charmin toilet paper brand in the US and the existing app helping those in need to find their nearest public toilet, is a good example.

Sit or Squat Bathroom finder in 10 different countries – 100,000 bathrooms worldwideCharmin sponsor the app to build brand awareness, it’s lower cost and risk than building an app. Dewayne Guy, External Relations Manager explains:

‘Sit or Squat is the perfect partner for us … we’re not going to reinvent the wheel by creating this application. We found somebody out there whose mission matches ours. It creates the perfect partnership.’

Another good example of sponsorship fit is the Canon Sponsorship of the excellent Guardian

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Eyewitness photography app.

4. Define platforms to target r Q. Different types of mobile app platforms defined?

This is the important one when you consider budget allocation and project management. Unlike mobile site build, where you can build once and automate the way your assets are re-purposed for multiple handsets, developers need to re-code the App multiple times for each of the platforms’ different Software Development Kits (SDKs) – iOS for Apple, Android, Microsoft, BlackBerry, Java.

Best Practice Tip 15 Review the cost of each additional platform carefullyiOS, Android, Microsoft, BlackBerry, Java or all of the above? Remember that within each platform specific support may need to be developed, for example for different tablet versions.

As a rule of thumb, you should examine mobile traffic to your mobile site to confirm the handsets being used, and prioritise the corresponding SDK in your app build plan.

The build phase is time and budget consuming, and requires employing (or out-sourcing to) specialist developers with expertise in coding for iOS, Android etc. Consider here that developers are needed at the design and build phase, but also for maintaining the app, to fix bugs, to respond to comments and reviews, and to make necessary changes for future iterations of the app (see tip 7 below).

You must also factor in the time required by the app stores to approve your app, and new versions of the app. Android turns around approval requests fast, often within a few days, but Apple may take up to 10 weeks, so build this into your project plan.

5. Using the native features of the handset r Q. Are we using native handset features if relevant?

Native apps bring a range of consumer benefits and revenue streams for B2C and B2B business. As a rule, the apps which enable users to access other native functions on the handset to create a highly personalised experience are most likely to encourage repeat usage. Consider the cameraphone, photo-library, contact book, calendar, social media profiles, GPS, accelerometer, calculator and browser. API plug ins, including Google Maps, weather updates and Facebook Connect are all popular, allowing the app to aggregate and compile highly personalised data, fed in realtime. The app then provides a concierge service.

Best Practice Tip 16 Harness the handset’s native functionality The more handset features you use, the more justification you have for investing in apps.

Advances in browser technology mean that you can achieve many of the user experiences through carefully crafted mobile sites which were previously the preserve of apps (e.g. rich media delivery, pre-populating data capture fields with cached data, access to ‘web apps’ whilst offline, delivered through HTML5 browsers).

Let’s look at the benefits and features of three example apps, which will appeal to mobile users in different life stages.

Life stage 1 – out there, finding a mateBrand – Shazam

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Consumer benefit(s): the audio-tagging app which has achieved over 200 million downloads provides twin consumer benefits.

1. Its accurate, user-friendly audio recognition software allows music lovers to identify and buy the music they’re discovering at festivals and in clubs, tagging their favourites and sharing via social media. It took Shazam 10 years to log its first billion tags, and 10 months to log its last billion tags.

2. Extending the service to recognise TV and radio ad jingles drives users directly to corresponding sites and apps. Fifty per cent of ads broadcast during the 2012 Super Bowl carried Shazam tags. Viewers Shazam’d ads as much as they commented about the brands on all social media channels combined. But Shazam’s real success lies far beyond the tag numbers: on average all Shazam TV campaigns have seen 65 per cent or more ‘post tagging’ engagement. And critically, Shazam interactions convert to sale: an Old Navy campaign resulted in a 27 per cent conversion to sale.

Handset functions: Microphone, memory, in-app purchase, social media feeds

Life stage 2 – settling down, building the nestBrand – Benjamin Moore paints

Consumer benefit: helps house movers to select the paint colours which will match their furnishings, calculate how much paint they need to purchase, locate their nearest store, phone to check availability, check opening times and directions, share feedback with their network via Twitter and Facebook.

Handset functions: Cameraphone, GPS via Google Maps API, cellphone for calls, Facebook Connect. Benjamin Moore has also created a B2B app allowing interior designers to create projects for their clients using the contact book for each client.

Life stage 3 – getting serious, filling the nestApp – Code Red

Consumer benefit: this ‘survival guide to her monthly cycle’ helps him track her cycle, anticipate mood swings, provides tips about dealing with unexpected emotional reactions, and navigate her ovulation calendar to try for/not try for a baby that month. The app descriptor makes it clear the app should not be used for birth control, but is a calendar based on averages.

Handset functions: calculator using data input for cycle length, period length, ovulation date, calendar, alerts, live feeds to relationship advice sites.

The more functions of the handset your app utilises, the greater justification you have to develop the app rather than reach your objective via a mobile site.

6. Maximise app visibility and usage r Q. Has the app’s effectiveness and usage been reviewed?

Best Practice Tip 17 Make sure you achieve stand-out and repeat use Don’t get lost in the noise of the crowded app stores.

Achieving stand-out in today’s crowded app stores is one of the biggest challenges for marketers investing in apps. With 1 million apps to choose from, discovery and advocacy are key factors determining the success. Discovery of apps is difficult on any platform, but particularly on Google Play.

Research from Nielsen shows that the most popular methods of app discovery are:

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1. Searching the app store Apple and Android are getting to grips with making app store navigation easier, ranking search returns by popularity (based on download volumes) and quality (based on review ratings). It’s worth also exploring techniques for enhancing the likelihood of your app being found, including the KatAPPult service offered by specialist app advertising company madvertise.

2. Word of mouth and social media Most of the new apps I’ve downloaded in the last 12 months have been recommended by friends on my Twitter and Facebook feeds and bloggers whose views I respect. Recent additions include Viber, which allows free peer to peer calls and text, particularly appealing when I’m abroad; Evernote, which allows me to write this book and sync the latest version in the cloud whether I’m making updates on my laptop, iPad or iPhone, depending on my location; and Instagram, for sharing great photos with our social networks.

3. Mention on device or network carrier page and app store marketingThere are clear advantages to getting close to mobile manufacturers, carriers and the app stores. Each party relies on the very best apps to raise awareness of their consumer offer. Having spent many a long hour working on the Waitrose Christmas Planner app, which was voted simultaneously by Apple and Android as app of the week, I can vouch for the instantaneous translation of app fame among app top store users to download volumes.

4. Offline and email promotion Offline mentions in TV and print work serve to signpost traffic to the app stores to download your app. It’s worth using the handset detection trick earlier in this section to identify the handset then drive traffic automatically to the app in the correct app store to make it quick and easy for mobile users to locate the app. The customer journey for the respondent is:

A. Sees SMS/QR code call to action on press ad.

B. Sends keyword to shortcode.

C. Receives bounce-back SMS with clickable link.

D. Clicks link and is directed to landing page where handset is detected.

E. Receives follow up bounce-back SMS with clickable link to correct App in matching app store.

And let’s not miss the obvious: your mobile site is a vital place to promote the impending arrival of your app: likewise we show in the search advertising section that AdWords searches for your brand are also effective given the high volumes.

Best Practice Tip 18 Advertise or use SEO to make your app prominent in the search listings Since brand searches are high volume, they’re a great opportunity for raising awareness of you app to mobile searchers.

6. Set out roadmap and budget for continuous app development r Q. Have the budget and plan for app updates been defined?

The first version of the app should not be the last version. Keep a close eye on reviews in the app stores, which are a key factor in determining visibility in the app stores. Be prepared for honest, and often highly critical reviews from other app users and developers, and respond fast to fix bugs and add enhancements through an ongoing development cycle with frequent updates.

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Readers who use apps will be familiar with the push notifications asking them whether they want to download the latest version of the apps on their smartphones and tablets. Offer additional functionality to stay front of mind, and avoid the delete button when the time comes for app purging.

7. Put in place analysis and improvement techniques r Q. Have the mobile app analytics been reviewed?

A whole new area of app analytics and new solutions will no doubt develop but a challenge with apps similar to that of Flash apps before them is that measurement functionality needs to be specified in advance. Careful review of hurdle rates for percentage user base who are using the app or its different function is going to be a KPI here.

App traffic can be tracked in granular detail, by download volumes, frequency of use, duration of sessions and usage by territory.

Remember that download does not mean usage: an estimated 85 per cent of apps are only used once.

This means you will need to set KPIs based on user journeys beyond the click, encompassing page views, tracking the path to in-app check-out and drop-off rates throughout the journey.

Market leader Flurry now tracks 37 billion app sessions each month (1.8 billion daily) based on over 20 million live app users worldwide. This analysis allows you to view active users, session length, frequency, rolling retention, user paths into multiple layers of engagement. You can then cross reference the data against age, gender, consumer clusters and benchmark your App’s performance against category norms. The intelligence derived helps brands optimise their budgets in delivered content which users find genuinely engaging. Be clear about KPIs in advance, and allow time for awareness to translate into downloads, repeat usage and sales.

Specialist mobile analytics toolsOptions are becoming available from the traditional analytics suppliers. For example, Google’s Mobile App Analytics captures mobile app-specific usage data and integrates it with your Google Analytics account.

Using this approach you can measure:

þ the number of installations þ devices and networks used to access apps þ the geographic location and languages spoken by visitors þ in-app purchase totals þ customised tracking of special content, like video þ the number of screens seen per visit, and the order in which visitors move through these

screens.

The future for apps?There’s plenty of conjecture about the long-term future of apps.

Many believe that the capability of handsets and mobile browsers will develop such that apps are only here for the short term. Ex eBay designer and mobile evangelist Luke Wrobelowski comments :

‘Are we really going to have one app for every Website? Apps put a lot of pressure on the user, they need to figure out which one they want, install it, and then actually use it (long term use is rare). Once you realize a lot of problems are about information access – the app model doesn’t hold up very well.’

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We think it likely brands will continue to develop apps which engender greater customer loyalty and harness a broad range of the handsets’ native functions.

B2C appsIt’s interesting to see the growth of ‘aggregator’ apps which allow users to access their preferred brands with single umbrella apps.

For Mobile Commerce, consider SHOPARAZZI, which allows shoppers to get the hottest deals at London’s best independent boutiques. SHOPARAZZI’s editors have visited hundreds of boutiques and negotiated deals for the app’s users, delivering up to 50 per cent savings on designer brands.

An equivalent umbrella app for mobile CRM is Apple’s Passbook, an app which allows you to carry multiple private passwords for banking, travel and retail accounts in a secure and convenient way within one app accessible at all times within three clicks.

B2B appsDoes consumer love of apps herald an explosion in B2B apps? Yes and no. Yes, because smartphone and tablet users in consumer mode have become used to the ease and convenience of access apps whether on or offline, which negates the greatest failing of the mobile Internet when we have no Wi-Fi access or when signal strength fails. No, because CTOs (Chief Technical Officers) will insist that their databases remain off limits to third-party app stores.

The B2B app solution comes in the shape of the Mobile Enterprise Application Platform (MEAP), which offers ‘plug and play’ flexibility for organisations to integrate via API front-end mobile services with back-end databases spanning lead generation records, product information and pricing materials, in and out bound call centres, booking and registration processes and CRM databases. In each case, the mobile front should be compatible with data infrastructure and robust security, and can be configured for multiple languages, currency transactions, and default roaming profiles for preferred network partners for users with no Wi-Fi access.

Consider SAP. To meet the fast changing demands of clients, the Board, sales and operations teams, SAP launched its mobile enterprise solution by equipping its mobile workforce with 14,000 iPads and 8,000 iPhones. The objective was to provide customers with and end-to-end customer service delivered via mobile devices.

The result, according to SAP’s Chief Information Officer Oliver Bussmann, was enhanced business intelligence, faster approvals for transactions, greater staff efficiency and agility, and a more empowered, productive, innovative and loyal workforce. SAP now plans to roll out the mobile trial across the business.

To conclude this section, here are two predictions for the future of apps.

Prediction 1 – Low cost, self-serve appsA new breed of high end self-serve app tools is launching which allows brands and organisations with limited technical capabilities to build their own apps for multiple platform hosting and download (iOS, Android, Microsoft). One example is Appsplash (www.appsplash.co.uk) which allows easy content imports, geo-location based offers and coupons to attract new customers and stimulate repeat visits through targeted in-app push notifications.

Prediction 2 – Apple and Android challenged One of the key trends this year will be the arrival of newcomers who are likely to challenge the dominance of Apple and Android, according to Forrester’s 2012 Mobile Trends for CPS Professionals, report. The main players, Amazon and Facebook, will leverage their strengths in using social recommendations and personalisation to create new tools, which could facilitate

http://www.appsplash.co.uk

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app discovery and pose a challenge to the established app stores.

Amazon’s challenge is based on cloud-based capabilities and the ability to personalise content; Facebook brings massive mobile audience and experience in working with web developers to distribute content virally.

To gain sufficient download volumes for a return on investment, apps must deliver a clearly defined consumer benefit.

þ Utility. Access to social networks, bank details, identify music. þ Entertainment. Games, music or film downloads. þ Information. News, sport, travel, weather updates, currency exchange.

To maximise usage, it’s a good idea to harness the handset’s native functions, like the camera phone, photo-library, contact book, calendar, social media profiles, GPS, accelerometer, and browser. Look at options from transferring services from other systems by Application Programme Interfaces (APIs), including Google Maps, weather updates and Facebook Connect allow the app to aggregate highly personalised data, in real time. You also need to factor in how you will keep your app updated and relevant. Poor reviews from lack of updates can kill apps.

Five top recommendations for producing great appsAs a summary to this section on apps, we see these as the most common challenges brands face when launching apps.

Challenge of app marketing

Details of issue Solution

Audience reach 50% of mobile users are yet to adopt smartphones,

so audience reach is capped.

Research handset ownership and for your

target audience.

Discovery With +/- 1 million apps available, creating stand-out

in the app stores is critical. Apple and Android

prioritise apps based on popularity (downloads) and

quality (ratings and reviews).

Use traditional channels (all media

channels, word of mouth, PR) digital

channels (online ads, email, social media)

and mobile channels (sites, ads, mobile,

app store marketing) to drive awareness.

Cost Developers need to re-code apps multiple times

for platforms’ different Software Development Kits

(SDKs) – iOS, Android, BlackBerry, Java.

Examine mobile traffic on your site to

confirm the handsets being used, and

prioritise the SDKs in your app build plan.

Revenue Gaming, media, entertainment, retail and travel

apps are generating significant revenues. The

majority of apps don’t. Apple and Android take

30%, Microsoft takes 20% on download and in-app

revenues.

Evaluate all revenue channels: download

costs, in-app payments, advertising,

sponsored apps, and bear in mind 95% of

all app users won’t pay for any app activity.

Project management

This one is fundamental, as weak project

management results in a rushed and stressful app

build, resulting in sloppy testing (50% of apps are

launched with bugs), leading to negative reviews,

hence poor visibility in the app stores.

Build sufficient time to define suitable app

features, hire experts iOS/Android coders,

test on multiple handsets, and allow

enough time for approvals (up to 10 weeks

for Apple).

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FOUR Reaching mobile users through search marketing advertising and customer communications

r Q. Have opportunities to create awareness and demand through mobile advertising been reviewed?

You have to get noticed. As marketers, we need to increase awareness of a brands’ different mobile services and the value they offer, and then encourage action to activate use of the mobile channel by consumers. The previous steps in this guide will be wasted unless your target audience can find your mobile sites and apps and share with their social networks. This requires a joined up approach, and clear communication with departments internally and with agencies.

The obvious opportunities to tell mobile users about your mobile services are search engines, media sites and directories listing apps. However, mobile platforms often use different search advertising programmes or ad networks which work in a particular way, so they will need additional effort to get you visible even if you are effective at search on desktop platforms.

Strategy recommendation 10 Maximise opportunities for creating awareness of your mobile services on mobile sites You need a plan to maximise visibility. Review opportunities to increase visibility on relevant mobile touchpoints including search engines, media sites and app directories.

There are also good opportunities to increase use of mobile services through using traditional advertising. An obvious, but perhaps over-hyped example is QR or mobile action codes which we will explore in this section.

Strategy recommendation 11 Integrate traditional media to drive awareness of mobile services Use your existing above-the-line, DM, email, online advertising, search and social marketing to drive traffic to your site.

Be creative in your integrated campaigns. Ask how your offline and online marketing can be galvanised to deliver consistent and clear signposts driving traffic to your mobile site and apps? Carrying SMS calls to action on advertising carried through your TV, press, radio and outdoor ads, and on in-store promotions is a quick way to build your mobile database and invite your customers to initiate the dialogue. Think about your social media programmes and digital marketing activity. Leading retailers are seeing major volumes of mobile web traffic from Facebook followers, and excellent response levels from email campaigns carrying incentives for recipients to reply with their mobile numbers.

Mobile search marketing r Q. Has our mobile search marketing potential been reviewed?

Mobile searches by users are being driven by the increased usage of smartphones and tablets to access information. If mobile search is not ‘on your radar’, it should be! There are three key drivers to this growth:

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þ Global penetration of mobile devices is increasing year-on-year. þ People are using mobile devices at home in conjunction with offline media like television

and print to search for companies, products and services. þ People are using mobile devices to find local information (businesses, offers, store

opening times, etc.).It’s important that you understand which keyphrases are being searched for on mobile devices that are relevant to your business. Then you need to run searches using smartphones and tablets to see where your content currently appears. Often businesses make the mistake of doing all their desk research on desktop traffic – this can miss out on a significant percentage of your total audience.

Even if mobile isn’t yet a large chunk of your total traffic, take a look at the trends. Some web owners we know currently have less than five per cent of traffic from mobile but this segment is growing at more than 100 per cent whereas desktop traffic growth is much lower.

If you’re unsure how large your mobile audience is, use your analytics tools to identify the percentage split of traffic between mobile and desktop. In Google Analytics, this can be found in the Audience > Overview > Mobile report.

r Q. Have we researched our keyphrases for mobile users?

In 2011 Google introduced a feature into its keyphrase tool so you can assess the importance of mobile SEO. It even works for different types of handsets! Google Suggest varies for Google’s mobile site too – so it may be worth checking out what the main suggested phrases are to see how well you rank on these for mobile.

Best Practice Tip 19 Review mobile search volume and consumer behaviourUse the free Google Keyword Tool to assess mobile and local searches for your audience.

The Google Keyword Tool is an established tool for digital marketers to assess the number of searches. The simplest way to use it is to enter a phrase and then choose mobile against desktop volumes in the box ‘Show ideas and statistics for’.

Don’t forget to set a Match Type, where you can limit searches to those including the word in a Phrase or an Exact Match. If you don’t select this, Google will use a default of ‘broad match’ and use all related words, which will inflate the estimate.

Here is an example of reviewing mobile search volumes:

Google Keyword Tool monthly mobile searches for London-related (Phrase match)

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For the keyword ‘London’, mobile is around 16 per cent of searches, but for restaurants it’s around 30 per cent.

Google Suggest varies for the mobile site too – so it may be worth checking out what the main phrases Google prompts searchers with on mobile.

r Q. Has the relevant content within mobile versions of search engines been indexed?

As for standard text search, indexing depends on crawlability. Consider how search engine crawlers function, and optimise your visibility. If you have a mobile-specific site with dedicated content, then you should create mobile site-specific sitemaps. But if you’re using a design technique like progressive enhancement or responsive web design with common content for all screen resolutions, then this isn’t necessary.

Google recently changed their guidance to say Responsive Design is their ‘recommended configuration’22 for smartphone-optimised sites. If you search in Google Mobile, you will see the vast majority of sites do not use mobile-specific content.

That said, Google does provide a separate crawler ‘Googlebot-Mobile’ and it is possible to serve specific content for feature phones and Smartphones. This may be useful for publishers for example. Google recommends that all sites should enable crawling via Googlebot-Mobile.23

The major search engines each have their own mobile search platform, so it’s becoming more and more important to ensure your content is featuring within the mobile versions of search engines.

Although we will see that specific mobile sitemaps can be submitted, for sites with mobile-specific content, such as a news publisher, the good news is that your regular pages will likely show up in the mobile search engine anyway. Use your analytics to see whether they are already. With the growth of Smartphones, Google can’t afford to restrict its mobile search results to mobile sites only!

You can take a look from your desktop at http://www.google.co.uk/m or http://www.google.com/m – you’ll likely see the majority of pages aren’t mobile-specific sites.

A good test of your mobile SEO effectiveness is to review the percentage of brand and non-brand search terms comparing desktop and mobile search engines.

Best Practice Tip 20 Compare natural search volumes between desktop and mobile sites A quick check of your mobile site effectiveness is available through comparing the volume and types of phrases arriving on your desktop and mobile sites. Of course behaviour will differ, but you need to check the two are broadly in line. If mobile natural search volumes are significantly lower you may have a problem with mobile SEO.

Mobile-specific content visibleAdditionally, if you have mobile-specific content re-purposed for mobile, the two questions to ask are:

r Q1. Have we submitted a mobile-specific site map?

Google has details on how to do this.24

22 Google support: Recommendations for building smartphone-optimised sites.23 Google support: mobile-friendly websites. 24 Google Webmaster Tools: Adding mobile URL information to a sitemap.

http://www.google.co.uk/m

http://www.google.com/m

http://www.google.com/m

http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/recommendations-for-building-smartphone.html

http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.co.uk/2011/02/making-websites-mobile-friendly.html

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r Q2. Have we specified content to be crawled by the mobile version of the Google spider?

An alternative to specifying content in a sitemap is to make sure the Google mobile crawler Googlebot-Mobile sees the content. This accesses Mobile XHTML/WML.25

r Q. Has a satisfactory position been achieved for mobile search?

Given what we said about the results pages displayed within Google mobile and classic search being similar, the same on-page and link-based ranking factors we talk about elsewhere in the report are valid.

So the main question is around how you perform for the more common local search terms people use when they’re ‘out and about’.

Review local search effectiveness (if relevant) r Q. Can we be found in local search (formerly Google Places and now Google+ Local)?

Google Places was migrated to Google+ Local in 2012, this means that every business with a Google Places listing now has an equivalent Google+ Local page and it is these Google+ Local pages that are shown in search results. Since many people search for local services such as restaurants when they’re ‘out and about’ it’s important for mobile visibility to boost your visibility on Google+ Local. It has increased in importance over the years with major upgrades making it more prominent for local searches. So if these are important for your business, then it’s well worth looking for.

Best Practice Tip 21 Review Google+ Local listingsIf your business has physical locations you should check your ranking within Google+ Local. This is a great free way to drive more footfall from search.

We have more specific advice on Google+ Local in Step 7.

Mobile pay per click including Google AdWords mobile r Q. Have we reviewed the mobile marketing ad extensions in AdWords?

Mobile search ads continue to grow in importance with studies by Marin showing how click-through rates on Google search ads doubled in 2011 and accounted for nearly 20 per cent of ad clicks by the end of 2012 in some sectors.

Were you aware you can target users of different mobile devices in Google AdWords? As the screen capture below suggests, the options are:

þ By mobile v desktop i.e. mobile searchers only. þ Mobile devices with full browsers. þ Tablets with full browsers. þ By operating system, i.e. Android v Blackberry v iOS. þ By device model for Android and iOS. þ By operator. þ Through search engine only (Google or its search partners) or Display Network when ads

are displayed on third-party sites.The mobile journey from search to site (or app) should be seamless, and provide a consistently high quality user experience across all mobile platforms. If your site is not mobile optimised, and there is no app download option, stick with the click-to-call destination until

25 Google Webmaster Central Blog: Introducing Smartphone Googlebot-Mobile.

http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.co.uk/2011/12/introducing-smartphone-googlebot-mobile.html

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the site or app is finalised.

Best Practice Tip 22 Ensure your landing page is mobile optimisedAn obvious one, but important to keep in mind.

Google’s results pages, and the ads it serves, are also tailored for both smartphone and tablet traffic. As a result Google now calculates your Quality Score at a device level.

Best Practice Tip 23 Review and improve Quality Score for mobile devicesIf your landing pages aren’t optimised for traffic from mobile devices, don’t expect them to get a high Quality Score for mobile devices.

To find out more about Quality Score see our specialist AdWords Guide.

Recommended resource? The 7 Steps Guide to Google AdWords explains the concept of Quality Score in more detail.

Let’s now look at the many options for using AdWords to advertise to mobile users.

AdWords options for operating system and device targetingIn February 2013 Google introduced Enhanced campaigns which are significant since they

http://www.smartinsights.com/guides/google-adwords-7-steps-to-success-guide/

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make it easier to target some of Google’s mobile and local features26.

What is it? Google AdWords Enhanced CampaignsKey features of Enhanced Campaigns are bid adjustments that make it easier to bid higher (or lower) for mobile users or in a particular location; ease of deploying mobile-specific creative and tracking of mobile outcomes.

Mobile AdWords ad formatsToday, Google Adwords isn’t only about text ads with blue links, there are a number of ad extensions with more visual cues to searchers. Many of which are particularly useful for mobile marketers to use. The full range of Ad extensions selectable in AdWords are:

þ Location – Extend ads with location information on maps. þ Product – Extend ads with relevant product details such as images and prices

from Google Merchant Center. þ Sitelinks – Extend ads with links to sections on a site. þ Call – Extend ads with a phone number. þ Social – Increase the social relevance of ads by associating them with a company

Google+ Page. þ Mobile app – Extend ads with a link to a mobile/tablet app.

Enhanced campaignsIn February 2013 Google introduced Enhanced campaigns which are significant since they make it easier to target some of Google’s local features. Key features are bid adjustments27 which makes it easier to bid higher for mobile users with a certain device or in a particular location; ease of deploying mobile-specific creative and tracking of mobile outcomes.

Let’s now look at some of these options in more detail. Here are some mobile search options that Google highlights.

26 Smart Insights: AdWords Enhanced Campaigns.27 Smart Insights: AdWords Enhanced Campaigns.

http://www.smartinsights.com/paid-search-marketing-ppc/local-paid-search/google-improves-support-for-local-targeting-of-mobile-users-with-the-new-adwords-enhanced-campaigns/

http://www.smartinsights.com/paid-search-marketing-ppc/local-paid-search/google-improves-support-for-local-targeting-of-mobile-users-with-the-new-adwords-enhanced-campaigns/

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Examples of mobile search formats: Google

1. Click-to-call extensionLet’s not forget the obvious, whilst iPods are non-cellular, mobile ‘phones’ and tablets allows users to make calls. Search is a quick and easy way to drive calls to call centres. Click-to call is one of the most effective ways to connect to your consumers. We have seen URLs’ click-through rate increase by 30 per cent by using the click-to-call feature.

Google AdWords’s ‘Call Extensions’ and Bing adCentre’s ‘Click-to-Call’ drive call traffic directly from search results. In addition to click-to-call functionality, retailers can also give mobile users the option to click through to the website.

For PPC campaigns, unless your call centre is manned 24/7, you should limit your campaigns to call centre opening times.

2 Click-to-download mobile appFor retailers with apps to promote, Google’s click-to-download feature allows you to download links to iTunes or Google Play. Handset detection software plays a critical role here, filtering iOS/Android traffic to the right app store automatically. Users simply click the link for the correct app, which elegantly sidesteps the major challenge of saving a timely trawl through the 500,000 apps in each app store.

3 Site linksSite links (the links below the main call-to-action at the top of ad) are an effective way for retailers to provide shoppers with additional options or offers to direct their click into site. This option would take more real estate on the site results page, thereby increasing the chance of click through. Use broad matching and general keywords to maximise ad impressions.

4 Location We would argue that geo-location is the most significant difference between PC and mobile search, and should result in a reallocation of retailers’ mobile search budgets following testing. According to Jonathan Abraham, Google’s Industry Head, Mobile, 85 per cent of UK mobile users seek local information, and 81 per cent take action after looking. This presents a significant opportunity for retailers aiming to drive footfall who should use location extensions to promote local details within Google+ and Microsoft Bing.

If you’re making the case for mobile ads we recommend these case studies showing the benefits and ad formats used.28

28 Google Mobile AdWords case studies.

http://www.google.co.uk/ads/mobile/advertisers/case-studies.html

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Google mobile case studiesLet’s now look at some specific approaches to mobile targeting.

Targeting day-parts through paid searchIt’s also worth researching how customer usage of different platforms for searching varies through the day. There are variations by day-part which will impact how and where you should allocate your mobile search budget.

Best Practice Tip 24 Ensure visibility at times of peak mobile usageTablet and smartphone use tends to be highest in the evening as part of ‘multiscreen’ content consumption. So, make sure you have visibility for these mobile platforms, particularly if you have TV ads running.

Hourly distribution of searches by platform

Device use through the day. Source: Google 2011

Targeting tablet visitors through paid searchTablet visitors are three times more likely to make a purchase than smartphone visitors, and nearly as likely to make a purchase as traditional visitors. eBay’s experience supports this trend: tablet users spend 50 per cent more than PC users, have higher average order value, and have higher or equivalent conversion rates.

Best Practice Tip 25 Target investment on high-spending tablet visitorsTarget search to tablet users accessing the web during the evening using the search targeting capabilities of AdWords and through creating tablet user-oriented landing pages.

Here are some advertising approaches you can use to target tablet users. To target tablet users you may need to have AdWords legacy mobile setup rather than the Enhanced Campaigns we mentioned earlier:

þ Ensure you have mobile-specific campaigns set up within AdWords. This will enable you to target mobile users with specific messages, track and to change budget through the day as necessary.

þ Point ads and ad extensions (on Search) to tablet-focused landing pages.

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þ Designate separate budgets for tablet campaigns. In search campaigns, bid for 1st-3rd position above the fold.

þ State a clear value proposition for tablet customers in your ad creative, such as ‘view our selection of iPad cases today!’

þ Day-part campaigns to match when consumers are using tablets (evenings, weekends). þ Review Google Analytics for tablet traffic patterns, and allocate bids and budgets based

on peak times. þ Leverage large, touch friendly screens! Utilise new tablet-rich media ad units in your

campaigns.

Mobile display advertising r Q. Have opportunities for increasing reach and frequency with mobile banners been

assessed?

Marketers can take advantage of the increasing popularity of media sites such as magazines viewed through mobile devices to use online ads to reach and influence audiences.

Aside from searching and using email and social networks, the next most important activity of smartphone and tablet users is to browse publisher sites for the latest news or entertainment. Display ads can be used on these sites; predictions show this is an area where growth is expected. Spend on paid search ads is expected to dominate as is the case with desktop media.

UK Mobile Advertising Forecast. Source: First Partner

Ad landing pagesAs we noted for paid search advertising on mobile devices, specific landing pages with clear calls to action will work best. This compilation is from Millennial Media.

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Examples of mobile ad landing pagesCase study – Kit Kat tests mobile advertising effectivenessNestle A/B testing of their ads revealed the most effective creative treatments for their mobile offers.

þ The mobile ad drove spontaneous awareness – up 35 per cent. þ Kit Kat was the only brand to which the sample was exposed which saw significant

changes to brand awareness in a period when they had no other media activity. þ Mentions of Kit Kat as the first confectionery brand they thought of increased 247 per

cent. þ Uplifts were seen across all demographics. þ When users enjoyed the site they were browsing they were 76 per cent more likely to

remember the ad. þ Offering something of value and leveraging strong brands is key to encouraging

engagement.

Kit Kat mobile ad campaign creative examples

Retargeting and real-time ad buyingReal-time buying (RTB)-enabled demand-side platform (DSP) platforms allow advertisers to make a holistic decision on a campaign’s progress by letting them manage all the information from multiple ad exchanges in one place. This type of purchase platform offers

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a huge advantage compared with the alternative of having to access multiple ad exchanges individually and manually.

What is it? RTB, DSPs and retargetingThe complex world of ad networks has spawned acronyms for the services used for targeting with ads. All these options are now available by mobile with unique user detection potentially offering better targeting. Real-time buying (RTBs) refer to the capability to bid for impressions to target in an auction; demand-side platforms (DSPs) give a way of managing RTB across multiple ad networks and retargeting is used to dynamically serve ad content and offers depending on previous interactions of users with a site.

Once a buyer has uploaded specific targeting criteria, the DSP effectively listens to each ad exchange in real time and, when a suitable ad becomes available, the DSP buys the ad and delivers it. The whole process only takes around 0.12 seconds.

Like traditional ad networks, DSPs enable re-targeting or behavioural targeting where site users who have visited a site and interacted with different content across a network can be more closely targeted.

Another useful feature of DSPs is they often bid more aggressively for the impressions with a propensity to convert. Demand side platforms look for valuable impressions and examine their precise origins.

Mobile ad creative options r Q. Have the creative possibilities of mobile been assessed?

Many agency creative directors reject mobile as being a small screen for small ideas. Their more enlightened counterparts see the massive opportunity to achieve mass market reach with engaging, fun, interactive brand experiences which enrich consumers’ lives in a positive way.

There’s an extensive range of interactive banners, full-page interstitials and a range of video formats to provide rich media engagement. Touchscreens have revolutionised advertising: 27 per cent of respondents claim they are more likely to interact with ads because they have a touchscreen (Source: IAB Three Device Lives research). The mobile handset’s accelerometer, orientation and location add additional engagement, allowing brand messages to be presented in new and unique ways.

Let’s not forget that user experience is everything, and mobile users expect quick, easy, intuitive activation of ads as they do with other mobile behaviours. Use familiar icons to deliver visual shortcuts to enrich the customer journey.

The mobile industry has been pushing hard for standardisation of mobile ad formats for over 10 years in order to grow mobile ad spend.

Keep a close eye on new mobile ad formats launched by the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) and Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) which can be deployed across multiple markets.29

Encouraging social sharing r Q. Has social sharing functionality been included?

29 IAB/MMA – New mobile ad formats.

http://www.iab.net/about_the_iab/recent_press_releases/press_release_archive/press_release/pr-012513_mobile

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Google’s view that mobile success is all about ‘time’ springs to mind. Mobile helps us save time (when we’re busy), kill time (when we’re waiting), and share time (when we have good or bad experiences we want our networks to know about). Sixty per cent of the world’s Facebook users engage via mobile. Twitter is the ostensibly a shared experience which plays out spontaneously, regardless of our location, and we have a dizzying array of mobile and tablet platforms on which to send, receive and analyse Twitter traffic.

Remember to add Twitter and Facebook icons to maximise sharing.

r Q. Have we adopted a ‘Trial, measure, adapt then roll out’ approach?

As every mobile engagement delivers a time- and location-based data trail marketers can track in real time the effectiveness of mobile ads in achieving the desired call to action – click to call, click to register, click to browse (site), click to install (app), click to play, click to buy.

Developments in the mobile couponing arena make this level of transparency a key point of difference for brands competing for customer spend. Brands capturing data at the point of sale can track the customer’s route to purchase back to the origin of mobile voucher, whether delivered via SMS or QR code activation via on-pack or in-store promotion, above the line media, mobile ad or CRM push notification. Millennial Media recommend an approach of:

þ Targeted mobile ad. þ Consumer downloads unique voucher to their mobile. þ Voucher redeemend in-store at point of sale (POS). þ Redemption, purchase and CRM details passed back to retailer. þ Campaign optimised based on voucher performance.

Offline advertising to encourage mobile interaction r Q. Have we reviewed opportunities for prompting mobile interactions using offline ads in

offline media?

Offline advertising and touchpoints can also be used for this, particularly using QR or other action codes.

Best Practice Tip 26 Use action codes to encourage usage of mobile services Offline ads can incorporate QR or other action codes to increase interactions using mobile.

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QR action code billboard ad

Statistics on action code usageNellymoser has some interesting insight on the use of action codes in magazine advertising. To understand how these mobile action codes are being used in magazines, Nellymoser surveyed every issue of the top 100 U.S. magazines by circulation in 2011 and the first six months of 2012. You can see how action codes are becoming more popular in print ads.

We use the term ‘action code’ since although this accounts for up to 85 per cent of codes used in magazines, there are others notably Microsoft Tag, the second most popular and in the UK Blippar.

What is it? Mobile action code A response code from a traditional ad or direct mail format. QR codes in print adverts or outdoor advertising are the best known, but other formats such as Blippar or NFC (near field communication) are increasing in popularity.

\

Proportion of US magazines surveyed using action codes

So how are action codes being used by marketers? Nellymoser also have a useful report for publishers and advertisers based on an analysis where they scanned every code, activated each campaign, watched each video and completed actions requested for the mobile campaigns.

Their qualitative analysis showed that most action codes were used for one or more of the following four purposes:

þ 1. Branding and Demonstrations. The largest usage for action codes was to showcase a video (35 per cent). These videos are often created specifically for mobile use. Examples include: a behind-the-scenes look; a product demonstration; a how-to video or an entertaining video.

þ 2. Data Capture and List Building (Opt-in/Subscribe/Sweepstakes). Action codes are effective for building databases because readers can respond immediately and wherever they are reading the magazine. ‘Smart Sweepstakes’ are used to increase scan rates. After a user scans and enters information, the smart sweepstakes retains the user’s entry data from one scan to the next, enabling instant entry and reducing the obstacles to form submission.

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þ 3. Commerce (On-line Store, Bricks-and-Mortar Store Locator, Coupon). Readers can immediately scan and act on a desire to purchase. Links to a corporate e-commerce store led the category at 21 per cent followed by in-app store locators at 11 per cent. Some store locators used the phone’s built-in GPS to find the nearest location.

þ 4. Social Media. Action codes were also used to enable Facebook, Twitter and to connect to email. In Q1, 18 per cent of codes enabled readers to share a video link or product information via social media. (NOTE: Only social sharing that was part of the mobile campaign was included. Some video campaigns led to a YouTube Channel, which in turn has a social sharing feature. These were not counted.)

It’s important to design QR code campaigns to maximise response, many campaigns don’t. Many campaigns fail to deliver decent response levels as the creative team is forced to include QR code onto their artwork as an afterthought. The code tends to be reduced in size and relegated to the bottom of the press ad or poster, rendering a poor user experience.

Best Practice Tip 27 Design QR code campaign elements to maximise response. To maximise response of QR codes, the code must be prominent, but most importantly should integrate with the ad format to show the unique value available through response and where necessary explain how to use QR codes on smartphones.

This research30 shows that there is a growing volume of respondents, but we have spoken to many marketers who have been disappointed with their action code campaign response.

Perceptions of usage does vary amongst audiences and it would be wrong to portray action codes as generating significant response. Market insight and consultancy company SKOPOS found in an evaluation on QR code adoption levels and perceptions in Europe31 that there was room for improvement in execution of QR code campaigns. Their conclusion ‘QR Codes: Quite Rubbish?!’

The study found that twice as many German consumers are using QR codes that their UK counterparts. SKOPOS found that 24 per cent of Germans compared with 12 per cent of UK mobile phone users have ever used a QR code. SKOPOS found two main reasons for non-use and infrequent use/take-up across both markets. First and unsurprising to me is disappointing and poor experiences. Almost three-quarters (72 per cent) of users in the UK not agreeing it was a good experience. Indeed, one in four, 24 per cent referred to it as a poor experience…

Darren Mark Noyce, Chief Consultant at SKOPOS advises how the experience can be improved:

‘In our view then, a QR code should always be accompanied by a “performance-bond” (outcome guarantee) as concrete as possible. What value will I get if I can scan this? QR codes are most likely to be used when consumers know exactly what information they will receive, such as in timetables, nutrition information and recipes for food that downloads or specific product information. Scanning a mobile QR code should be a shortcut to valued content or offers, not an effort, nor a disappointment.’

I’m sure that many marketers (and consumers) who have experienced poor implementation of QR codes in campaigns will agree with this!

The other reason for infrequent use and limited take-up is lack of awareness combined with lack of capability with over 50 per cent of respondents claiming not to have heard of them;

30 Smart Insights: QR code response and demographics statistics.31 SKOPOS: QR code evaluation in Europe.

http://www.smartinsights.com/mobile-marketing/qr-code-marketing/qr-codes-location-demographic-statistics/%20

http://www.skopos-mr.co.uk/downloads/SKOPOS%2520Press%2520Release%2520QR%2520Codes%2520Quite%2520Rubbish%2520May%25202012%2520FINAL.pdf

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possessing a phone with no capability (39 per cent) or don’t know how to use them (30 per cent).

There are other novel uses of integrated mobile advertising too.

Mobile video advertising using NFCIn 2012 Wired Magazine launched the first major mobile-activated print campaign that used NFC.

The Lexus advertisement for the new 2012 Lexus GS included an NFC-embedded chip that triggered an interactive mobile video experience for NFC-capable Android phones.32

Augmented reality campaigns for smartphonesSports Illustrated created the first and largest mobile augmented reality (AR) campaign in a U.S. magazine designed specifically for smartphones. The Sports Illustrated NCAA Tournament Preview Issue brought the foldout cover to life with six videos that launched from augmented reality images.

New mobile ad formatsThe IAB US has unveiled33 a series of new mobile ad units which are under review. It’s likely these will be used in other countries in future.

32 Nellymoser: Wired NFC Lexus ad.33 IAB New mobile ad formats.

http://www.nellymoser.com/news/nellymoser-expands-beyond-qr-codes-with-biggest-ever-mobile-campaigns-using-digital-watermarks-nfc-and-augmented-reality

http://www.iab.net/risingstarsmobile

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IAB mobile ad unitsIntegrated ‘content-to-commerce’ apps and sitesIn September 2012, Seventeen, the teen fashion magazine launched Seventeen Shopping Insider, a mobile shopping companion app for iPhone, iPad and iTouch that unlocks exclusive deals, freebies and style ideas for readers.

The September issue of Seventeen features more than 250 mobile-activated photos and Seventeen-branded icons. Readers may use Seventeen Shopping Insider’s built-in scanner on nearly every fashion or beauty image within the issue’s editorial pages, then save the images to the app’s shopping list. Select editorial items and advertisements feature a Sev-enteen-branded shopping bag icon, which unlocks discounts, freebies and sweepstakes such as $10 off a purchase of $50 or more at Aéropostale, 20 per cent off full-priced items at G by Guess. In another example of a ‘content-to-commerce’ venture Adage reports that Harper’s Bazaar has introduced ‘Shop Bazaar’ a website owned by the magazine that features apparel and accessories from its pages, part of magazines’ accelerating push into e-commerce and broader effort to diversify revenue.

There are also ongoing efforts to help generate more value for advertisers given declining click-through rates for ads on desktop sites and growing awareness that many ads are unseen. Earlier in the year, Comscore reported research involving 12 premium US brands including E*TRADE Financial, Ford, General Mills, Kellogg’s, Kimberly Clark, Kraft and Sprint that only 69 per cent of the ad impressions were classified as being ‘in-view’.

The definition of in-view is that at least 50 per cent of the advertisement must be viewable for at least one second in order to be considered in-view. The remaining 31 per cent were delivered but never seen by a consumer, a likely result of a consumer scrolling past the ad before it loaded or a consumer never scrolling the ad into view. In-view percentages varied by site and ranged from seven per cent to 100 per cent!

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FIVE Mobile commerce and mobile payments

r Q. How can we provide more consumer choice and convenience and increased revenue through new revenue models and mobile payment services?

Many say the banks and credit card providers had it their way for too long. Is mobile the long-awaited challenger? There’s a compelling business case for mobile commerce based on consumer demand, handset capabilities and an investment community with an appetite for fast, convenient, trusted and secure mobile payment platforms to unlock massive revenue potential.

Strategy recommendation 12 Explore new revenue models and payment models to support themMobile offers new ways for customers to pay, including customers who can’t pay via existing e-commerce payment methods. If you don’t exploit these, you can be sure your competitors will.

Payments via smartphones and tablets leaped 356 per cent in June 2012 compared with the same month last year,34 against online payment growth of 12.5 per cent. Average order values for mobile and online are now comparable.

This step looks at the mobile payment options available. We will take a look at the five established payment models with a sixth (mobile wallet) which is less developed. The six models are:

þ 1. Web-based payment. þ 2. Mobile app payments. þ 3. Operator (carrier) billing. þ 4. Payment-specific apps. þ 5. Contactless payments (NFC/RFID(radio frequency identification)). þ 6. Mobile wallet.

As you review each of these payment options consider these benefits against these challenges:

þ 1. Customer benefits: Convenience, ease of use and speed. þ 2. Customer concerns: Trust, privacy and security. þ 3. Integration and technology issues: Data and legacy system integration and

performance.Before we review each of the payment options we will introduce the fast changing mobile payments options. In this section we look at the role mobile plays in the route to purchase, whether in-store or on-line. We also provide a briefing on the multiple mobile payment models jostling for position in the race to provide a convenient, secure and trusted mobile payment solution. We cover mobile coupons and mobile CRM in the next section.

Research online, purchase offline or vice versa?Today, online and bricks-and-mortar retailers are experiencing a major shift in the way mobile

34 Source: IMRG Capgemini report.

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phones are changing purchase behaviour. eBay, whose product sales on its mobile site and app hit $8 billion in 2012, estimates that 50 per cent of smartphone owners – over one in four mobile users in Europe and the US – are now price checking in store. It’s clear that shoppers trust their smartphones, and the prices, product info, customer ratings and reviews they can deliver, more than they trust store staff.

This trend flies in the face of the widely accepted wisdom that more and more consumers ROPO. With the desktop you tend to see that this model holds true, and the principle seems to underpin Google’s logic for promoting investment in AdWords on the desktop. The classic version of ROPO, shown below for Vodafone based on their customers’ desktop online research and purchase pattern may not hold true for mobile.35

Typical purchase behaviour for mobile phone contracts: Source: GoogleDespite this data not being specific for mobile devices, this is a great way of thinking through your customers’ mobile research behaviour and the implications.

Strategy recommendation 13 Understand the pattern of online and offline product research and purchase for your mobile audience Understand behaviour through research to create a matrix for different mobile devices.

So, with mobile (particularly for smartphone), the dominant ROPO Offline behaviour doesn’t seem so common case. Google believes that 17 per cent of shoppers change their minds about product choice whilst in-store as a result of using their smartphone. Check out the range of price comparison apps available to smartphone shoppers: Red Laser, Amazon, eBay, which fuel this trend. Picture the dismayed shop assistants who watch from the side-lines as bargain hungry shoppers touch and feel the products in store, take a photo, check the discount they could get by shopping online and ordering with free next-day delivery service before backing out the shop. The shop itself serves no greater purpose than providing a showcase. We’re hearing about more and more instances where shoppers are ejected from shops for using cameraphones in-store for comparison shopping. We see major multiples opening (small) pop-up stores where all transactions are made online.

A simpler version, shared by Sarah Bailie of Debenhams at Mobile Marketing Live is shown

35 Smart Insights: Google ROPO study.

http://www.smartinsights.com/online-brand-strategy/multichannel-strategies/multichannel-customer-journeys-ropo/

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below. This shows the relative importance of mobile for browsing at the moment.

Debenhams online and offline purchase

Consumer insightsFeedback from user forums conducted by Cogenta, the retail intelligence specialist serving retailer brands and mobile networks, reveals the value of researching your customers’ motivations and attitudes to adopting new technology in the buying process.

Best Practice Tip 28 Gather consumer insight about mobile research and purchase intentions Use consumer research panels to find out more about consumers’ research and payment needs.

User forums show that personalisation assists engagement, but the user’s ability to curate their own content is even more impactful. People shop from places they like, regardless of the activity now taking place online. Whether browsing through apps or websites hosting content from multiple retailers, shoppers want access to content from a range of retailers. The Shoparazzi app is a great example: shoppers select their preferred brands, price ranges, styles, sizes and locations, and the app recommends items matching their criteria.

Shoparazzi comparison shopping app

https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/shoparazzi/id449151937%3Fmt%3D8

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Equally, showing irrelevant or unwanted content is seen as a major turn-off. Taking into account how people shop in physical shops, this makes sense: they would not go shopping at a physical store that they did not like so being served content that they do not want equates to a similar mental reaction. Respondents on the forum stated their refusal to shop from retailers favoured by their parents, for example.

Regarding multiple channels for shopping, the feedback in this research was clear: shopping is a leisure activity whichever channel is chosen. This means that if the mobile experience is not fulfilling, people will not use it unless on a ‘need to’ basis. By contrast, a site showing quick access to interesting, relevant content – that is easy to navigate – drives a greater level of engagement. Forum participants mentioned the following as particularly useful features: ‘What’s New’, ‘Back in Stock’ and ‘Browsing Shopping History’. This feedback also highlights the benefits of using mobile channels to provide ease and convenience, like finding something they like but are not in a position to buy at that point in time, then bookmarking the item to buy later.

This insight confirms our views about ROPO on mobile (see above). Respondents describe how research on their mobiles is easier and more convenient than using a PC or browsing in-store. The convenience of mobile shopping was also highlighted when people would actually see a product of interest in-store but prefer to buy it online (e.g. time pressures, queuing, carrying items home, ease of delivery and returns when ordering online). Some mentioned the ability to scan and save an item so they could order it through the phone or online at their convenience. This was highlighted as a unique benefit of a mobile shopping experience.

It’s worth pointing out the growing number of retail, shopping centre, sports, music, transport and other locations now installing free Wi-Fi networks to meet mobile users’ growing demand for content whilst out of home.

Reviewing mobile payment options r Q. Have our mobile payment options been reviewed?

The mobile phone has revolutionised the way many products are purchased and used. It would be fascinating to see how sales of alarm clocks, A-Z maps, pocket size digital cameras, calculators, paper diaries and address books have fared since the arrival of the iPhone in 2007, and subsequent smartphone models. Could the time have come for the mobile to take on the wallet too?

Many say the banks and credit card providers had it their way for too long. Is mobile the long-awaited challenger? There’s a compelling business case for mobile commerce based on consumer demand, handset capabilities and an investment community with an appetite for fast, convenient, trusted and secure mobile payment platforms to unlock massive revenue potential.

Mobile payment ecosystem?Before we review each payment model it’s useful to be aware of the main players which determine the success of each model. These include:

þ Banks and credit card companies. They seek to maintain their hold on the consumer payments market.

þ Mobile operators. These also have access to extensive consumer mobile and payment data.

þ Point of sale tech providers. Provide the payment security processes, carry real-time transaction data from customers to EPOS and online check-outs to CRM databases, plus

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detailed reporting þ Mobile payment app and site developers. Provide the user experiences for over 50

per cent of consumers in developed European, US and Asia markets to conduct ‘mobile commerce’ every day.

þ Device manufacturers. Their competitive advantage hinges on delivering ever enhanced device functionality in order to grow share in today’s cut-throat mobile handset markets.

We will now assess the mobile payment options available for manufacturers, retailers and other transactional sites. We will use a grid which evaluates their relative success potential based on the following factors. Five stars indicates promising prospects for adoption; one star indicates a significant barrier to consumer adoption any time soon.

Mobile success factors (i.e. if used to optimum effect)

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Ease, speed, convenience, UX One to Five Stars (5 high)Trust, Privacy, Security One to Five Stars (5 high)Seamless Solution / Data integration One to Five Stars (5 high)Scalable One to Five Stars (5 high)

We look at the five established payment models with a sixth (mobile wallet) getting ready to take off. The six models are:

þ 1. Web-based payment. þ 2. Mobile app payments. þ 3. Operator (carrier) billing. þ 4. Payment-specific apps. þ 5. Contactless payments (NFC/RFID). þ 6. Mobile wallet.

Mobile payment model #1 – web-based payment As the mobile Internet grows in popularity, brands with mobile-optimised websites reap the rewards of creating user-friendly transactional sites. Retailers have been early adopters of mobile commerce, and supplement in-store and online order with sales via transactional sites and apps.

Early movers like M&S and Kiddicare prove that brands with mobile-optimised websites reap the rewards of creating user-friendly transactional sites and supplement in-store and online orders with sales via transactional sites on mobiles and tablets. M&S is selling furniture items exceeding £300 on its mobile site.

Those opting for apps must consider the revenue model. Apple and Android take 30 per cent of app download costs and in-app transactions; Microsoft takes 20 per cent. To keep the 30 per cent (or 20 per cent), you could consider redirecting app users from the app to a secure web page in order to handle and validate the transaction, then return them to the app.

Success story: Kiddicare Specialist brands are also reaping the rewards of optimised mobile sites. Kiddicare.com is Europe’s largest online nursery retailer, with further European expansion planned for 2012. It is one of the most successful brands to benefit from Google’s support in mobilising retail brands’ web presence.

According to Fred Soneya, Kiddicare’s head of e-commerce, ‘We identified that our customers’ browsing and shopping habits have changed; consumers are watching product videos, shopping and looking for answers on mobile devices, so support and an interactive

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community for those experiences are essential.’ In order to address these habits and make the online shopping experience accessible to twenty-first-century parents, Kiddicare developed a transactional mobile site to replicate their website offering.

The overall strategy was to create a presence for the brand in consumers’ pockets via their mobile device, through which they could access the full range of Kiddicare.com products at any time, and compare prices with those of its competitors. The fully transactional mobile-friendly version of the Kiddicare.com website automatically renders for mobile devices and isn’t a new domain, simply an extension of the existing site. This means that Kiddicare.com’s award winning SEO strategy maintains all of its link equity in mobile search.

The mobile version of the Kiddicare website took just seven weeks to design and build, from concept to launch and, once live, the first customer order was placed within four minutes. Within 12 weeks, mobile accounted for approximately 10 per cent of all Kiddicare.com unique user revenue.

Mobile now accounts for 20–25 per cent of Kiddicare’s daily revenue.


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Mobile payment model #2 – mobile app paymentsApps have emerged as a trusted, secure payment channel, becoming a fertile breeding ground for brands looking to sell product quickly and easily. If you’re planning to generate sales via apps, remember (1) Apple takes 30 per cent of the download and in-app transaction cost; (2) 95 per cent of all app users won’t pay for any app activity.

Through iTunes, Apple established a convenient, secure and trusted channel for music lovers to download and pay for music. iTunes users set up their accounts online, added credit card details just once, and agreed terms and conditions authorising Apple to charge them via their mobile bills for multiple purchases, typically at low transactions costs (79p–£3.00). iTunes then added books, other goodies and apps, to be paid for using the same payment channel. This payment model has since been replicated by Android and Microsoft. Apple has generated an estimated $6 billion revenue from the 25 billion apps downloaded in the first four years of apps. This includes $3 billion in 2011 alone.

In reality, the vast majority of app payments are made on iTunes since the payment experience is seamless. On Google and Microsoft, payment is more fragmented with Google Checkout or carrier billing, which explains why most Droid games are ad funded but iOS games make profits.

Trusted brands from the gaming, media, entertainment, retail and travel sectors are generating significant revenues from apps. Angry Birds, the highly addictive gaming app which commands 25 years of collective worldwide mobile play time every day, and has achieved 1 billion downloads, is a great example. Those not prepared to pay for the game play an ad-funded version. The ads generate over $1 million for Android each month.

When deciding whether you can monetise your app, it’s vital to evaluate the options: download costs, in-app payments, in-App advertising, sponsored apps. Think also about app metrics: as 85 per cent of apps are only used once, you should question whether downloads

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alone are the right measure of success. Free apps will achieve higher downloads, but most are used infrequently and deleted quickly, whilst paid for apps have greater perceived value, hence longevity.

Thanks to the personalised nature of apps (downloaded onto my phone, therefore my app), and the role apps have carved out as a trusted, secure payment channel, apps have become a fertile breeding ground for brands looking to sell product quickly and easily.

Best Practice Tip 29 Differentiate your app through a compelling description It should be crystal-clear what you app adds to the mobile experience and from rival apps.

Here is a good description of an app proposition with the main features of product range, scan and save, next-day delivery and product review videos clearly shown.

Kiddicare multichannel appAmazon’s app is also an excellent example of a clear proposition. Described succinctly in the app store as ‘Comprehensive, Convenient, Fast, Secure and Universal’, the app allows users to sign in with their existing Amazon account to access basket, payment and shopping options, compare prices instantly by scanning barcodes, snapping a picture or typing a search, and accessing international Amazon content from the single app.


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Mobile payment model #3 – operator (carrier) billing Many mobile users don’t always carry cards, and a significant portion are ‘unbanked’. Operator billing provides a secure, convenient and speedy alternative – both for the consumer and the merchant.

Whilst pre-registered cards are the payment channel of choice for mobile web and app users with solid credit scores, many mobile users do not carry cards, and a significant portion are ‘unbanked’. This figure stands at 11 per cent of the US adult population, and over 1 million UK adults.

‘Operator billing’ provides a secure, convenient and speedy alternative – both for the consumer and the merchant. And because nearly everyone has a phone, it opens up an addressable market that covers virtually the whole population of just about every country in the world.

Operator billing deducts a payment from a user’s phone bill in as little as one click. It can be used to process transactions on the full web or the mobile web. If the consumer is using the desktop Internet, he or she receives a text to validate the payment, clicks ‘yes’ and the transaction is done. On the mobile web, a single click on the checkout screen is enough to compete the transaction.

Andrew Darling, Director of Marketing and Communications at Open Market, believes this payment method is particularly suited for out of-home purchases – such as shopping, travel and entertainment tickets where a mobile phone (as opposed to a PC) is present. Operator billing works well for low-ticket impulse purchases such as a casual game, video stream, music track or ebook.

Options for operator billing for mobile sites and apps includes:

þ (a) Operator billing for mobile sites and apps. Payforit, the direct operator billing channel, has been redesigned to allow integration via API into HTML5 sites and apps, serving feature phones, smartphones and tablets.

þ (b) PSMS (premium rate messaging). Traditionally the payment channel of choice for running sweepstakes, PSMS has come to the aid of charities taking one-off donations on dedicated shortcodes, activating a younger generation of mobile donors.

a) Operator billing for mobile sites and appsThe growth prospects for operator billing are immense. According to Gartner, mobile payment transactions hit $171.5 billion in 2012, with 212m people making them. The dominant medium remains SMS – for services such as voting in the west or P2P payments in developing markets. But Gartner expects direct operator billing to account for about 88 per cent of total transactions in North America and about 80 per cent in Western Europe by 2016.

And its tailor made for the many new and innovative digital products that are emerging to serve the vast new user base of smartphones and tablets.

On the UK mobile web, the direct operator billing channel is known as PayForIt. This is the collective name used by all UK operators, with the aim of providing one entity for all transactions that use the phone bill (see section below).

It was launched in 2007, and supported by around a dozen intermediaries, each of which

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processed payments with a given operator when a user paid for a digital product on a mobile site. Over time, PayForIt has evolved and improved. Its latest iteration, PayForIt V4, can be integrated via API into HTML5 sites and apps and accessed using feature phones, smartphones and tablets.


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b) PSMS (premium rate messaging)For pre-pay and mobile contract customers, SMS has proven to be a reliable, immediate, easy two way communication channel for mobile users, whether smartphone or feature phone users. Whilst free messaging platforms have emerged (BlackBerry Messenger, iMessenger, What’sApp, Viber), SMS still generates vast revenues for the carriers.

Operators offer a premium rate messaging service for customers and organisations wanting the take payments from them via SMS. PSMS is used typically by charities taking one-off donations via mobile, for sweepstake ‘text and win’ competitions, and for TV voting campaigns. In the UK, PSMS promotions are run on shortcodes which command a price premium (i.e. messages sent to the shortcode are charged to the user). PSMS rates range from to 10p, 25p, 35p, 50p £1, £1.50, £5).

Best Practice Tip 30 Consider premium rate messaging (PSMS) for promotions PSMS can be an effective mechanic for data capture and follow-up related to sales promotions at events or in-store.

A sales promotion for Fosters ‘Crack Open and Crack Up’ matches the brand’s strategy to support comedy events, and is a low-cost method to capture mobile numbers for customers interested in comedy for future promotions. If you’re running sweepstakes, you’re responsible for publishing terms and conditions of entry, including conditions of entry (age, cost of messages, opening and closing dates).

Charities have succeeded in using PSMS to reach and secure donations for a new, younger generation of donors who may have been resistant to completing online direct debit mandates, but are prepared to make one-off impulse donations triggered by causes or natural catastrophes. The Sports Relief and Red Nose Day generate many donations via PSMS.


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Mobile payment model #4 – payment-specific appsAccording to Flurry, the vast amount of app time is spent playing games (49 per cent) and social networking (30 per cent). Apps have become a battleground for the banks and payment providers to provide an additional payment channel to existing customers, or to win over new customers.

Payment-specific apps can be grouped into three categories.

þ a) Personal banking e.g. NatWest Get Cash. þ b) Person-to-Person payments e.g. Barclays Pingit. þ c) On-device payments e.g. Square and PayPalMobile.

a) Personal banking Most major banks offer these, and require customer log-in to access account balances, check and analyse spend history, and make payments.

Thee more advanced apps offer additional functionality. The RBS and NatWest Get Cash app allows customers to withdraw cash from an ATM via the app, even if they have forgotten their wallet and card. The app, downloaded 2.4 million times at the time of writing, generates a six digit PIN to be inserted at the ATM.

b) Person-to-Person payments In March 2012 Barclays launched Pingit , Europe’s first person-to-person service for sending or receiving money via your mobile. Promoted via heavyweight TV and online ads, the service helps those of us with little time on our hands, but with our mobiles always on hand, to sort out IOUs quickly, easily, and securely. The app uses industry standard encryption, and is automatically wiped from the phone if the user reports his or her phones lost or stolen.

c) On-device payments For those, like my friend who runs Zumba classes each week and would prefer to take card payments rather than carry bags of cash, two rivals provide on-device B2B and B2C payments: Square and PayPal Mobile.

Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey set up Square to enable anyone to take credit card payments on smartphones. Users simply attach the white ‘Square’ to the Apple and Android device and insert the card to the Square. The card transaction is verified and validated via secure connection. Apple and Android charge a 2.75 per cent commission for each swiped payment.

In the other corner, PayPal Here allows businesses to take payments using a similar, though blue and triangular credit card reader device which is plugged into the smartphone’s headphone jack. The card data is encrypted before transmission, and the customer receives email confirmation of the transaction.


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Mobile payment model #5 – contactless payments (NFC/RFID)There’s intense interest and investment in this one from all the parties in the mobile payment ‘goldrush’: banks and building societies, the mobile operators, point of sale tech providers,

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mobile app and site developers, and device manufacturers. The stakes are high – the prospect of contactless payments brings the potential for making margins on hundreds of millions of transactions, and real competitive advantage in winning and retaining customers.

Contactless payments are enabled via NFC, a set of standards for smartphones and other mobile devices to establish radio (RFID) communication with each other by touching them together or bringing them into close proximity, usually no more than a few centimetres. Contactless payments are just one of the data exchanges enabled by NFC technology, which requires a second chip (‘tag’) to be installed in the handset. At the time of writing, the range of handsets equipped with the second chip includes the Nexus, Samsung Galaxy SII and III, Nokia Lumia and HTC’s Windows Phone 8. Many industry commentators were surprised by Apple’s decision to omit a second chip from its iPhone 5 model.

To date, use of NFC on mobile devices has been confined to social interface, transport and ticketing, mobile ID recognition and customer loyalty programmes. NFC’s use for mobile payments, whether person-to-person or with retailers, remains at a nascent stage of development, with low transaction values.

There are three main consortium partners in the mix:

þ Visa and Samsung payWave. This joint NFC wireless payment system launched in London for the Olympics. Some 3,000 wireless payment terminals were installed across Olympics venues, allowing Visa customers to make contactless transaction. Samsung, one of Visa’s fellow Olympics sponsors, showcased its NFC enabled Galaxy SIII handset at the Games.

þ Barclaycard and Orange Quick Tap. One of the most high profile NFC services on the market, Quick Tap was launched by Barclaycard and Orange in April 2011 allowing Barclays debit and credit card customers to make payments using their handsets using NFC. The limit for single payments was increased in June 2012 from £15 to £20 to meet growing customer demand, and retail outlets now accepting Quick Tap include McDonalds, Subway, EAT and Pret a Manger.

þ Barclaycard PayTag. PayTag is a plastic sticker, one-third of the size of a credit card, which users stick to their handset to make contactless payments. The PayTag is linked to customers’ traditional credit card account. PayTags can be used by mobile users regardless of their handset, whether smartphones or featurephones. David Chan, CEO of Barclaycard Consumer Europe, comments: ‘We’re giving people the option of using their phones to make easy, convenient, everyday payments without the need to upgrade their current handset.’


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Mobile payment model #6 – mobile walletsThe ‘mobile wallet’ promised to do away with cards, cash and coins but, in reality, adoption will take time, even for the early adopters, and many doubt it will become mainstream.

We’ve left this one to last because whilst it promises to have the most radical transformation to consumers’ shopping behaviour, it’s also early stage.

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For mobile wallets to take over physical or online (PC) payments and become a part of an end-to-end consumer experience, the process has to be more convenient and as user-friendly and secure as the traditional payment options. There are a number of challenges consumers face when buying physical goods or services through a mobile phone:

þ These are the major obstacles for consumers transacting on their phone at many retailer sites. For example: forced login/account creation, sites not optimised for mobile and the reliance on credit cards to pay.

þ The need to access credit card payment details while on a website or in an app to pay, e.g. if a consumer is on the John Lewis site how do they access their credit card details? Most retail experiences require the entry of CVV number which legally cannot be stored.

þ Taking out physical wallets in public, holding cards to read the details and typing in the details is not a safe or a convenient process.

When looking at consumer adoption, the key point to consider is the penetration of handsets which carry the second chip, required to make the NFC payment. The main players currently are:

þ Google Wallet (and Citi Mastercard) þ Isis þ Mastercard PayPass Wallet þ O2 Wallet.

Google Wallet All eyes are on Google, as usual, to see how the ‘mobile first’ Internet giant will roll out its solution.

Google has teamed up with Citi Mastercard as its credit card partner. Users can also select a Google Prepaid card. As you’d expect, connectivity sits at the heart of the Google Wallet offer, with Google Offers synced automatically to the handset. Users can lock their Google Wallet with a secure PIN.

Google Wallet is available as an app which securely stores your customers’ credit cards and offers on their phones. When they checkout at brick-and-mortar stores that accept Google Wallet, they can pay and redeem offers quickly just by tapping your phone at the point of sale. Consumers will already see High Street and shopping mall merchants accepting Google Wallet, providing a quick, easy and fast checkout experience with real-time reporting of all transactions and loyalty programme redemptions.

Google Wallet is also a web-based solution. The online service stores credit cards in the cloud. When your customers checkout at online merchants that accept Google Wallet, they can quickly pay by signing into their Google Wallet accounts.

IsisOne of Google Wallet’s main challengers Isis had its first real coming out party for digital industry devotees at the SXSW 2012 in the US. Isis enjoys the backing of nearly every major US carrier and support from most of the largest credit card companies. Mobile users can access their payment options, offers and social streams which allow merchants to send time- and location-based deals. The user experience is quick and easy – simply click on the payment option, slide the phone near an NFC-enabled point of payment and the transaction is complete.

MasterCard PayPass WalletMasterCard, the payments processing network, unveiled PayPass Wallet in May 2012, designed to enable banks and retailers to harness the expected growth of electronic

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payments. PayPass is a unified network enabling merchants to accept digital payments made by consumers either electronically in store or online, using a smartphone, tablet or PC. MasterCard will offer services to help retailers, banks and tech companies to build digital wallets and let other parties plug their digital wallets into the PayPass network.

Marion King, President UK and Ireland said ‘With an ever increasing number of transactions being made online, merchants need to cater to changing consumer lifestyles and expectations. They need to offer shoppers peace of mind that their personal details are safe, offer a wider choice of payment options and quicker transaction times, which can ultimately translate into increased customer satisfaction and an uplift in sales. With PayPass Wallet Services we are again demonstrating our commitment to using our technology and expertise to offer these benefits to consumers, issuers, and merchants whilst offering the state-of-the-art security protection of the MasterCard payment system.’

Paypass proposition summaryO2 Wallet O2 Wallet differs from the other payment solutions by featuring multiple functions which can be accessed and shared via app and a web interface regardless of what UK mobile provider the customer uses. It offers the following:

þ Money Message. O2 Wallet enables consumers to securely transfer money to any UK mobile phone number as easily as sending a text. Money Messages allow consumers to make daily transfers of between £1 and £500, to make lending, borrowing or repaying money to friends and family easy.

þ Shopping via your mobile. A comprehensive barcode and search engine function compares the prices of millions of branded goods from more than 100 online retailers. In addition, consumers enjoy unique daily discounts, deals and Priority Moments via the ‘My Offers’ icon.

þ Your phone as your wallet. O2 Wallet enables consumers to digitise their existing debit and credit cards making it quick and easy to pay for things via their mobile. Customers can load money into their O2 Wallet account via one of their debit cards, by receiving a Money Message or with cash at more than 30,000 locations including O2 stores, PayPoint and epay retail outlets. O2 Wallet’s ‘transaction history’ helps consumers keep on top of their expenditure with text alerts when the account balance changes; a 30-day

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payment history on the app; and a 12-month history online. þ O2 Money Account Card. O2 Wallet offers both a physical and a virtual O2 Money

Account Card. Both are based on a Visa pre-paid account to help users manage their finances as they can only spend what they put in. Consumers can also apply for the physical O2 Money Visa Account Card to pay for things on the high street or withdraw cash from ATMs. This is a contactless card allowing tap-and-go payments at more than 100,000 contactless payment points across the UK.

þ iPad compatible. O2 Wallet is compatible with the majority of smartphones as well as iPads.

When will the Mobile Wallet live up to the promise to do away with cards, cash and coins?


Rating - potential


Trust, Privacy, Security êê


Scalable êêê

Total êêê

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SIX Mobile CRM and mobile coupons

r Q. Are we building loyalty through mobile interactions?

Today’s consumers are more promiscuous than ever in their selection of companies for their next purchase. The double-dip recession is putting customer loyalty under pressure, as a larger proportion of customers expects deals. Mobile customers can be your greatest brand advocates or loudest detractors within their circles.

Best Practice Tip 31 Use mobile to showcase offers and advocacyIncentivise customers with clearly defined offers, rewarding ‘friend get friend’ participation.

As all marketers know, winning loyal customers requires a detailed understanding of their preferences and needs, forensic attention to competitors’ product lines, pricing and value added services, and a firm grasp of their ever changing purchase behaviour. Smartphone usage is a major force for change. Online retailers and low-cost competitors will gain share or basket spend and profit when established retailers don’t keep up.

In its paper ‘The Dawn of Mobile Influence: Discovering the Value of Mobile in Retail’, Deloitte estimates smartphone influence on department store sales is due to grow from 6.7 per cent in 2012 to 24–27 per cent by 2016. For every $1 spent on mobile, mobile is influencing $13 in store sales.

As consumers, we like to know which retailers offer the best range of products, the most competitive prices, the most friendly and knowledgeable sales staff, the best customer service, and those that fall short. Today mobile phones give us options to check what others think by checking ratings and reviews online, on mobile sites or apps.

In this section we will look at how to build advocacy and loyalty through mobile CRM programmes. Customer loyalty development works through the all stages of the purchase cycle: we use the RACE MODEL – Reach, Act, Convert, Engage – to tackle mobile CRM.

Stage in purchase cycle

Consumer need Mobile deployment

Reach New product launches, appointment

reminders, in-store or online sales alerts.

List growth via opt-in to enable push SMS, MMS and in-app

notifications, triggered by purchase history, time or location,

targeted ads on mobile sites, in apps.

Act/Interact

Information gathering on product, price,

store location, discounts, offers. In-home,

out-of-home, in-store.

Activation of mobile channel through Pull SMS, QR code,

freephone number responses to Above The Line media, email,

on packaging, in-store. Mobile search.

Convert Secure, easy payment, access to online

and plastic card loyalty schemes.

Web-based payment, app payments, operator billing,

payment-specific apps, in-store mobile coupon redemption.

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Stage in purchase cycle

Consumer need Mobile deployment

Engage Advocacy through reviews and ratings,

warranty schemes, loyalty programme,

sharing via social media.

Mobile-optimised sites and apps for comparison sites,

Facebook and Twitter sites and apps.

Reach r Q. Have options to increase mobile contacts been reviewed?

We consider different techniques based on push and pull marketing – first increasing awareness of a brand’s use of the different mobile services and the value they offer, then encouraging action to activate via mobile. Seventeen per cent of mobile users have changed their mind about purchasing a product or service in-store as a result of information gathered using a smartphone, according to Google.

The most effective mobile CRM programmes leverage opted-in mobile subscriber groups, recruited by responding to offers promoted with digital and offline media. Let’s remember that the lion’s share of retail transactions – 80 per cent to 90 per cent, depending on sector – still take place in-store. Location-based services serve to drive footfall in-store. Mobile provides the ‘glue’ linking the online and real world because their phone is always to hand. So mobile can help drive footfall leading to in-store sales.

Your mobile CRM initiatives will be partly determined, as with your traditional email marketing, by the size and quality of your list. How to maximise your Reach through mobile messaging, mobile coupons and email on mobile is what we consider in this section. This is combined with activation of use of the mobile channel using different techniques based on push and pull marketing. First we increase awareness of a brand’s use of the different mobile services and the value they offer, then we encourage action to activate use of the channel.

We’ll focus in this section on how to encourage opt-in to messaging, but before we do, it’s worth noting that you’re not only growing your mobile subscriber list so that you can direct visitors to the website. Your mobile subscriber list can and should also support offline sales. While digital sales channels, including mobile, promise high margin growth and grab the headlines and attention of shareholders and retail analysts, the lion’s share of retail transactions – 85 per cent to 90 per cent – still take place in store.

More than 40 per cent of retailers have a mobile presence, but this lags behind today’s mobile consumers. Over two-thirds of them are already shopping on their smartphones, according to eBay.

John Lewis and Waitrose have established a clear and consistent mobile presence, promoted prominently through other media channels. In traditional TV ads John Lewis emphasises this through giving three prominent signposts: in-store, online and mobile alongside other campaign or brand messages.

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John Lewis instore:online:mobile call-to-actionDeveloping a plan to increase mobile opt-ins

r Q. Have we developed a plan to increase mobile opt-ins?

Whether it’s email, direct mail or mobile messaging, direct communications are still important to customer relationship management. To use mobile more for CRM needs serious consideration of how you encourage opt-in.

Strategy recommendation 14 Build an opted-in mobile loyalty database Obtaining quality customer coverage of mobile marketing won’t happen by accident – it needs a concerted effort to capture mobiles from relevant touchpoints.

The best route is building your own opted-in mobile database, using existing above the line, below the line and other digital channels.

Mobile case study – the M&S mobile data strategyM&S resisted investing in mobile until they were satisfied that their loyal customers, largely non-smartphone users, would welcome mobile communication on their handsets. Such was the degree of trust between M&S and its customers that its first tentative steps in mobile followed, on a trial basis.

M&S developed a fully integrated multichannel strategy to building its mobile database, which now exceeds one million customers.

Best Practice Tip 32 Use shortcodes to obtain opt-in Featuring shortcodes prominently in a range of media to obtain opt-in is still an effective technique. These should be linked to email in the customer record where possible.

Mailshots carried unique codes which respondents were invited to text in to a dedicated M&S shortcode in order to win loyalty points. In the process, M&S harvested ‘opted-in’ mobile numbers matched to existing customer records. The same logic applied to email addresses to append mobile numbers for existing customers.

M&S also use bespoke landing pages to obtain opt-in, clearly stating the benefits of their mobile text alerts.

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In another approach to acquire new customers, mobile numbers and permission, M&S carried SMS and QR code calls to action on press ads inviting readers to respond via SMS/QR code to qualify for time-based offers. Social media is a significant driver of traffic to the M&S mobile services.

This chart summarises the range of activities used by M&S to drive list opt-in.

Mobile touchpoints used in M&S customer acquisitionA mobile call to action on other media provides a real-time barometer of your customers’ awareness, liking and response to other media. Naturally, this response path won’t delight some creative and media agency partners who would rather not see their advertising and media held to account with such precision, but the responses speak for themselves!

Obtaining opt-in r Q. Has our opt-in good practice been reviewed?

The personal nature of mobile marketing means you must respect consumer privacy and be vigilant in getting customers’ explicit permission to contact them via mobile. We urge you strongly not to buy lists of mobile numbers and send unsolicited messages to unsuspecting mobile users. This ‘spray and pray’ approach leads to high opt-out levels, complaints and plenty of negative feedback on social media.

Best Practice Tip 33 All mobile messaging must be opt-in This is a legal requirement and damaging to a brand if not obtained. If in doubt about data collected some time ago, ask again, re-consent.

You may have genuinely ‘opted-in’ customers from previous promotions, who are ‘in play’ for mobile communication. It’s our advice that you ‘ping’ these numbers using an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) number look-up to verify the numbers are live before investing in messaging. It’s also good practice to warn them that you’re planning to make contact via mobile, as they may have forgotten opting in.

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M&S website SMS opt-inPush notifications

r Q. Have we reviewed our options for using app push notifications?

In this section, we’ve focused on opt-in to traditional SMS text messaging for CRM, but if you have a mobile app you need to think about encouraging receipt of push notifications too. Unlike SMS messaging, which requires users to opt-in to receive messaging, app users can be reached with highly targeted push notifications without the need to get approval, thereby creating a more frictionless CRM experience.

In-app notifications also serve to remind users that they have already downloaded the app, and prompts them to use the app more regularly, realise its utility, and prolong its lifetime on their handset. This tackles one of the major challenges we looked at in Step 3 in keeping the app front of mind.

Best Practice Tip 34 Review the potential of app push notifications In-app push notifications enable you to deliver relevant messages within the context of use whether that’s current location (if collected), stated preferences and purchase history.

Act r Q. Have we reviewed our options to encourage customer interaction through mobile

CRM?

This step involves encouraging mobile, and other digital and real-world interactions that deepen an initial relationship through the lifecycle.

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These can be interactions with other users or interactions with online services that deepen an initial relationship through the lifecycle.

With mobile screen resolutions this can be even more of a challenge than with the desktop since user experience (UX) is critical in mobile. Whether in-home, in-transit or in-store, mobile users have a smaller screen, a small keypad and no mouse to navigate your site. To maximise the number of shoppers and prospects who transition from the Reach to Act stages, retailers must ensure the user experience is easy and seamless.

Strategy recommendation 15 Identify which mobile interactions fit the purchase cycle Brands should create subtle mobile interaction points that complement other connection points.

With reference to different examples, this section examines each of the activation behaviour:

þ Encouraging a search. þ Using the store finder. þ Ordering a catalogue or brochure. þ Accessing a gift finder. þ Using a barcode scan option. þ Rating or reviewing a product.

To gain an idea of the type of interactions involved with ACT, take a look at this example. The John Lewis mobile site prompts visitors to search for a product by keyword, product code (when they have been viewing an ad or catalogue) or shop name. This is an efficient approach since no separate prompts are needed for product or storefinder.

John Lewis mobile siteThis example (http://m.johnlewis.com) is currently in Beta with customers invited to test the new version. Other options below the fold after the menu options for the main categories, Gifts and Special Offers were Request a catalogue and email sign-up. In the new version they have been replaced by a ‘My John Lewis’ with opt-in to email marketing (but not SMS) during login or sign-up.

John Lewis don’t offer the barcode scanning option, but we have discussed this in reference

http://m.johnlewis.com

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to the Debenhams mobile app. Debenhams has introduced Wi-Fi across all of its 167 UK stores so that customers can access information, special deals, check for sizes and availability or arrange for goods to be delivered to their homes.

Supporting multichannel customer journeys through mobile To be best placed to support customers it’s best to plan for the future. In its study ‘The Future of Shopping’, commissioned by The Marketing Store, the Future Foundation sets out a vision of what might happen in the retail world over the next 25 years. Here are the key predictions:

þ The bricks-and-mortar of the high street will not be drastically altered. þ Technology will change fundamentally the way shoppers behave at the point of sale. þ Retail will be a multi-faceted experience relying on experimentation, inspiration and

immersion.Mobile plays a central role in the main themes identified in the study.

þ Theme 1 – data as currency. Data will be the foundation of personalised seamless shopping experiences. Our mobile phones make detailed customer profiles and loyalty card data portable, connecting the online and in-store worlds. As explained in the mCoupons section which follows.

þ Theme 2 – ‘Me-tail’. The ability to personalise all aspects of the shopping experience – from the product itself, to pricing and customer service – will be a fundamental aspect of future retail landscape reflecting individual shopper needs. Early trials by Starbucks demonstrate the power of mobile in helping the shopper to place her specific order while in traffic on the bus, present her phone to the barista on the head of the fast-track collection point, make the payment and top up her loyalty account without having to wait in line or find her purse.

þ Theme 3 – Re-humanisation of shopping. In a world dominated by screens and new technology we will see more human contact and ways of experiencing the retail world. Shoppers will seek excitement and discovery and a major way of doing this will be engagement enabled via technology. New Look’s flagship store in Dublin is a great example. Shoppers try on their favourite fashions, have their photos taken, appear on interactive in-store screens then share their favourite poses with their social networks via mobile. Another great example from Renault, which equipped dealerships with 7,000 iPads loaded with its configurator, creating a new action point for customers to engage with the car at the dealership whilst the salesman prepares the test drive.

þ Theme 4 – The Try Street. What we know today is the local high street will look like a series of highly stimulating and engaging testing outlets, where shoppers seek out, touch and feel the products they’re interested in, but not necessarily buy. The high street becomes the ‘Try Street’. This trend reverses the ROPO hypothesis. More and more consumers Research Offline Purchase Online, and use their smartphones for comparison shopping. Forty-three per cent of UK shoppers now use smartphones while on the move to compare prices and read product reviews (up from 19 per cent in 2011). A survey by OnDeviceResearch reveals that 74 per cent of respondents would be happy for a retailer to send a text or email with promotions while they’re using in-store Wi-Fi and, according to Google, 17 per cent of shoppers change their mind in-store based on information they find on their smartphones.

It’s worth learning from how retailers have responded to mobile since this is already revolu-tionising the shopping experience, and market leaders from the retail sector have been quick to respond. Sarah Baillie, Debenhams’ mobile commerce manager, explains how she sees it:

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‘Over the past ten years, online has been desperately trying to catch up with in-store, now the opposite is true. Brands must make the most of technology and their digital assets to enhance the customers experience in store.

‘No longer is it just the techies using their phones in store, we see a huge number of our customers signing onto Wi-Fi and using their barcode scanners to gain access to product information and different sizes. Integrating online in store should be top priority for all multichannel retailers looking to create an experiential and destination shopping experience.’

Debenhams’ most valuable customers engage with the brand via multiple channels. Eighty-eight of them browse via their mobiles, to engage in multichannel shopping experiences.

Examples of Debenhams mobile applicationsAn example of reviewing customer journeysThis example, for Whirlpool kitchen appliances, shows the reference points a female, time poor shopper will check before making a high consideration purchase. This is not always a linear process!

Erica, the shopper persona, will be influenced by the views of family and friends, and take personal recommendations, she will engage in professional reviews on JD Power and other sites, she’ll visit Sears, Lowe and other retail stores to ‘touch and feel’ the product, before checking retailer and manufacturer websites, whether on her PC, tablet or mobile phone, and spot kitchen ads and promotions in other media. No doubt she’ll use search engines throughout the process, which may take several weeks or even months.

Retailers wanting Erica’s custom must ensure her purchase journey is frictionless: sites carrying the product info, reviews, ratings and pricing must be quick and easy to access, load and share.

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Typical customer touchpoints involved in a purchaseDriving traffic to mobile sites with specific landing pages

r Q. Have specific landing pages been developed for mobile?

In the examples we have seen, visitors arrive on the home page or where the search delivers them. For offline communications or online campaigns, you should consider these additional options:

The example from M&S shows a quick, slick customer journey tailored for mobile.

M&S mobile campaign exampleThe press ad carries a time limited offer, available only through SMS response, to stimulate responses. Respondents reveal their mobile numbers, and give their permission to receive offers linked to the ‘Dine in’ offer. The bounceback SMS confirms the originator, the £10 offer,

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a clickable (and trackable) link, and the opt-out option. The mobile optimised landing page presents details of the offer. Respondents arriving on the landing page allow M&S to detect the precise handset type, which allows for various forms of content to be presented, in the correct format, or suppressed.

M&S sends weekly push SMS alerts to its opted in CRM database promoting tactical offers in order to drive traffic to its new mobile site, or to drive footfall to members’ nearest stores.

M&S mobile campaignsM&S sees a major spike in mobile site traffic during prime time TV. This is not surprising when you consider that 86 per cent of us engage in ‘dual screening’, interacting with TV ads on our mobiles. This is true for mobile phones, and particularly true for tablets: according to the IAB, over 50 per cent of all tablet use takes place whilst watching TV. And tablet users spend 4.26 hours per week shopping, on their tablets.

The message for the consumer is simple: if you want the product advertised, use you phone and tablet to get on the site and buy instantly, while stocks last, rather than remembering to go in-store on the next shopping trip and be disappointed to find your size/colour is not available.

Encouraging in-store interactions through barcode scanning r Q. Have options for barcode scanning been assessed?

We saw earlier in this section how Debenhams app has a built-in barcode feature to encourage use in-store. Consumer brands can also use this approach. P&G’s focus on the ‘First Moment of Truth’ – the moment of purchase decision – explains its trial of barcodes on ‘shelf-talker’ displays in US retailer chains. This example, for Herbal Essences shampoo, invites shoppers with different hair conditions to snap the corresponding barcode to get more product information.

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P&G: mobile engagement at ‘first moment of truth’ in-storeOwn label product lines can also use barcodes to drive home or in-store interaction. This example from M&S, using a 2D data matrix code rather than a QR code, takes the shopper to a mobile-optimised site containing product information, a selection of dubious daily jokes involving fruits, and offers entitling the bearer to redeem a 20 per cent discount on a complementary product at the till. All interaction and transaction data is captured and linked to the customer record.

QR code to drive response from on-pack promotionmCRM case study – Micro-targeting mobile users for iPhone5 upgrades in Sweden When iPhone5 launched in Sweden, TeliaSonera sought to segment its user base to target them with offers relevant for each target group: existing iPhone users, other smartphone users due for renewal, users wanting their first smartphone. Working with mCRM specialist Bosbec AB, they devised an automated targeting campaign to sustain demand for the iPhone5 launch.

Ola Rådström, Head of Online Sales at Telia, commented:

‘Our multi-channel mCRM service combines interactive mobile web content, dynamic app messaging, SMS and e-mail, ensuring prolonged demand for the iPhone5, which outstripped supply.’

The solution involved:

þ Micro-target profile – mobile users showing interest last year in iPhone 4S.

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þ Mailshots carrying SMS response call to action for latest product news. þ Follow up out-bound SMS alerts with more iPhone5 news. þ Questionnaire sent via email or SMS with link to mobile site asking where they wanted

to buy the iPhone (store, web, on-mobile, customer centre, via resellers), date iPhone5 required, current handset used.

þ Responses to questionnaire were tagged in order to tailor an offer to the customer. þ Telia encouraged prospects to order the phone directly via their mobiles and collect from

Telia stores.

Convert r Q. Have options to use mobile CRM to increase conversion been reviewed?

Brands should ensure a smooth transition from Reach and Act to Conversion to sale. In this context, we take a close look at how mobile will reinvigorate one of the oldest loyalty tools of them all – coupons – with personalised, time and location sensitive offers, providing a lifeline to embattled High Street retailers. Fifty-nine per cent36 of shoppers surveyed say they want them, but the industry is yet to develop scaleable redemption infrastructure.

Using mobile coupons to encourage conversion to sale r Q. Has our mobile coupon potential been reviewed and implemented?

We argue that mobile has the potential to transform this under-utilised loyalty channel. Mobile coupons are personalised, time and location sensitive. A key point of difference with mobile couponing is tracking redemption, and attributing sales to the coupon. Mobile changes this by providing the data necessary to attribute sales to couponing activity in real time. From the perspective of consumers, retailers and tech providers, we evaluate the pros and cons of the three main redemption methods: keyed entry, scanning and NFC to project adoption trends and the likely impact on retail sales.

Mobile couponing success story – Apple Passbook + Harvester promotionTo promote its Passbook loyalty app, Apple teamed up with Harvester, the Mitchells & Butlers-owned restaurant chain to offer iPhone fans £5 off a £30 bill if they turn up at one of the branded restaurants with a handset running iOS6 (and at least one other person). It was the first of its kind in the UK and showed the potential of tapping into a specific handset demographic.

Carefully targeted mobile ads, delivered through the Millennial Media platform achieved over 2,000 clicks to download the branded landing page in the first day alone. Fifty-five per cent of the page views converted to unique voucher codes, which were issued via Eagle Eye Solutions, and added to the Apple Passbook ready for in-restaurant redemption and tracking.

36 Orange Exposure 2 survey.

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The assets for the integrated Harvester mobile campaignThe options for mobile coupon redemption There are three main methods to be aware of that we will explain in this short briefing:

Keyed entry Scanning NFC

þ 1. Keyed entry. Keyed entry provides the path of least resistance. Shoppers simply key in their unique coupon number to the chip and PIN machine after entering their PIN number. The coupon number is validated and the coupon redeemed. Both retailer and brand share the detailed data trail revealing the origin of the coupon (e.g. response to poster, press ad, online competition, SMS or in-app push notification), and real-time reporting, linked to EPOS data.

þ 2. Scanning. Scanning can be effective but requires an expensive hardware upgrade. Traditional infra-red scanners are able to scan paper coupons, but will be inadequate for scanning mobile barcodes, as the phone’s screen bounces the beam. Instead, retailers require DDS scanners which use a different scanning software. The best examples we have seen are in the US. Some merchants accepting Groupon offers on shoppers’ handsets use handheld scanners to scan, validate and redeem ‘Groupons’ for a range of goods and services which merchants send in order to stimulate footfall during day-parts when custom is slack, or to run tactical promotions on product lines without resorting to ‘sales’. From the shopper’s perspective, the scanning solution makes sense and takes all the hassle out of the redemption process. On many occasions Rob has witnessed mobile users in Chicago, Groupon’s home town, present bar staff with their mobile phone carrying the Groupon voucher, and seen said bar man or woman, usually the picture of

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perfect customer service, revert to pen and paper to write down the details before tapping them into the till. This is a clunky end to an otherwise smooth coupon transaction.

þ 3. NFC. We have already looked at NFC in Step 5. It’s worth saying here that NFC promises to transform the mobile coupon industry, but we must consider carefully the barriers to adoption – for the retailer in installing NFC terminals, and for the consumer in learning and trusting this channel. The jury is out on whether how consumers will adopt NFC. There’s a sizeable faction of well-informed and well-respected mobile commentators who believe NFC means ‘Not For Commerce’, or another three letter acronym I won’t spell out. Few doubt NFC will triumph in revolutionising mobile loyalty programmes.

Direct to consumer – By-passing the retailer during coupon redemptionA recurring theme from researching this topic is the need for the product manufacturers to deliver a user-friendly couponing solution which can be scaled across multiple retail distributors. Until the in-store infrastructure is in place to handle mass-market couponing, FMCG or Fast Moving Consumer Goods have been exploring other solutions.

Shopitize is a brand-to-consumer cashback mobile couponing service, which launched in November 2012 with Kellogg’s and United Biscuits as launch partners. A pilot group of over 2,000 shoppers in Britain received deals from the two companies’ brands, as of today, and for the next six weeks. In the pilot phase, the deals offer consumers savings of up to 50 per cent off standard retail prices.

Shopitize coupon redemptionTo get the offers, shoppers download the iOS or Android Shopitize app, sign up to the service, and then receive offers direct to their mobile phone. They then head to the supermarket, buy the goods, scan the pack to ensure they have the correct pack size/flavour that the offer relates to, and after checking out, take a photo of the till receipt. The consumer must photograph the entire receipt: a ‘stitch’ function within the app enables the consumer to take photographs of different sections of the receipt and then stitch them together.

The photo of the receipt is then uploaded to the Shopitize mobile platform via the app, where it is validated.

Importantly, the retailer plays no part in the redemption process, so there is no need to scan a mobile barcode or enter an equivalent reference code at the till. And users must purchase the product before being able to redeem the cashback, unlike most coupon promotions which

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are offered to incentivise purchase.

Consumers are rewarded by cashback, either by PayPal, cheque or BACS payment, and can request a cashback payment once their savings balance reaches £5.

The success factor for this and other mobile couponing solutions is the user experience.

Sam Blunt, Brand experience and digital controller for Kellogg’s UK who was involved in the trial, commented: ‘Kellogg’s aims wherever possible to embrace and support innovation that could enhance the shopper experience. Mobile technology is becoming more and more integrated into our everyday lives, and Shopitize is the first mobile couponing system we have seen that has the potential to operate right across the retail trade.

‘Success [for Shopitize] rests on a slick & easy user journey, followed by consumer uptake.’

Many industry experts share the view that retailers hold the key to unlocking the full potential of mobile coupons. Neil Cooke, CEO of Response Group, comments: ‘When it comes to the biggest issues affecting FMCG couponing, namely mis- and mal-redemption, there is a belief that mCoupons are the panacea. This is not strictly speaking accurate, as the missing element is real-time point-of-sale validation of coupons. Once retailers accept that it is in their long term interest to implement POS validation of coupon promotions, the opportunities for couponing in general, and mobile couponing in particular, will be enormous.’

Engage r Q. Have we reviewed our options to develop loyalty, improve service and develop

advocacy?

Companies delivering seamless mobile solutions through the Reach, Act and Convert stages are rewarded with longer-term loyalty. To maximise ongoing engagement and positive referrals, focus CRM communication around running trials, measuring, learning and adapting in the quest for continual improvement.

Strategy recommendation 16 Not putting multichannel contact policies in place We see that often the right business rules are not put in place to support messaging whether that’s email or mobile messaging. This limits the capacity for relationship building through mobile messaging.

Key issues to consider within contact strategy are:

þ Messaging policy rules, for example frequency of messaging or in-app push notifications.

þ Event-triggered emails, for example balance between automated, event-triggered messages versus campaign-related messages for both SMS and in-app push notifications.

þ Use of welcome or onboarding strategy, for example coverage of SMS and QR codes activations, app download, use of location-based services and social media activity.

þ Behavioural mobile messaging, for example messaging related to purchase, store visits or abandoned baskets.

þ Reactivation strategies, for example messaging and email to engage lapsed users. þ Testing messaging effectiveness, using targeting, frequency and creative.

Case study – the use of CRM messaging by M&SWith reference to testing and adapting, M&S has developed a highly sophisticated and responsive process in managing its CRM messaging service. A/B and multivariate testing is

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conducted on each and every SMS and MMS messaging execution, with tested variables including copy, image creative, time and day of transmission, and frequency. Messaging frequency translates into significant shifts in opt-out rates.

Testing, measuring, learning, adapting

Improving mobile-based customer service r Q. Have we reviewed mobile-based customer service options?

Delivering customer service via mobile platforms is increasingly important with many mobile users now looking to obtain customer service when they are away from their fixed desktop connections.

Strategy recommendation 17 Developing mobile self-service capabilities Although discussion of mobile marketing naturally focuses on increasing leads and sales, mobile service quality shouldn’t be neglected.

Start by reviewing the types of mobile web service that customers are already using as described earlier in this section. The use of store-finders and standard post-sales enquiries such as order tracking, delivery and returns are part of this web self-service activity. Whether it’s a mobile-optimised site or app it’s important that it’s easy to access these post-purchase ‘top tasks’. Don’t hide them in a complex FAQ that only works on the desktop device.

It’s important to assess the quality of satisfaction ratings of mobile users across all of these post-purchase activities since they’re important to encouraging repeat purchase.

Best Practice Tip 35 Review satisfaction for post-sales customer service Mobile users will have different requirements for service and will be using different platforms so it’s important to check that these customers are satisfied. Use advanced segments in mobile analytics to understand the most popular post-customer decisions.

Long-term success in mobile hinges on truly understanding your customer’s needs and his or her mobile behaviour and motivations across the customer lifecycle.

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Checking email marketing is effective on mobile devices r Q. Has email marketing been effective on mobile devices?

We’ve talked a lot about how SMS and push notifications can be used to offer promotions and coupons. Email marketing is still really important as a customer contact method, with more opted-in to email than mobile typically. So it’s important to review this too as part of your mobile strategy for completeness.

Strategy recommendation 18 Review effectiveness of email on mobile devices You need to make sure your emails highlight the offers clearly on mobile devices and review the opportunities for couponing redeemed in-store via mobile devices.

You can create separate versions of your email for HTML and mobile in your preference centre and then let people choose between the two. But most won’t select their preference, so a more common approach is to actively target recipients who your analytics or email software indicates are using a mobile, then send them the ‘mobile-optimised’ version.

Fortunately Internet-enabled phones now include browsers and email clients that are based on the WebKit rendering engine, which has fantastic HTML and CSS support. This includes the iPhone, Android devices, webOS, Samsung’s Dolfin browser and the most recent versions of RIM’s browser for Blackberry. This is an example of the approach. You can read more about how this is achieved through media queries.37

An example of email with media queries delivering a Responsive Design

Best Practice Tip 36 Use Responsive Design and media queries in email So design and code an email that works on the desktop, and you can be fairly certain that it will render faithfully on all these devices.

Kath Pay, co-founder of email marketing consultancy Plan to Engage and Smart Insights blogger, argues that email and mobile marketing must work in concert. Mobile consumers have voted with their usage: between 20 and 60 per cent of your database will be reading your marketing emails on their mobile device.

37 Overview of media queries.

http://www.smartinsights.com/email-marketing-ecrm-alerts/design-email-mobiles/

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The obvious challenges are designing for smaller screen and keeping the multi-tasking consumer engaged, e.g. reading your email whilst continually checking to see whether the train is arriving or the plane is departing. And, of course, not forgetting the rendering challenges for the multiple devices. Kath’s blog post38 summarises the seven tips to improve your email for mobile, with a strong focus on UX – particularly designing for touch and designing for instant interaction.

Targeted offers/couponsThe personalisation of offers is critical to getting a greater level of engagement from mobile consumers. Primarily this is because people want offers that are relevant and personal to them and dislike irrelevant, impersonal, mass offers.

For example, if an advertiser has a total audience of 30,000. After applying targeting filters, the planned promotion would only be relevant to 3,000 of the total audience. The temptation here is to send the promotion to the whole original data list and aim for quantity. However while the analytics will show a potential uptake of 10 per cent of the audience (3,000 that the offer was relevant to), the advertiser created a negative impression on the 90 per cent of its audience (27,000 customers).

Andy Smith of Eagle Eye gives an example from their mobile shopping app which currently hosts two types of offers:

þ The first type is ‘Retailer Offers’ which are the usual coupon/voucher codes currently available on the market at any given time. These are displayed within the app and not targeted, accessible through the browsing process.

þ The second are highly targeted offers, we call them ‘MyOffers’ in the Scope app, which consumers receive based on their shopping activity and geographical locations. For example, if a consumer has been shopping for DVDs and a bricks-and-mortar retailer has a sale on DVDs, even specific segments or titles, we can deliver the offer just to users who looked at that particular DVD.

The average open rates of the ‘Retailer Offers’ are 13 per cent. The ‘MyOffers’ process will deliver an offer based on the user’s shopping behaviour and location though an in-app push notification and achieve average open rates of 50 per cent. That’s a 37 per cent higher engagement.

Andy stresses that it’s important for mobile conversion to link the offer to the products it applies to. This enables a consumer to receive the offer, open the offer and then choose the product they want to buy. At this point they are then taken to the product page on the retailer’s mobile site. The targeted offers process drives click-through rates of 28 per cent.Targeting of offers and coupons significantly increases engagement and loyalty because advertisers only deliver content that consumers want to see.

As this example shows, long-term success in mobile hinges on truly understanding your customer needs and his or her mobile behaviour and motivations across the customer lifecycle.

38 Smart Insights: Mobile email marketing.

http://www.smartinsights.com/email-marketing/mobile-email-marketing/mobile-marketing-advantage/

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SEVEN Integrating mobile, local and social

r Q. Are we taking advantage of SoLoMo?

When the Steven Spielberg movie ‘Minority Report’ opened in 2002, viewers were confronted with a new digital age, where recognition technology permitted brands to reach out to consumers with micro-targeted ads. The film first sparked my genuine interest in mobile marketing.

I wondered whether Tom Cruise, aka John Anderton, could switch a preference to select only his favourite beers, and block the messages he hadn’t opted to receive. If so, this heralded the Holy Grail for marketers: an opted-in, permission-based marketing opportunity, providing rich consumer data, allowing for location and time sensitive messaging to drive incremental sales. A decade later, this vision is reality, and the GPS-enabled mobile phone provides the digital conduit.

Google estimates 85 per cent of UK mobile users seek local information, and 81 per cent take action based on what they find. When prompted to receive location based data, 70 per cent of mobile users said ‘no’ in 2011, but today 70 per cent say ‘yes’.

Location based services (LBS) also known as proximity marketing present a massive opportunity for marketers to provide customers with time- and location-based messages which trigger increased awareness, saliency, footfall, sales and long-term loyalty.

In this section, we show that LBS marketing will be a vital ally for retailers and other bricks and online businesses seeking competitive advantage.

What is it? Location based services (LBS)Mobile services that adapt messages and options based on location. LBS marketing covers a range of services delivered to consumers through their GPS-enabled mobile devices through cellular mobile or Wi-Fi networks which identify the geographical position of the mobile device.

Key decisions businesses must make when adopting location based services:

þ Privacy issues surrounding LBS. þ Consumer usage of LBS. þ Strategic role of LBS in marketing. þ Creating, delivering and monitoring offers and coupons. þ Integrating location and social marketing.

Think smart users, not smartphones! Users make use of their mobile based on their context.

Mistake to avoid 19 Not supporting the most common customer journeysSome customers ROPO. Others do the reverse. You should think how your apps and mobile sites support these key ROPO behaviours.

Location based services marketing plays a central role throughout the customer journey, beyond the initial mobile search, extending into locating stores, receiving location-based advertising, in-app push notifications, and mobile coupons, which can be delivered via

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multiple mobile channel. Here are some examples of relevance across the RACE customer touchpoints.

Customer journey stage

Mobile formats Data captured // insights

Reach/Act Mobile search Devices used for search, informs SEO, PPC Reach/Act SMS and QR code

Call to Action on offline and in-store media

Mobile numbers and ‘opt-in’ permission; effectiveness of each medium e.g. press, poster, Point of sale media in generating response and inform future media planning

Reach/Act Mobile advertising Click-through data informs performance of mobile ad networks

Reach/Act In-app push notifications

Engagement with offers by device, time and location. Informs future offer strategy

Convert Mobile site and app Time and location of transactions. Effect of other media channels used

Convert Mobile coupon Time and location of redemption. Effect of other media channels used

Engagement Facebook connect, Twitter feed

Likes, follows, comments, conversations, ratings, reviews, retweets

In this section, we argue that LBS marketing is a vital ally for bricks-and-mortar retailers in fighting back against online retailers. Online retailers have also been quick to grasp location for their competitive advantage. Throughout this section, we will look at examples of both ‘pull’ and ‘push’ LBS marketing.

What is it? Pull and push local mobile examples‘Pull’ examples are initiated by the mobile user where they have a specific need for a local service. ‘Push’ examples are initiated by the service provider, with the mobile users’ prior consent to send a message or notification.

The mobile channel has already transformed consumer behaviour, with dramatic and far-reaching consequences for whole industries. Consider the effect of mobile phones on music sales, alarm clocks, paper diaries, address books, writing paper and envelopes, postage stamps, digital cameras, calculators and fixed line telephony. Here we add to that list A-Z atlases, compasses and sat nav units!

How location-based services can support business goalsGoogle estimates that 85 per cent of UK mobile users seek local information via search on their mobile, and 81 per cent take action after looking. How can we translate this demand for local services into business value?

Effective LBS marketing must satisfy a customer demand. A survey by location specialist JiWire reveals 53 per cent of mobile users would be prepared to share their location for marketing purposes in exchange for relevant content, in particular sales information, customer reviews, directions, product availability. These all represent business opportunities for companies who do opt-in to local services. Shoppers seek sales info, customer reviews, directions, product availability.

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Use of mobile services in-store – US usersLocation-based services plays a central role throughout the customer journey, beyond the initial mobile search, extending into locating stores, receiving location-based advertising, in-app push notifications, and mobile coupons, which can be delivered via multiple mobile channels.

Managing the permission issues surrounding LBS marketing r Q. Have permission options for location-based marketing been reviewed?

Respecting consumer privacy sits at the heart of all mobile marketing. This is especially important in the context of LBS marketing. Many consumers are wary about the ‘Big Brother’ connotations of tracking technology, so brands must communicate clearly their LBS value proposition, and build trust with customers.

Best Practice Tip 37 Get consumers’ explicit permission to use their location Up to 70 per cent of mobile users will now say ‘yes’ to receiving location-based information. Reassure and explain the benefits in a compelling way.

Whether communicating via SMS, mobile advertising, mobile sites, apps or third-party loyalty partners, brands should always state precisely how they intend to use customers’ location data. This is vital in building trust in the service, and allaying fears about misuse of location-based data to trigger unwanted messaging.

The keys steps include a check box requesting consent to use their current location, and terms and conditions, which mobile users should accept before using the service.

There is a significant shift in consumers’ willingness to receive location data. According to Olivier Ropar, eBay’s senior director for EU mobile, 70 per cent of their mobile users said ‘no’ to location data in 2011, but now 70 per cent say ‘yes’.39

2. Consumer usage of LBS marketingThe key point to remember is that mobile technology enables today’s smartphones and tablets to perform a vast range of services. But the commercial success of any one function depends on consumer adoption. Location-based services marketing promises immediate potential for mass scale because today’s mobile users have already understood and accepted the clear benefits derived. The willingness to use LBS differs greatly by type of

39 eBay customer research.

http://www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/news/1139133/Influencers-eBays-Olivier-Ropars-future-mcommerce/

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store, but the monthly activity in malls is high.

Monthly mobile activity in different locations (% of US Shoppers). Source: JWireThe following mobile customer journey, which may be familiar to some readers, takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the role of LBS in providing a vital service throughout a typical evening ‘out on the town’.

Step 1 – Find my nearest pintIn its bid to retain share against new competition in the cider market, Strongbow ran a multiple award-winning integrated mobile campaign whose centrepiece was a location-based loyalty programme. This case study, from 2008, is one of the first fully integrated mobile social location campaigns which predates mass adoption of Facebook.

The Strongbow BowTime mobile campaignExisting and prospective customers responded to press and radio ads via SMS to receive via SMS bounceback a link to a microsite with details of their nearest participating pub. The site also included a mobile barcode which could be redeemed at participating pubs for a free pint.

The initial location look-up element worked by matching the phone’s location, identified via its mobile ‘cell ID’, to a database containing details of the participating pubs. Users could also find the nearest participating pub to their home for a pint after their commute by entering their post code (zip code) and matching to the same database of participating pubs.

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The reach of the BowTime campaign was amplified via Social Media in two ways. The first stage of the campaign included ‘friend get friend’ functionality: users were invited to invite friends to participate via SMS. Second, Strongbow partnered with mobile site Flirtomatic. BowTime participants were invited to ‘gift’ a virtual pint as a token of their affection or gratitude for giving them a night out with their mates. All entrants were age verified.

In total, 30,000 pints were gifted, and details of givers and receivers entered into the BowTime database. All participants were then entered into an engaging four-month mobile CRM loyalty campaign, and sent weekly branded SMS and MMS messages including invitations to win festival tickets and merchandise. Weekly opt-outs averaged two per cent (i.e. 98 per cent stayed opted in for weekly branded messaging).

Location data captured from the acquisition and CRM phases provided valuable insights for Strongbow to identify the profiles of their customers, including data captured which revealed a significant portion of regular BowTime participants were BC1 customers with affluent inner city post codes, alongside the core target audience of C2Ds living in outlying areas.

Results þ Press and radio ads promote BowTime. þ 100,000 responses, drives customers to 3,500 pubs to redeem mobile vouchers. þ Location service features ‘cell ID’ and post code look up. þ 30,000 virtual pints gifted via social media site Flirtomatic. þ Purchase intent increases 44 per cent (Millward Brown).

Step 2 – Find my nearest toiletSit or Squat, an existing service which plots public toilets on a map provided an excellent tactical opportunity for P&G to create a branded app for its Charmin toilet paper brand.

Sit or Squat Bathroom finder in 10 different countries – 100,000 bathrooms worldwide

The ‘Sit or Squat’ bathroom finder app features 100,000 ‘bathrooms’ in 10 countries, plotted on a map within the app. Users of the service are invited to rate the bathrooms based on cleanliness and user experience.

Dewayne Guy, external relations manager at P&G, comments: ‘Sit Or Squat is the perfect partner for us … we’re not going to reinvent the wheel by creating this application. We found somebody out there whose mission matches ours. It creates the perfect partnership.’

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Step 3(a) – Find my nearest licensed taxicabAn early adopter of LBS technology, Transport for London’s ‘CABWISE’ service was launched in 2006 to help reduce the rate of sexual attacks on women by unlicensed, unscrupulous and illegal minicab operators.

CABWISE features a prominent text call to action drive responseUsers simply text ‘HOME’ to 60835 and receive local licensed minicab and taxi information in the area they are texting from. The ‘cell-ID’ search pinpoints the user’s exact location, enabling the relevant information to be identified and sent. The database of 45,000 licensed minicab operators and drivers is updated daily to maximise safety. Users are prompted to save the CABWISE service details to their contact.

Transport for London estimates the incidence of cab-related sexual attacks on women reduced by 46 per cent in the five years since CABWISE was launched.

Step 3 (b) – Find my nearest licensed taxicabToday, residents and visitors to major cities have a wide range of taxi and minicab firms to choose from, most now involving LBS information provided via mobile apps.

One of the best examples, HAILO, uses location data to serve customers by providing detailed information about the whereabouts of their cab and its expected arrival time and reg number. The app also provides a live mobile portal for cabbies to share information about traffic conditions to save one another, and their passengers, unnecessary delays in traffic when alternative routes would reduce journey times. The app also tracks and reports cab drivers’ statistics.

To date, the app has been used on a million journeys in London and is now available in other cities in the UK, Europe, North America and Asia. The app serves as a loyalty tool: significant numbers of subscribers have signed up as account customers. The service also enjoys extensive visibility on Facebook and Twitter from satisfied customers.

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Hailo App – coming soon to a city near you?

Mobile retail LBS applicationsLet’s now look at some more examples of how retailers use these mobile formats to harness location-based marketing. We will conclude by looking at how mobile has become entwined with social media to shift occasional shoppers to long-term loyal customers and brand ambassadors.

1. Find my nearest store (‘pull’)At the most basic level, shoppers seek store location information. Retailers should make the information quick and easy to find, and fast to access.

Best Practice Tip 38 Provide a store locator service Unless there’s a good reason to the contrary, use the Google Maps plug-in for your site or app. Google Maps’s API is configured to work across all operating platforms and devices for minimal load time, thereby enhancing user experience.

This means displaying the ‘store locator’ button prominently on the site or app, and making the service offering via both cell-ID (i.e. in close proximity to the place of the look-up request) and post code look-up (i.e. serving shoppers planning a shopping trip at a later time, perhaps in an unfamiliar town or city). AllSaints feature a neat animation to showcase their location-based services.40

40 AllSaints App.

http://www.allsaints.com/iphone/

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AllSaints showcase their location-based services with this animationHere are some more examples of LBS to inspire:

þ Find my nearest discount – Vouchercloud (‘push’). During recessions, customer loyalty comes under sustained pressure from shoppers becoming especially price sensitive. Vouchercloud has Android and iPhone apps which help users to access discounts and offers, based upon where they are located. As one example of this, Avis, targets mobile users in the proximity of airports, an excellent geo-targeting zone for car hire, hotel, travel insurance and money exchange brands.

Vouchercloud Instant Deals þ Mobile operator (carrier) loyalty programmes. The mobile operators (carriers) capture

a vast amount of location data about our daily lives, which can be used to build accurate profiles of our retail behaviour. To protect consumers’ privacy, access to this data is tightly

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controlled under terms which mobile users sign when taking out contracts with mobile operators.

þ Find my nearest offer – O2 More (‘push’). O2 More, launched in 2010, delivers location-based offers to opt-in customers. O2 followed the ‘spray and pray’ approach where the offers themselves were broadly matched to users’ profile types. In the example below, for Gillette razor blades, O2’s customer database correctly identifies me as a male living near Tesco Metro on Horton Road, who often leaves the house at around 1pm, triggering a timely message to pick up replacement blades during my lunch break. O2 assumes I shave and am not wedded to a beard.

O2 More: ‘Spray and Pray’ This offer failed since I’m quite happy with my existing shaving products supplier, as did the one sent the previous week for O2 Priority Tickets. However, O2 More does give me the opt-out option, with each keyword (20502 and 20546) used to track the responses to each offer. The programme only gains traction when mobile users start to respond to the offers, assist-ing for more precise micro-targeting.

þ O2 Priority Moments (‘pull and push’). The successor to O2 More, O2 Priority Moments was launched in 2011, providing smartphone users with more precise offers. The app, developed in partnership with specialist Golden Gekko, matches subscribers’ profiles with a list of live vouchers for partner brands, including Harvey Nichols, WHSmith, Toni & Guy, Odeon Cinemas. Time-based offers are ‘pushed’ via the app, showing corresponding shops located on a map for redemption. Users simply click the offer they’re interested in, locate the shop using the mapping function, and bring their phone to redeem the offer. The Unique coupon allows precise redemption tracking, with alphanumeric codes which deliver the tracking code used for precise reporting for retail partners. This ‘digital scent’ is the Holy Grail for retailers and brands using the offers, and identifies the origin of sale. O2 Priority Moments achieved 1.3 million downloads and delivered 300,000 redemptions in its first year. Redemption rates of O2 Priority Moments offers are tracking at 20 per cent.

þ Groupon Now (‘pull and push’). Groupon has built a mixed reputation in providing location-based loyalty offers. Their email proposition has received criticism from

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consumers in the US and Europe for failing to target subscribers with relevant or targeted offers. It’s one of the best (or worst?) examples of ‘spray and pray’ promotional marketing. However, Groupon has succeeded in developing a market leading mobile coupon redemption solution. Smartphone users who download the Groupon app receive push notifications of deals nearby to match their profile settings. This allows retailers to distribute offers to opted-in Groupon customers to boost footfall when business is slow. This can be managed by day-parts (e.g. late morning or late afternoon) or by times of year (e.g. during January or August). Rich media offers are ‘pushed’ via the app, linked to maps, and redeemed at the relevant retail point.

þ Foursquare (‘pull and push’). Foursquare has emerged as a pioneer delivering integrated mobile, location and social media solutions for a broad range of partners brands in multiple sectors. While its competing location-based loyalty rival Gowalla has faded, Foursquare has succeeded in gaining mass adoption, and is certainly holding its own against Facebook Places. Foursquare users ‘check in’ at locations in return for tangible rewards, including free product or loyalty points. Check in often enough, and you’ll receive the highly cherished distinction of become ‘Mayor’, and qualify for additional rewards.

Foursquare offers drive footfall And online traffic

Foursquare has proven to be highly effective in driving footfall, via in-app push notifications of offers, and in driving online traffic, via online vouchers, as the examples below from Café Rouge and Gourmet Burger Kitchen show. Examples include Foursquare’s in-app push notifications of offers, driving footfall and online traffic, via online vouchers. Foursquare has a range of features and integration which make it a powerful platform for local campaigns in places where adoption is sufficiently high.

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Foursquare’s mobile community, allows users to post reviews, positive and negative, and share with other Foursquare subscribers.

Positive reviews

Negative reviews

Whilst some Foursquare users choose to ‘check in’ with alarming frequency every time they use a train station or arrive at work, to become resident ‘Mayor’, or show off with check-ins at First Class departure lounges and restaurants, the majority use Foursquare to redeem offers. Numerous case studies from retailers prove Foursquare’s resounding success in generating incremental, REPEAT traffic, increasing sales and boosting profits.

At the last count, my wallet contained six loyalty cards for coffee outlets, each one receiving another stamp, and, eventually, rewarding me with my free coffee when I accrue enough stamps. Starbucks uses mobile extensively to connect with and reward shoppers. In addition to providing free Wi-Fi, and providing contactless payment, its Foursquare promotion rewards repeat customers with a free coffee.

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Foursquare case study – Domino’s Pizza + FoursquareDomino’s Pizza UK ran one of the best successful promotions in the highly competitive fast food sector on Foursquare. Customers log in to a local Domino’s on Foursquare and receive a free side order (when spending over £10). The resident Domino’s Mayor gets a free Pizza every week. Says Domino’s UK CEO Chris Moore: ‘We have led the way with social media initiatives ... the development of a link up with Foursquare offers a dual benefit of driving pizza sales online and building customer loyalty.’

Finding out what’s hot and what’s notDiscerning mobile users question professional reviews, but trust the views of their peers. Some of the most popular mobile services are delivered by brands which provide mobile platforms for customers to create and share their reviews and ratings.

Retailers must know that customers select where to go based on other customers’ reviews. Parents with babies look for the restaurants with 5 star hygiene ratings for changing and bottle warming facilities, pet owners look for a bistro which welcome their dogs. This Purina branded app features ratings and reviews of local eateries.

Customer service, as rated by customers

Reviewing local search effectiveness (if relevant) r Q. Can we be found in local search (formerly Google Places and now Google+ Local)?

We saw in Step 4 that local search volumes are significant, so if your business has a local presence, this is a key issue to get right. Google has realised the overlap between local search, mobile and social interactions and to facilitate this Google Places was migrated to Google+ Local in 2012. This means that every business with a Google Places listing now has an equivalent Google+ Local page and it is these Google+ Local pages that are shown in search results. Google+ Local is the most important local search engine. It has increased in importance over the years with major upgrades making it more prominent for local searches. So if these are important for your business, then it’s well worth looking for.

For example, we worked with one client who offered physiotherapy services nationwide and the Google+ Local listings including the map top right are crucial to gaining visibility:

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Local search results from Google+ (formerly Places)

So if local search is important to your business, the key question to ask is...

r Q. Are we registered with Google+ Local?

If not, go to http://www.google.com/places and choose ‘Places for Business’. We’ll look at the ranking factors in a moment.

Strategy Recommendation 20 Get listed on Google+ Local if you offer local servicesSimple. If your business has a local presence like stores or offices it’s essential to have good visibility within Google+ Local.

It may also be worth registering with Bing Local: https://ssl.bing.com/listings/ListingCenter.aspx.

Ensure you have a satisfactory position for local search (if relevant) r Q. Have we achieved a satisfactory position for local searches?

So if local search is important for your business you need to review your position and become familiar with the ranking factors which are important. A full run-down is beyond the scope of this guide – we’re just flagging up they could be really important!

We suggest you read http://www.davidmihm.com/local-search-ranking-factors.shtml and use this for the latest updates.41

In brief, the priorities in using Google+ Local should be to implement the following:

r Q. Are we using the relevant copy and content types?

Utilising relevant key-terms in your titles, descriptions for your local site, just as you would a web page is clearly an obvious place to start.

Be sure to utilise rich content you have such as videos, images etc. within your listing.

41 In-depth Google local/maps advice.

http://www.google.com/places

https://ssl.bing.com/listings/ListingCenter.aspx

https://ssl.bing.com/listings/ListingCenter.aspx

http://www.davidmihm.com/local-search-ranking-factors.shtml

http://blumenthals.com/blog/category/google-maps-google-local/

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Being active on your listings is important too, putting coupon codes live and adding videos/images over time is important to show you are active and taking it seriously. Particularly important for multichannel companies with multiple listings.

r Q. Have we selected the right categories?

As the example above shows, these can be specific. Make sure you pick a category that is relevant to the products and services you provide.

r Q. Are we linking to relevant parts of our site and are they optimised for natural search?

Google will expect relevant websites/landing pages to direct people to, just as it would with its paid search advertising. Creating pages specifically for your listings (if they don’t already exist) is key to ensure your listing is highly ranked but also for you to ensure the traffic is converted into enquiry/sales.

One of our partners, local business expert Susan Hallam of Hallam.Biz says: ‘make sure you have local signals in your organic SEO strategy (local address and telephone number on every page, if local is super important you should have the location in the Title Tags, Meta Descriptions, Alt Tags, Headings, Body Copy, Contact Pages)’.42

The other SEO factor – getting links from relevant national, local and specialised businesses to these pages is also important, although links from other locations do still help rankings.

Best Practice Tip 39 Get local linksIt’s also best if these local pages have relevant local links from pages that are themselves about the location and category.

r Q. Are we encouraging reviews and ratings?

Quite possibly the most important area in our opinion. Encouraging customers to recommend/review you through the Google+ Local system will undoubtedly push your business in the results. The sentiment and rating attached to each comment will impact how that rating is used within the algorithm. Not only will it impact your ranking it will instil confidence into searchers that you are genuine and good at what you do.

Plus, this rating is shown in the search results snippet and can have a direct influence on click through. Put yourself in the searcher’s position – if you find two local businesses, one has no reviews and the other has 80 positive reviews, which one are you most likely to trust?

Keep Google+ Local simple. It doesn’t need to be complicated, so focus on how you can encourage and promote the comments and ratings around your business as it would make sense that this is what will help you do well in search results. Offline or email-based prompts which are incentivised can be the most effective.

Integrating social interactions with mobile location-based servicesIn today’s multichannel world, retailers face a major challenge in developing, nurturing and building relationships with their customers. Mobile plays an increasingly important role in this process, and connects physically and emotionally in influencing purchase behaviour.

The graphic below serves to illustrate the multiple touchpoints available via mobile, and the complex interaction between mobile and other channels.

42 Susan Hallam‘s advice on local search.

http://www.hallam.biz/blog/2010/11/google-updates-local-search.html

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Multiple touchpoints to connect with and influence shoppers Source: eibDigital Ecommerce and Online marketing agencyLet’s remember that shoppers already use their mobile extensively for peer-to-peer networking, and also use their mobiles to extend and amplify their relationships with retailers to their wider social networks.

Retailers which engender trust and their shoppers are rewarded directly through increased loyalty, and indirectly, as these shoppers will become brand advocates and followers using social media.

Returning to the RACE model, brands including Yelp, Nike, and Jimmy Choo are combining mobile location and social media to engage and reward their most loyal customers, creating a virtuous cycle whereby shoppers read and are motivated to contribute to the online community. Brand ambassadors lead the dialogue which gave further traction with Flickr, Pinterest and Instagram adding colour and depth to their dialogue.

To engage shoppers using social media channels, and move them from occasional shoppers to loyal customers, retailers should follow four steps, which fit within the RACE framework.

þ 1. REACH and Involve. Retailers should focus on involving shoppers by actively asking them to comment on their retail experiences, good and bad via mobile versions of Facebook and Twitter. To attract interest from a wider audience, retailers should encourage loyal customers to post app reviews, rate shops, restaurants or bars, write blogs and post photos on the basis that those not already fans on Facebook and Twitter are more likely to trust their peer group than the retailer. Positive reviews then drive footfall for other shoppers using ratings-based mobile services, such as Yelp’s Location sensitive Augmented Reality app.

http://www.eibdigital.co.uk


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Augmented Reality function gives directions via GPS + ratings & reviews þ 2. ACT and Interact. Retailers should incentivise shoppers who already ‘like’ or ‘follow’

them and target them with special offers in exchange for reviewing or giving their opinions on other areas of the retailers’ business, such as usability and usefulness of the mobile site, apps or loyalty programmes. Additional rewards could include preferential offers, VIP invitations to view and purchase sales offers before the general public has access, birthday gifts, or entry into shopper competitions. A good example here is the Jimmy Choo Trainer Hunt. Jimmy Choo ran a location-based treasure hunt to raise awareness for the launch of its first trainer collection.

The Jimmy Choo integrated mobile social location campaign þ Users check in on Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare at locations around London; the

winner arrived at the location before the trainers left. þ 3. CONVERT: Intimacy. To engender a personal relationship between retailer and

shopper, and increase the conversion to sale, retailers can retweet shoppers’ tweets, thereby paying them the highest social media compliment. Another social media token of gratitude to loyal customers takes the form of special badges which can be posted to Facebook pages, thereby rating shoppers in recognition of their level of retail commitment, which can be linked to basket size or purchase frequency, whether in store or site.

þ 4. ENGAGE: Brand ambassadors. Ultimately, loyal customers should be able to

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influence their social media networks. By giving them ambassador status, retailers can empower loyal shoppers to give selected friends discounts on particular product lines or to make them aware of reviews. This will result in building a community of influencers who can themselves meet on social media forums. Social gifting apps available on mobile are another specialist tool that encourage this.

Mobile Social Media: virtuous circle. Source: eibDigital Mobile Solutions GuideThe model shown above should be a virtuous circle, whereby shoppers (occasional shoppers, loyalty card members, opinion forming bloggers) read and are motivated to contribute to the online community or to start a related one. This integrated approach also allows retailers to leverage a hot topic and generate maximum visibility. The dialogue becomes driven by brand ambassadors.

High end fashion retailers can also harness Flickr, Pinterest and Instagram whose apps are widely used on mobile to facilitate their ambassadors promoting their products on the networks using images to add colour and depth to text.

We have seen that the opportunities of mobile, particularly when combined with location, local search plus social reviews and ratings are a potent mix. All the best for exploiting these opportunities in the year(s) ahead!


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