In an earlier conversation, Mark Smith, 3Cinteractive’s Chief Operating Officer, brought up his thoughts on a UK study by Consumer Analysis that produced some interesting statistics.
- Nearly one in two consumers fail to respond to advertising because they don’t remember key details.
- 44% of mobile users between 18 and 60 fail to respond to advertising campaigns because they simply forgot the brand name.
- Over 50% of respondents said they would like to access further information by sending a text to a shortcode.
- 51% said they would find it useful to use text as a mechanism to get access to information related to an advertisement.
- 74% said they would use their phones to request a brochure.
The majority of advertising we are exposed to has a web url located in it, and for those larger brands that don’t (e.g. Coke) we know how to find them on the internet (e.g. http://www.cocacola.com). There was a period before the web boom where companies were uneducated and unsure about the web and how to utilize it for their business. Today, many companies will create entirely new domains for a short advertising campaign. But, even with the growth of broadband internet, WIFI, and laptop computers, less consumers are carrying their laptops into the living room before their mobile phone.
Many consumers are genuinely compelled to visit a company’s website to find out more information, but any well scripted TV show will keep a viewer glued to their chair and not running to the living room to scan a website. Consumers are asking for an easier way to communicate with brands and find more information. That easier way is their mobile phone.
Consumers are clearly calling and texting from their mobile phones as part of their everyday life, and this includes the living room. I’ve actually known friends that text message back and forth during sporting events and television shows. Brands can, should, and will, if they’re smart, capitalize on this availability by plugging their short code in their advertisements. But, this radical change goes beyond simply giving the consumer another avenue to pull brand information, it allows brands to push information.
If a brand successfully pulls a consumer to its website, it must, through an artfully designed squeeze page, entice the user to subscribe to a newsletter or other VIP service. This has a lot of steps, and neither of the steps have a 1:1 conversion rate. On the other hand, mobile short codes are both a way for a consumer to access information and an opt-in to receive additional alerts. It’s a win-win for the consumer and the brand.
- Ainsworth