Driving buyers into the stores

The c902 Cyber-shot™ is a compelling handset for anyone who takes a lot of pictures. 
Features like Face Detection and BestPic™ make snapping… well, a snap.

But before Sony Ericsson could get people excited about the c902, they had to get their attention. So they asked Ad.IQ to work with digital agency Iris, on a campaign and a .mobi site that would get people interested and move them inexorably towards their nearest store for a demo (and purchase). The simple, usable site reflects the simplicity of the goals: generate interest in the phone and its key features, then get people into the stores.

Ad.IQ (formerly TXT4) is a rapidly-growing mobile company, working with over 200 brands globally – including Virgin Holidays, HSBC, Fiat, Ford, Vonage, IBM and Panasonic. They integrate mobile campaigns with services developed in-house such as data capture, intelligent callback solutions, ‘nearest’ locator and payment. Campaigns are delivered across SMS, mobile web, Internet and voice.

Iris started in 1999 with a very simple formula. Offer clients and agency folk a clear point of difference to the big, slow, bureaucratic networks. Throw out the red tape, the big offices, long lunches and the fat-cat parent companies. Blend in great clients like Coca-Cola, Shell, Sony, adidas and Brown Forman.

The campaign
The .mobi for the c902 Cyber-shot™ launch was part of an integrated marketing campaign.

Outdoor, TV and print advertising used a simple call to action: text a keyword to a shortcode (different keywords and shortcodes let the agency track the responses).

“We already had the media in place to effectively promote this exciting new handset to our target market, so adding a direct response element such as this is almost a no brainer. No extra media cost, and minimal production, all to allow consumers to almost instantly take their awareness
and interest a stage further,” says Paul Fitzpatrick, Digital Marketing Manager at Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications (UK & Ireland).

The site was also promoted with banners on four operator’s portals with excellent results.

Discovery

Once consumers text the keyword to the short code, they receive a link to the .mobi site via WAP Push* (if the phone supports it) or in a text message.

The campaign also published the .mobi URL allowing people to thumb it in and go directly to the site.

If the person hasn’t visited the site within 24 hours, they get a follow-up text with a link. Just once.
“We’re excruciatingly careful to avoid spamming anybody,” says Anna Gudmundson, Senior Technical Project Manager and Business Analyst at Ad.IQ.

A typical text: To discover the Sony Ericsson C902 Cyber-shot on your mobile, click on:
http://uk.sonyericsson.mobi/c902/.
For no more texts reply STOP**.

* WAP Push – a specially encoded message that embeds a link to a site. Not all phones support it. Most do these days.
**Spam prevention (essential).

The home page: keeping it simple

What do people want to find out about a new handset when they’re out and about?
Digital agency Iris worked with the client to identify three things that people want to know:
what the phone looks like; what it does; and where you can find it. So that’s what the .mobi focused on: Key Features, See the Phone and Store Locator.

Using combined knowledge and experience of mobile internet site design, build and mobile thinking Iris and Ad.IQ then worked closely together to shape these ideas to a functional site.

“It’s about mobile thinking not just porting over a typical website,” says Anna Gudmundson.

The ‘key features’ page

Five top features with links to find out more, plus product specifications.

The ‘See the Phone’ page

Anna: “How a phone looks is a major factor in purchase and it’s an instant call for most people. So the site gives them a few views along with the features and specs.”

The ‘Store Locator’ page

They like the look. They like the features. It’s time to get to a store.

If people access the site by entering the URL, no location information is available, so users can
simply enter their postcode for the nearest store.

If they clicked through from the link in the WAP Push or text, location data is attached and the ‘Locate Now’ button generates the right results.

Bingo

A low-cost, low-risk site integrated with a through-the-line campaign to start experimenting
withthe mobile web as a purchase driver.

As well as providing consumers with a compelling experience of the Sony Ericsson brand, Ad.IQ’s site metrics have produced a wealth of information to help their client refine media and contact strategies. At time of writing the site is still life and continues to deliver measurable ROI.

Sometimes, the simple things, done well, is all it takes.

Click-throughs. Store traffic. Customer engagement.
That’s what the mobile web is all about.

“We have been very pleased with Sony Ericsson’s first move into this area, and intend to refine how we develop and promote such assets on future handset launches, as part of an increasing range of mobile marketing activities,”
says Paul.

Some highlights:

Example response: over 3000 click through from ‘3’ banner
Channel 4’s Big Brother was the most engaging spot
High rate of consumer using the store locater when visiting the site