Locally Targetted Mobile Advertising expected to climb to 78% of Mobile Ad spending

Mobile Ads To Hit $4 Billion By 2015

Locally targeted mobile ads will have a 70% share ($2.8 billion) of the expected $4 billion in overall U.S. mobile ad spending by 2015, according to Chantilly, Virginia-based BIA/Kelsey. In addition, total US mobile ad spending will balloon from $790 million in 2010 to $4 billion in 2015. Concurrently, the local portion of that total will increase from $404 million to $2.8 billion. Consequently, the advisory firm projects, locally targeted mobile ads will then make up 51% of overall US mobile ad spending, growing to 70% by 2015.

“Exploding mobile usage, clearer ROI and a shorter purchase funnel will accelerate this demand within display, search and SMS advertising formats,” the report reads. In 2010, overall U.S. mobile advertising was at $790 million. Local mobile advertising’s piece of the pie is $404 million — 51% of the whole mobile advertising market.

The gain is expected when large brand advertisers adapt their marketing goals for the mobile device. That’s thanks to a growing awareness of retail locations, driven by consumers’ increasing smartphone ownership. Once large advertisers move in, BIA/Kelsey says small and medium-sized businesses will also push marketing efforts on mobile. All advertisers will benefit from the clearer return on investment and shorter purchasing funnel.

Mobile advertising sellers will also garner premium pricing on location-targeted ads. Michael Boland, senior analyst and program director of BIA/Kelsey Mobile Local Media practice, stated: “These premiums result from higher performance for locally targeted mobile ads when compared with non-local ads, due to higher relevance, immediacy and consumer buying intent, all of which are more prevalent in mobile than many other print and digital media.”

Bottom Line: Further targeting coupled with LBS and Geo-Fencing advancements will drive an increase in local advertising. Advertisers quickly need to focus on capturing intent to deliver greater ROI on each placement. Mobile is very focused and directive and therefore conversion cannot be ignored.

Let QWASI develop a conversion strategy off your mobile display, in-app advertisements, SMS ads and other placements. For more information on mobile marketing or other QWASI services, contact us today @ 877-747-9274.

June 25, 2011 in Blog   |   No Comments

Mobile Video Usage Continues Climbing

It’s not a mystery, but it is still of interest to those of us who watch trends: Mobile users steadily continue to discovery mobile video on their cell phones.

A recent study by Nielsen shows that the number of mobile video users continued to grow along with their time spent watching video. However, the population remains small – for now.

PEOPLE WATCHING MOBILE VIDEO
According to Nielsen, during the 2nd Quarter, 22 million people watched mobile video on their mobile devices – a 43% increase. That represents about 10% of all mobile phone users, which stands at 229.4 million during the 2nd Quarter of this year — a number that has climbed 4% over a year ago.

MONTHLY TIME SPENT WATCHING MOBILE VIDEO
The time spent among mobile subscribers watching video over each month was 3:37 minutes (three hours thirty-seven minutes) – a gain of 11.3% over the previous year. That is 22 more minutes in the second quarter 2010 versus the second quarter 2009.

BIGGEST USERS OF MOBILE VIDEO
The largest group of mobile subscribers were teens 13-17, racking up 7:13 minutes (seven hours and 13 minutes) a month of video; 18-24 users were next, with 4:20; followed by 25-34 users with 3:37; 35-49 users at 2:53; adults 50-64 at 2:10; those 65 and older, 1:48; and persons 13 years and older (the entire mobile population) at 3:37.

Looking at overall share among each group, 25-54 users comprised 30% of all video usage; 35-49 was next, at 25%; then 13-17 users, 18%; 18-24 users, 15%; 50- to-64-year-olds, 11%; and 65-plus, 2%.

Overall, men use mobile video more than women — 55% to 45%. However, that too is shifting to 50/50 as does most technology patterns as they become widely adopted.

BOTTOM LINE:

As more smart phones hit the market such as iPhones, Androids and Win7 devices, so will the adoption of mobile video. Intermediary devices and tablets will also fuel “mobile” video usage as a higher percent of computer viewing moves from the desktop and laptop into consumers hands.

Read More: State of the Media Report (click here)

December 9, 2010 in Blog   |   No Comments

2011 Mobile Budgets allocating "More Mobile"

As the end of the third quarter comes to a close this year, corporate budgets are being reviewed and Mobile is finally getting respect within the organization from the top down. However, as this new channel continues to grow, departments are beginning to take a closer look at where they can grow and how they can save using mobile messaging, marketing and mobile apps.

In the past, most marketers took from digital budgets to fund a mobile.

For 2011, budgets have grown from single campaigns to funding a complete mobile strategy. This has created the need to create a new line item on the budget so companies can graduate mobile from an “emerging technology” to a proven channel – it’s own format.

WRESTLING BUDGETS
How are companies wrestling money from other budgets? Many take it from digital budgets. That type of thinking though is short sighted as digital marketing and interactive services all achieve different goals to drive sales, increase retention and even reclaim lost revenue through cost savings. Many agencies are adding to the complex budget process by pulling in dollars for their “digital agency” where these monies typically get put into distinct components of a budget leaving little room for mobile. What is fueling most of the mobile spend within these agencies is shifting the budget from traditional media to digital.

THE SHIFT
As spending shifts from traditional media to digital media and mobile, new lines will be expanded on budgets to better clarify the type of spending. This will lead to a greater need for mobile analytics and reporting. How much is my iPhone App generating? What is the ROI for my Mobile Advertising campaigns? What is the lift in spend from my customers receiving SMS Alerts on a daily basis? ROI tracking will become another budget requirement within the digital category. While many agencies push back on measurement, studies and direct spend to return calculations, companies will demand greater oversight and results from their investments.

According to a MMA (Mobile Marketing Association) survey released in June 2010, they found that marketers in the US plan to increase spending on mobile 124% next year – up from $2.3 billion to $5.5 billion – with a budget allocation for mobile representing almost 4% of overall marketing budgets. That total includes paid and unpaid mobile segments including SMS, mobile websites, location-based services, mobile video and mobile email. Forrester, on the contrary predicts US spending on mobile marketing will grow from $561 million this year to $748 million in 2011.

It’s time to start planning your 2011. It’s time to get MORE mobile.

September 13, 2010 in Blog   |   1 Comment

Two-Thirds of Teens & Tweens now Mobile

Over the last five years, as cell phone plans have become more family-friendly, teens, tweens and children 8-10 years old have been going mobile. Today, there is a mobile youth population developing who love to text and talk, well, not so much. It’s creating a huge opportunity for brands run youth marketing programs geared toward this important segment.

To date, many brand marketers have dabbled in mobile marketing. The main reason is the lack of commitment to this medium for their audience. However, the segment is so ripe that it’s now time for them to take notice and put forward an engaging offering to keep them connected. Why? Because now that mobile phones are nearly ubiquitous among teens and becoming ever more popular among younger kids, the opportunities are increasing.

“Tweens are the growth engine,” said Debra Aho Williamson, eMarketer senior analyst and author of the new report “Kids and Teens: Mobile Everywhere.” “Recent surveys from Pew, Kaiser Family Foundation and others indicate that in some age groups—particularly the tween–young teen bracket—ownership has nearly doubled since 2005.”

Turning wide ownership into wide marketing opportunities may be difficult, however. Companies must take into account extra privacy and safety considerations when it comes to minors, and young people who view their mobile phones as devices for personal communications may not welcome marketing messages.

In addition, most children and teens are still using feature phones, so relatively few can be reached through more sophisticated mobile advertising such as via the mobile internet or smartphone apps. Just 14% of moms surveyed by Q Interactive in January 2010 said their kids had a smartphone.

The future lies in smartphones, but for now mobile marketing efforts directed toward kids and teens will have to focus on feature phones. Texting is best for driving immediate actions, but also has its drawbacks.

“Although text messaging is hugely popular with teens, they are like adults in that they do not necessarily want companies to contact them via text messaging,” said Ms. Williamson. “The mobile phone is perceived as a very personal device, and intrusive marketing is not well received.”

Read more – get the full report here: Kids and Teens: Mobile Everywhere

BOTTOM LINE: Our work with teens and tweens also reveals their desire to connect via mobile channels SMS, Mobile Web and Apps. However, the level of adoption for Mobile Web and then Apps quickly trail off since most kids, teens and tweens do not have a smartphone. So the clear choice is mobile marketing via SMS.

July 2, 2010 in Blog   |   No Comments

Text2Drive powers mobile campaigns at the New York International Auto Show

New Suzuki mobile marketing campaign allows interested car buyers to get quick and easy info on available cars at the last major North American new-car event of the season.

Text2Drive, the leading mobile marketing firm in the auto industry, is in the driver’s seat again – taking car information mobile for auto buyers at the New York International Auto Show. Building on the success Text2Drive achieved by powering the Chicago Auto Show in February with their Mobile Marketing Platform, Text2Drive has recently been selected to promote Suzuki’s mobile ad campaigns during the New York International Auto Show from April 2 – 11, 2010.

Suzuki is using the Text2Drive Mobile Marketing platform to offer car shoppers a very quick, easy and hassle-free method of obtaining vehicle information without the need of the Internet on their phones. Using text messaging (SMS) and picture messaging (MMS), car shoppers can take home important information on different makes and models available from Suzuki. According to Nielsen, only 30-40 percent of consumers have Internet connectivity on their phones. Text2Drive allows car shoppers to get instant information on their cell phone about a specific car including mobile website links and photos sent via MMS.

Text2Drive is powered by leading mobile marketing and mobile commerce company, QWASI, Inc. The Philadelphia-based company provides cross-market interactive solutions for fortune 500 companies, as well as SMBs (Small to Medium Businesses), across the nation.

It’s exciting to see how auto manufacturers are using the Text2Drive service at the New York Auto Show and other car shows around the country. It’s important to provide today’s car buyers with instant information that is easy to access. The power to connect with these car buyers is available through a program like Text2Drive so car manufacturers can also connect with them after the show ends.

We see more and more carmakers and dealers finally beginning to get serious about offering mobile marketing and communications at dealerships, their advertising and direct communication with their customers. Text2Drive can be found online at http://www.text2drive.com

[caption id="attachment_619" align="alignnone" width="200" caption="SX4Sportback MMS (Picture) Message"][/caption]

April 9, 2010 in Blog   |   No Comments