Reaching a Mobile Audience

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Device Detection

Instead of making a mobile user remember the mobile variation of a website’s URL, device detection is able to detect the device being used to request content and serve the most appropriate version. This is is a capability which is embedded into the programming code of a website, allowing a device to retrieve the correct content via remote scripting to be displayed on that particular model device or Web browser.

The database, or WURFL (Wireless Universal Resource File), contains the information about the different devices and browsers and relays the correct script from the server to the device.

Allowing for optimised segmentation between devices or browsers, device detection can be great way of making a mobile visitor feel the site was made just for them. It’s worth noting, however that multiple scripts increase the amount of server space required.

Geo-Targeting

Web 2.0 has been largely about the social Web and social content tagging and labelling is becoming more advanced. Many Social Media and networking sites are adopting and encouraging geotagging.

Products and services such as Google Earth and Twitter have given the online culture a strong sense of the ‘here and now’.

Although the protection of privacy is still vital, Social Media platforms, especially ones accessed with advanced mobile devices, are offering geotagging for submission and even location-based search to provide time and location relevant content.

Couple that with the personal and portable qualities of mobile technology, and there are plenty of opportunities to research the device locations and provide information, services or products accordingly.

The tools of Geo-targeting include:

  • Physical signal towers.
  • Built–in GPS systems and applications.
  • Location-based broadcasting (e.g. Bluetooth messaging).
  • User tagging on social networks.
  • Country specific mobile numbers.
  • Location-specific mobile search engines access (e.g. google.co.uk/wml).

Applications like reLive! let users upload photos and videos from their GPS-enabled phones and automatically tag where photos were captured.

Similarly, users can access and upload photos via Flickr mobile with an Android phone or the iPhone 3.0 and receive the option to automatically geotag the images.

Customer Relationship Management

Generating buzz and driving traffic is just as important as maintaining a good relationship with the public – but mobile phones provide the potential to streamline Customer Relations Management (CRM) while also reaching additional goals.

SMSs can be used to keep customers up-to-date, not just with promotions, but with the progress of transactions. SMSs have come to play an important role in creating customer peace of mind with various banking transactions – a little beep in your pocket can confirm your latest credit card purchase.

Mobile messaging services can also be used to receive instant feedback. To make this service most user-friendly, short, concise feedback should be accessible.

Case study: Peugot 107’s Break Free Campaign

Friends of Quirk will recognise this case study of the Break Free campaign for Peugeot 107 from the eMarketing textbook. The digital department of Saatchi & Saatchi, AtPlay, crossed many platforms to deliver this head-turning campaign to an eager audience.

AtPlay Peugot 107 Break Free Mobile Campaign

 

The challenges included a general lack of Internet accessibility and participation in South Africa and of course, competition with the Toyota Aygo and Citroen C1 at the time.

Flanked by Facebook and MySpace, AtPlay used the MXit mobile social networking application, with over 3 million users in South Africa, to reach the mobile-savvy, and style conscious youth of the country.

Peugeot 107 branded profiles were created as well as a splash screen for MXit. The profiles served as platforms to display information from the 107.co.za website. Easter eggs, or hidden content, were also used to reward the more enthusiastic and eagle-eyed Peugeot fans.

Next, users were invited to download a template of the car and try their hand at designing their dream ride and win prizes in the process. The responsibility of judging was placed on the public, which lead to entrants spreading word of the campaign to family and friends in order to secure votes.

AtPlay took this viral aspect one step further, and sent each finalist T-shirts featuring 2D barcodes and instructions which could be photographed to take users through to the voting area.

Comprehensive and exceptionally interactive, AtPlay’s Break Free campaign for the Peugeot 107 reached the following goals:

  • 1800 designs were created.
  • 63000 votes were cast.
  • A whopping 640 test drives were requested via the website.

Further Discussion

  • What techniques or incentives can be used to promote user-requested communications (e.g. USSD)?
  • How can one use physical mobile technologies to reach the man on the street?
  • Describe the steps in the process of mobile push through location-based messaging.
  • Discuss the repercussions, positive and negative, of having multiple versions of a website.
  • What are the social networking implications of geo-targeting?

What’s Up Next?

Mobile 101: Chapter 8
Mobile Social Networking & Gaming

Social networks and entertainment account for a large percentage of Internet traffic, and increasingly of mobile traffic.
In chapter 8 of the Mobile 101 series, we will dissect social networking culture and gaming in the mobile world and look at how we utilise these evolving industries.

References

AtlasCT [Date Unknown] reLive!
http://relive.abmaps.com/
[Accessed May 18, 2009]

Cool Short Codes [Date Unknown] Your Mobile Guide to Short Codes (check it out on your mobile phone)
deviceatlas.com/about
[Accessed on June 15]

Lupetti, Antonio [June 19 2009] Flickr’s Mobile Site Gets Smarter: Shows Photos Taken Nearby
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/flickrs_mobile_site_gets_smarter_nearby.php
[Accessed on June 22]

Lupetti, Antonio [June 21 2009] Tips to design your site for mobile devices
http://woork.blogspot.com/2008/07/tips-to-design-your-site-for-mobile.html
[Accessed on June 22]

Lardinois, Frederic [August 22 2008] Google Announces Mobile Geolocation API for Gears
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/google_announces_mobile_geoloc.php
[Accessed on May 29]

Purves, Thomas [July 5 2007] Where are we? Mobile Geolocation and Social Presence
http://www.thomaspurves.com/2007/05/07/where-are-we-mobile-geolocation-and-social-presence/
[Accessed on May 29]

revdancatt [February 2009] 100,000,000 geotagged photos (plus)
http://www.thomaspurves.com/2007/05/07/where-are-we-mobile-geolocation-and-social-presence/
[Accessed July 1, 2009]

Ronan [Date Unknown] Lightweight Device-Detection in PHP
http://mobiforge.com/developing/story/lightweight-device-detection-php
[Accessed on June 22]

Semacode [Date Unknown] Home
http://www.semacode.com
[Accessed on June 24]

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