The Rise Of Mobile Media

Robert Thurner, commercial director at mobile media agency Incentivated, discusses the future of mobile technology, the way it could change the media and how advertisers can utilise its functions…

Picture this. Croatia is playing Brazil in the World Cup. Ivan is in the departure lounge waiting for his flight to Berlin to watch his countrymen take on the boys from Brazil that night. His flight has been cancelled, so he’ll miss the match. So will his five mates who are descending on Berlin from various parts of Europe. Poor Ivan has all six tickets in his pocket. I guess the ticket touts may line their pockets with overpriced tickets sold to the other five.

There are some things we simply cannot control. But there are ways we can all use new technology to overcome such adversities.

Let’s see it through the eyes of Ivan.

Like millions of others, Ivan wants to be in control of his work life and his time off. He enjoys the relentless shift in technology, which allows him to take control of his media diet, demanding access to information where and when he wants it. His mobile phone matches this trend better than other media channels: it’s highly personal, always on, always close at hand, whether he’s at work, at home or, during his minutes of frustration in the departure lounge, when he’s on the move.

As consumers, we’re demanding ‘pull’ media rather than being spoon-fed ‘push’ media. Why wait for the news and weather bulletins on TV when realtime information is available online? In the world’s mature advertising markets, we don’t want to be interrupted by commercial breaks, to be bombarded with crass advertising, which is neither relevant, targeted or clever.

We’re in control. We want to be engaged by brands we know and trust. We want brands that deserve a place on our carefully selected shopping lists. We won’t be patronised, and don’t want to be bamboozled with jargon and infuriatingly complex tariff structures. u-Switch is one of many online services that have prospered because they do the hard work.

So how do advertisers adapt to survive in the evolving new media world? First, they need to grasp the need for genuine media integration – consumers remember the words, pictures, sounds and experiences that campaigns convey, not the platform that carried the message. The communication needs to be seamless. It’s a mistake to simply bolt the digital bit onto the traditional media plan because the media agency nailed a tough deal and there’s some budget left over.

Trevor Beattie once described outdoor advertising as a medium that allows nowhere to go when you don’t have a strong idea; no special effects or celebs to hide behind. I’d extend his thinking to all media channels. With digital you still need a strong, original communications idea or you’ll get lost in the clutter and forgotten. No matter how fancy the digital delivery platform, there’s no substitute for a great campaign idea. Its ‘viral’ nature means great ideas get talked about. Today’s telephony means this can happen alarmingly fast and touch people in every corner of our planet.

Brands need to be bold – the writing’s on the wall – if you avoid understanding and incorporating digital media you’re postponing the inevitable. But let’s not get carried away, major media decisions aren’t made on a whim. The digital medium lends itself to pilot campaigns, which can be tested rigorously before being rolled out. This approach mitigates the risk and is easier to sell up the line.

Back to Ivan in the airport lounge. The mobile channel could have made Ivan’s day. His mobile will continue to change his life.

Forward-thinking companies, including British Airways, are already using mobile to text people like Ivan with information about flight disruptions, so he could have made alternative travel plans before leaving for the airport.

Ivan could use his phone to do plenty of other things that save him time and hassle. Like ordering brochures, booking test drives with local car dealers, making charity donations discretely, providing meter readings for precise billing, or buying credits on his call cards. Ivan can also receive bar codes on his phone which can be scanned at entry point to bars, clubs, festivals and, surprise surprise, football matches.