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Category Archives: Mobile statistics

A recent survey conducted by Strata reveals that companies are truly beginning to see and realize the benefits of text message marketing to consumers. Twenty-five percent of the respondents said they were currently using SMS marketing to send out their marketing message, up from 15 percent at the end of 2010.

This means, that just in the first months of this year, there has been a 10 percent increase within the advertising world in the amount of companies utilizing SMS marketing. That represents astonishing growth that’s likely to continue into the future, possibly at an even greater pace.

In fact, all mobile advertising communication mediums, like location based advertising and display ads, increased over the first few months of 2011. Mobile advertising is continuing to get and retain the interest of marketers, who are becoming more open than ever to diversifying their marketing mix by including mobile platforms to reach people.

Of these platforms, SMS marketing is still the one that sticks out in terms of reach. Via a simple text message, you can reach over 70 percent of the population, where as the other mobile platforms are just not there yet in terms of the number of users who use or even have them.

Remember- Opt It offers a free 30-day trial that gives you the opportunity to see for yourself, at no cost, just how SMS marketing can take your brand’s interaction with consumers to the next level.

BabyCenter, a website dedicated to all steps in the process of motherhood, knows and understands the needs, lifestyle, and likes of mothers in the US. They recently conducted a study on mothers and their mobile devices, and received surprising results

The study, called the 21st Century Mobile Mom® Report, which studied 5,000 moms, reports that 50 percent of moms are addicted to their mobile devices and that adaptation of their mobile device has risen 64 percent over the past 2 years.

In the mobile marketing world, we think it’s pretty exciting that motherhood has actually been named a trigger for mobile phone adaptation! More than half of the moms surveyed admitted they purchased their particular device as a direct result of motherhood. As a woman transitions into motherhood, the way that she uses a phone changes as well. A woman without children favors her calendar while a mother finds her camera the most important feature of her phone.

The most interesting thing is that 62 percent of moms change brands at the onset of motherhood. This is a key time to communicate with moms and provide them with relevant information about your product offering. Since it is clear that moms love and worship their mobile device, reaching them on their mobile phone is a great way to communicate. For instance, reach out to a new mom about things like nutrition facts if you are a restaurant, or safety facts is you sell baby products.

Also, 46 percent of moms reported that they want information just as they are shopping. This means that you now know the ideal time of the day to communicate your marketing message. You’re likely aware of the time when you see the largest number of mothers at your business location. Plan your messages to go out just as you know the highest percentage of moms will be there, or if possible, send individual messages to moms that you can see walking in or near a certain product. You might even consider offering a keyword that moms can text in next to products that they will inevitably stop by, like baby food or a stroller, to receive additional information on nutrition or safety facts.

A recent survey by Experian Simmons gives new insight into consumer acceptance and usage of mobile coupons. Since 2005, when only 12 percent of the population used digital coupons, that number has nearly doubled. Twenty-two percent of the U.S. population is currently using digital coupons, almost a quarter of the total U.S. population.

In comparison, the usage of print coupons remains consistent. In the survey, 99 percent of participants who used digital coupons also used print coupons, while 35 percent of participants who used print coupons also used digital coupons. This is an interesting statistic and means that people who use digital coupons are much more open to a variety of forms of coupons. In addition, “digital coupon users also used them [mobile coupons] for a wider variety of purchases and at a greater variety of stores than those who used only print coupons”, reports MediaPost News.

This gives insight in determining the “profile” of a mobile coupons user. While they are not picky in regards to the form a coupon takes, the deal that it offers is paramount. The study also shows that people who use digital coupons are more frequent coupon users in general, meaning that they are open and willing to not only receive coupons on their mobile phone, but have also shown that they will use them.

As mobile coupons continue to rise in usage, it’s important to include a text message marketing component into your advertising campaign in order reach this 22 percent of the U.S. population that is looking for a good deal via their mobile device.

Recently many companies have created marketing campaigns that include QR codes. These are literally bar codes that people can scan in order to receive a coupon to their phone, connect to a website, or show a picture. Sounds very good… in theory.

There are limitations with QR codes for many reasons. People must have a phone that has the capacity to hold applications, which is still only about 30 percent of the US market. Text messages are a much more common method of communication with 1.1 trillion SMS messages sent in 2010 in the United States, according to Informa. Nielsen reported this year that 90 percent of Americans send and receive messages. It is quite clear that you can reach a much larger portion of the population via text.

Another disadvantage within the application space of QR codes is that there is a lack of standardization. For example, if you were to create an application you would have to create several for various platforms. For example, Microsoft Tag only allows their users to access applications on their system. So your customers would need to understand which reader to use to be able to read the QR code, as well as which application to open, and when.

Since SMS has a wider reach, is easier for the greater population to use and is faster to access, it is a much more convenient way to communicate your marketing message to your target population.

A recent Ball State University study found that 97 percent of college students send and receive text messages, and that texting is the #1 form of communication for this studious crowd. Only about a quarter of college students say that they still use instant messaging or email, making texting the natural communication method parents, professors, school mates, and businesses should use to reach them.

Text marketing, or just text communication, makes a lot of sense on a college campus. Many universities have already integrated text into their grading systems, and allow students to text in a keyword to see their grades. A professor might have a text list for a particular class, and can send out a last minute cancelation message if they get sick, saving many students a long commute to a canceled class. Students can enroll for class news and updates, keeping them informed of new materials assigned and allowing professors to send out a prescheduled assignment reminder, keeping everyone on their toes and on track for the course. Professors are able to run practice exams via text, that include students texting in responses to questions, and the teacher texting back the percentage of students that were correct.

For university sports fans, a text list can be created to send out quarterly highlights and score results. This list could add a commercial aspect by sending out a half time mobile coupon or list of specials going on at the concession stand. Or, this list could be used as a tool to engage the crowd, asking fans to text in their pick for MVP of a game, or to win a free concession.

A text list might also be used as the official voting tool for class president; offering a quick, easy, and cheap way of gathering and tallying results, which would likely increase the amount of people that vote.

With 97 percent of university populations’ texting, there is a clear need to embrace text marketing tools and use them creatively to engage and communicate more frequently with students. If students are texting, the entire university should be texting.