New York, USA: ten excellent video interviews with ten mobile experts

In New York City, last week, mobiThinking interviewed ten leading mobile experts from an array of backgrounds, both brands and agencies, on camera. mobiThinking has been hunting for themes that unify them together, but apart from the obvious “your customers are mobile, if you’re not you are invisible”, it’s not been possible. Each interviewee shares different experiences, insights and foresights and different points of view… enough material for many blogs to come.

For now, here is a list of the video interviews with a brief taster/a summary of what mobiThinking found most interesting in each.

• Using mobile to tap into millions of concert-goers – Russell Wallach, Live Nation Network

A whopping 47 million fans attended a Live Nation music concert in 2010. Almost all of those attendees have a mobile phone. It is fascinating how Live Nation is using mobile to engage with concert-goers before, during and after the event. Each month it sees over 8 million music lovers visit its mobile sites, while the app delivers US $10s of millions in m-commerce revenues. At Live Nation shows mobile provides a whole host of opportunities for bands, fans and sponsors alike. Fans can purchase snacks and beverages via mobile and can opt in to receive discounts for concessions. Text-led promotions could give fans the chance to win a meeting with the band backstage or vote for what the encore should be, even to chat with the band via instant messenger – and that is just scratching the surface.

• What marketers need to know about mobile in China – Jia Zheng, AKQA

China is the world’s largest mobile market, but one that marketers know far too little about. That is what makes Zheng’s research so interesting. She compares mobile usage among consumers in China to the USA (a market we know, or believe we know a lot more about). Chinese consumers are more active mobile users than in the US, and more eager to use mobile devices for purchasing, social networking, games and videos. They are also more ready to try out new mobile technology and more receptive to mobile marketing. One of the more interesting findings is that consumers in second-tier cities are as, or even more, advanced in their mobile usage than those in Shanghai and Beijing.

• Meeting the needs of mobile customers with mobile Web/HTML5 – Stephen Gates, Starwood Hotels

When people are in a city they don’t know and need to find and book a hotel, check the address or get directions to a hotel, it is natural for them to turn to their mobile device. To date mobile Web for Starwood Hotels, one of the world’s largest hotel groups, has maintained this practical, but utilitarian persona. However, Gates believes HTML5 will change all of that. HTML5 will allow Starwood to deliver a mobile experience that embodies the unique personality of each of the hotel brands, which include Sheraton, Westin, Le Méridien, W Hotels and St Regis.
The particular attraction of HTML5 is the ability to use the same technology to design for all platforms, PC, tablet, smartphone or feature phone, but that does not mean starting with a PC-based HTML5 site and scaling down for mobile. For Starwood, the future is based on designing for mobile first.

• What should brands develop first – mobile Web or mobile app? Chet Fenster, MEC Entertainment

People spend more time with their phone than they do in front of the television, at work or with their family. Many don’t even turn off their phone at night. In the future most people will access the Web while on the go. Fenster leaves brands in no doubt why it is essential that brands need a mobile strategy. OK, so what should it be first mobile Web or mobile app? You will struggle to find a better, more succinct, no-nonsense answer to this perennial question than Fenster’s.

• Weather Channel’s guide to targeted mobile advertising – Scott Jensen, Weather Channel

Not only is the Weather Channel one of the world’s most pioneering mobile brands, it is also one of the top mobile destinations in the US – and, increasingly, worldwide as it expands abroad – with 33 million unique monthly users on Weather.mobi and 20 million app downloads on both Android and iPhone. It is always fascinating to hear how it uses mobile to maximum effect, but it is the Weather Channel’s insights into targeted mobile advertising, which particularly interests mobiThinking. The ability to make advertising more relevant to the visitor by closely tying the ad to the content and to location, should grab the attention of all publishers and advertisers. The Weather Channel proves that people will readily volunteer their location in return for more tailored information – in this case a more accurate local weather forecast. Couple location with contextual relevance – an offer of a hot drink at a retail outlet nearby when it’s cold, or a sunny holiday when it’s snowing – and you have a winning combination.

• The dos and don’ts of mobile marketing to minority groups – Professor Neal Burns, University of Texas

The beauty of mobile is its capacity to target well-defined groups – the ability to narrowcast, as opposed to broadcast, a pertinent message to a defined group that is contextually relevant, based on location, time-of-day and social setting, while conforming to ethical standards. Sharing insights that draw on his vast experience across the whole advertising business, Burns conclusions are applicable to all marketers interested in targeting any demographic group, whether considered a minority or not.

• How device detection helps Smart AdServer target ads at mobile devices – Sandrine Cardi, Smart AdServer

Increasing Smart AdServer is finding that its business and agency customers want to use more engaging ad formats, such as video and rich media, in their mobile campaigns. On top of this, Cardi points out, mobile advertising is different in each country – mobile video is more popular in the UK, HTML5/rich media is more popular in Germany, while Spain is more focused on mobile Web, and India is all about older devices. All this makes it essential that the advertiser knows what device each visitor is using, together with the devices characteristics e.g. screen size and capabilities, e.g. does it play video, does the browser support HTML5, in order to serve the right ad.

• Fostering shopper loyalty with mobile retail – Matt Martin, Sam’s Club

Mobile retail should not be about technology, platforms and devices or even demographics. Start by understanding who the customer is, what they do and what they really want. When you know what is most meaningful, beneficial and adds the most value, invest specifically in those areas… sage advice from Sam’s Club.
Sam’s Club is a members-only retailer, with 600 discount warehouse stores across the US. The members pay a fee to shop at Sam’s Club’s, which means that it can count on a greater degree of loyalty than many retailers – and mobile, currently used a million of the members, is a good way for Sam’s Club to tap into that loyalty.

• Your customers are mobile, are you? Mike Yonker, Rockfish
Yonker makes a compelling case for mobile Web, using eye-catching stats and down-to-earth metaphors. Interestingly, Yonker sees brands designing Websites for Tablet computers first then scaling them up for PC, rather than vice versa. Rockfish is an up-and-coming digital agency acquired by WPP in August 2011. It was OMMA’s Agency of the Year 2010 and is on Ad Age’s Agency A-List.

• Insights into mobile advertising from a mobile ad exchange – John Phenix, Nexage

As a mobile advertising exchange that enables publishers to get the best price for their mobile inventory from a variety of advertisers and ad networks, Nexage, is in a good position to share industry trends. Presently strong demand for mobile ads comes from automotive, entertainment, retail and CPG advertisers. Publishers of mobile apps are also a key source of revenue as they are reliant on mobile advertising to drive downloads. Rich media and video ads are particularly in demand – publishers that offer these ad formats may receive up to ten times the advertising revenue delivered by a banner ad.

These interviews took place at Ad:tech New York on November 10, 2011.

London: Nine video interviews with European mobile experts, focused on mobile Web, strategy, advertising, HTML5 and ad networks with lots of best practice tips and advice

26 September, 2011