Hmm… Apart from blasting some videos from the 2011 Thinking Mobile Confex and being thankful to some guest bloggers for keeping me going I have been rather quiet recently. Had to do some real work. Naw, just joking

But seriously, apart from being very busy with our upcoming Thinking Mobile Charity Golf Series, a TV Show, putting together a University short course on mobile marketing and our 3rd Annual Thinking Mobile Conference & Exhibition brought to you by SABC Mobile on 29 & 30 March 2012 (what a mouthful!), I have been attending quite a number of conferences lately that can be summed up as being “on marketing” in general.

And I made an interesting observation that I thought I could share with you.

So here’s a bit more bile spitting for your reading pleasure

It seems to me that there are two types of conferences. The first type is really serious. You have experts delivering presentations that are to the point, sans any BS, call a spade a spade and teach invaluable lessons to delegates, who get their money’s worth and walk away really having learned something.

The second type of conferences are quite different. At these events speakers sound really intelligent, state of the art and well informed, when in fact they just babble on and on, dishing out rubbish on marketing (particularly of the online-, social network- and mobile variety) that would make my two year old’s (if I had one) babble on Barney sound like a rocket scientist’s contribution to conquering the Universe.

And guess what? It is this second type of conferences that are doing really well (if you rate mass appeal and making obscene amounts of money from willing, paying delegates and sponsors a success).

So what is happening here?

Well, let me just say that I am not suggesting that the speakers at the second type of conferences don’t know what they are talking about (it’s usually the same bunch on the circuit anyway). In fact they are real artists, who are in tune with their target markets, and arguably more so than the “fools” who try to impart real knowledge. It’s just that their audience seems to be much more eager to hear about how complicated and intricate all this marketing tralala is, instead of getting down to the nitty gritty that produces measurable results. For their brand. NOW!

Understandably, sponsors also flock to these second types of events in doves, because that’s were the masses are (and I am not bitching, although Thinking Mobile belongs to the first type of conferences, because we’re doing very well, thank you).

So this is what never ceases to amaze me: Just like the masses who continue to vote for politicians who do nothing for them but dish out rethoric and hope (nice concept), the majority of delegates at conferences continue to be “in awe” of rubbish dished out to them instead of accepting that marketing is actually quite straight forward and not all that difficult to do effectively. (By the way, and this goes out to my South African readers, I am NOT necessarily referring to local politics in this example – just think of American politics, where a lying, cheating, drug peddling nitwit called George W Bush – and now Barack Obama, actually he is worse because they sell him as the “good guy” – rose to office.)

For example there was a small, very well organized little event (+-50 delegates), where a speaker gave specific examples of campaignS (!!!) that produced revenue of R70 for every Rand spent (about a 70 Dollars for every Dollar spent). On the other hand of the spectrum was this mega conference (in SA terms…) with almost 200 delegates, where I had to listen to the “impact that an individual’s Tweet about a company’s bad service” achieved, when that particular company has virtually no competition. That same speaker gave two more similar examples but conceded, when I spoke to him afterwards and questioning his “rationale”, that “they were probably bad examples”.

Oh? All THREE???

But the delegates LOVED him!!!

Or this other dude, the marketing manager of one of the MAJOR Pizza delivery joints, who told me last year that he’s not going to invest in mobile in 2011 because his mobisite (really kick-ass: you can order and pay for your Pizza) doesn’t generate any revenue. His “digital agency” advised him NOT to advertise his mobile component because, they argued, “who would pick up their mobile phone to order a Pizza just because they see a relevant call to action in the ad break of a movie on TV?”. Following his agency’s advice, he even removed ANY and ALL references to his mobisite from all his TV ads (and there are many). Nevertheless he is now paying this agency to develop an app for him (which reaches about 99% LESS of the population than his “not revenue generating” mobisite).

I REST MY CASE!!!

So I guess what I’m saying (yeah, another metaphor) is that if you want to play Monopoly and WIN, you got to play by the rules. Problem is: YOU didn’t make the rules. Somebody else did. And trust you me, “they” know the rules better than you ever will.

So what’s the solution? Well, what is the problem? Everything seems to be working fine. The “rule makers” make their money (as always), the masses are getting duped (as always) and a select few benefit and grow from the “real deal” (as always).

The REAL question is: What’s the OBJECTIVE???

In a world of globalization and a growing sense of “one-ness” it’s not enough for an executive to have “a great, fun day” out of the office (accompanied by his secretary, nay: “personal assistant”) and returning to his desk more confused than he left it. His/her responsibility goes a little further than that. What is called for is building and growing economies, creating jobs and securing the well being of a populace.

How? Well one way could be to bring some common sense to the next conference you attend instead of dropping your brain off at reception together with your coat.

If you can’t do that you’re useless to society, your family and yourself. Why don’t you than rather exit the “rat race” and start farming coconuts on an island. It’ll have the same impact on society (maybe even a better one, because you’re not sabotaging progress) and maybe you’ll even be happier, what with the constant fights with your MD, the board, the wife…!

On the other hand: we did it like that for hundreds of years, so don’t confuse me with facts now

So there!

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We just released the official 2011 Thinking Mobile Confex Showreel. Watch the video as well as interviews with top mobile marketers at Thinking Mobile.

Interviews currently featured include:

1. Brian Mdluli – CEO DMASA
2. Brian Richardson – CEO Wizzit
3. Kali Ilunga – CEO EXP Digi
4. Mike Carter – Head of Mobile Trigger/Isobar
5. Pria Chetty – Founder & Principal Attorney Chetty Law
6. Ronen Aires – CEO Student Village
7. Sam Beckbessinger – Strategist Quirk
8. Sean Pashley – COO International Operations Starfish Mobile
9. Thecla Mbongue – Senior Research Analyst Informa
10. Tim Bishop – CTO Prezence Digital

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How to Use SMS for Marketing
Text message marketing is one of the oldest yet most innovative methods for reaching customers, and many businesses are already using it to great effect. If you haven’t yet jumped aboard the text bandwagon then you’ll be pleased to know that it’s not difficult. There are many companies out there who can easily take care of all elements of your business’ SMS campaigns for you, but the truth is that it’s relatively simple to do it yourself, and certainly cheaper.

Getting started
The first thing you need to do to get started in text message marketing is sign up to an online service that enables you to send texts from a computer. Many of these services work via a credits system – once you’ve signed up, you purchase a set number of credits, which can then be used to send texts. Once you run out of credit, you simply top up your account with more credits. This system works well for businesses operating on a restricted cash-flow, as you can keep a close eye on exactly how much you’re spending on your text message marketing efforts.

Once you’re set up and ready to go, you can import any mobile numbers you may have captured from your website, direct marketing or elsewhere. Then you’re ready to begin your first text campaign. Just remember that texting people who have not opted in to receive specific messages from you is illegal spam! One of the easiest ways to create your own database of Quality Leads is the Mobile Marketing Winner$ Mobisite Starter Kit. This will not only ensure that your campaign is legal but it also be much more effective because you’re only reaching the people who asked for your message and to whom it is most relevant.

Thinking up a campaign
The exact nature of the marketing messages you send via an online SMS service is limited only by your creativity. If you’re selling a product then you might send out brief details of an upcoming launch to customers who have expressed an interest in similar products previously. Businesses in the entertainment industry might want to keep people up to date with upcoming events or special offers. Those offering services, such as beauty salons and health centres, could even include a Mobile Coupon in the text that gives the customer a discount when they present it.

These are just a few examples, and you probably already have a few of your own ideas about how you might use text message marketing to benefit your own company. SMS messages have even been used to generate interest in major political campaigns.

Affordable global marketing
Some mobile marketing companies might charge you a premium for a multi-country or global campaign. By doing it in-house via an online SMS service, however, it can be just as cheap to communicate with customers on the other side of the world as it is with those on the other side of town. While there may be slight variations when sending texts to different countries, these are usually negligible.

As well as being able to send marketing messages to customers in bulk, SMS can be used to build up relationships with your existing customers by notifying them when their order is ready, reminding them of appointments or anything else.

So, before you hand over the big bucks to mobile marketing companies to do it for you, why not give text message marketing a try for yourself?

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Organizers of the recently concluded 2nd Annual Thinking Mobile™ Conference & Exhibition brought to you by SABC Mobile report an overall successful event. Thinking Mobile™, which focuses on the use of mobile phones as a marketing and advertising tool, showcased little to no technology chit chat and received positive feedback from delegates, exhibitors and sponsors alike.

A few interesting statistics illustrate the impact of the 2011 event. Most interesting is that 97% of the delegates came from agencies and brands, making the composition of attendees unique for events around mobile. This did not go unnoticed by conference speakers. “This is an interesting experience, a completely different crowd to what I am used to meeting at such events” said Informa Senior Strategist Thecla Mbongue.

The organizers’ vision for Thinking Mobile™ is to attract an audience that recognizes relevance in the marketing opportunities rather than the technology offered by mobile phones. This has been achieved with 92% of event attendees declaring that their companies plan to run a mobile campaign in 2011. Interestingly however only 44% have budgeted for such campaigns, which indicates that mobile has yet to be taken seriously in South Africa.

Asked about the three most important event components, delegates rated ‘content’ above ‘workshops and networking’. The ‘Exhibition’ came in third, probably because delegates thought the quality of exhibition stands ‘good’ but their variety ‘average’. This definitely presents an opportunity for the industry to be visible to its potential clients on a much larger scale.

The overwhelming majority of delegates rated the length of the conference ‘just right’. They also rated the events’ variety of topics, location and last but not least catering between ‘good’ and ‘very good’.

Conference co-organizer Lauretta Ngakane takes a positive look towards 2012: “Our research among attendees, which was conducted by IML, clearly shows that we are on the right track. We also know from one-on-one conversations that attendees were able to generate leads and business from the event. This is exactly what the Thinking Mobile™ platform is all about. We have started working on Thinking Mobile™ 2012 and will utilize all available feedback and data in order to grow the event into an even stronger platform for mobile marketers and brands”.

Visit the official event website at http://thinking-mobile.com for further 2012 event updates, speaker presentation and mobile marketing know how.

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The 2nd Annual Thinking Mobile™ Conference & Exhibition brought to you by SABC Mobile is fast becoming the premier mobile marketing industry event. Held at the IDC in Sandton, Johannesburg on 14 and 15 April 2011 the event gives marketers and advertisers again the opportunity to get updated on the latest and most effective mobile marketing solutions.

The line up, chaired by WASPA Vice Chairman and Grapevine Interactive MD Neil Hutchinson, includes:

1. Opening Address by the CEO of the Direct Marketing Association of South Africa Brian Mdluli
2. Key note address by the MD of 4th Screen Advertising Mark Slade from the UK
3. An insight into the legal implications of mobile marketing by the founder of Chetty Law, Pria Chetty
4. A case study of the Nike Cell C football starter kit project by the Head of Mobile at Trigger/Isobar, Marc Carter
5. A presentation on personalized messaging by the VP of Online Marketing at Clickatell, Llew Claasen
6. How to mobilize businesses by the CEO of Strike Media, Russel Stromin
7. How to turn mobile mechanics into mobile marketing by the MD of MobiMedia, Tim Legg
8. How to build interactive communities around brands by the Vice Chairman of the Mobile Marketing Association and CEO of SilverstoneCIS, Raymond Buckle
9. How to integrate mobile marketing in an overall marketing strategy by Head of Marketing at Computer Facilities, Nicholas Marini
10. Authenticity: The Missing Link in Mobile Marketing is presented by the CEO of EXP Digi Kali Ilunga
11. A panel discussion,“How powerful is mobile really? The confusion around user statistics and whom we should believe”, hosted by Stuff magazine editor Toby Shapshak and featuring panelists Justin Spratt (CEO at Quirk), Tim Bishop (CTO at Prezence Digital), Mark Slade (MD at 4th Screen Advertising), Ronen Aires (CEO at Student Village) and Thecla Mbongue (Senior Research Analyst at Informa)
12. Mobile in Retail & FMCG workshop with the CCO International Operations at Starfish Mobile, Sean Pashley
13. Mobile in Hospitality & Tourism workshop with SA Tourism Regional Director: Africa & Domestic, Phumi Dhlomo
14. Mobile in Sport & Leisure workshop with Founder & Director of the Digital Marketing Academy, Walter Pike
15. Mobile in Media workshop with SABC Digital Change Agent, Megan Firth
16. Mobile in Health & Beauty including Insurance workshop with joint MD of myMOBworld, Alexander Gregori

In addition, delegates can attend the exhibition with companies such as the SABC and SABC Mobile, myMOBworld, Community Buddy, Keypons, Makeda Initiatives, Mobile Masseuse, Strike Media, Affinity Data, IML, Computer Facilities, Business Opportunities, Wirels the DMA, the IIDM and SilverstoneCIS and get mobile vouchers with discounts on the products and services of all exhibitors.

Delegate passes are R4,999 and include full two day access to the exhibition, ten plenary sessions, five workshops, the panel discussion, cocktail function, mobile vouchers, tea & coffee breaks, two luncheons and a copy of the Mobile Marketing Winner$ e-handbook “Everything you ever wanted to know about mobile marketing but didn’t know who to ask”.

Book your seat now at http://thinking-mobile.com/registration.php or SMS mobi to 31771 for more info (your standard network SMS rates apply).

Tune in to SABC 2 Morning Live on Monday, 11 April 2011 to learn more about Thinking Mobile™.

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A recent study among top American marketing executives revealed that 90% of them regard mobile as the most important marketing tool but only 30% said they would budget for it in 2011. The reason they gave is as simple as it is surprising – “they don’t know where to start”.

Travel across the African continent, more particularly South Africa, and you find a similar yet at the same time, paradox scenario. South African companies spend over 50% of their online advertising budget on mobile with . South Africa having won the most MMA awards of any country outside the US. However, the majority of marketers still forget everything they know about marketing when they hear the prefix “mobile”.

They too don’t know where to start, overwhelmed by the seemingly endless choices when it comes to mobile marketing.

South Africa has for some time now been at the leading edge of technological developments for mobile to the detriment of adequately using this technology to create the best possible ROI for marketers. But this is changing and we can now proudly state that there are a select number of companies who truly understand mobile. These organisations are more than happy to share their know-how thus giving South African marketers and advertisers the tools needed to create winning mobile campaigns.

The 2nd Annual Thinking Mobile™ Conference & Exhibition brought to you by SABC Mobile is the premier meeting place for marketers, advertisers and the select few professionals who lead the industry. Once again the event focuses on marketers and everything they need to know to exploit mobile to the max for the benefit of their brand.

In ten plenary sessions and five industry specific workshops, Thinking Mobile™ offers marketers insights and background information. The platform provides detailed mobile strategy secrets that, when applied correctly, will give the mobile marketing novice a head start and the seasoned mobile marketing professional, increased results and ROI for their next mobile campaign.

In addition, delegates can sample the mobile products and services of exhibitors and benefit from mobile vouchers with special offers and discounts on their products and services. Finally, ample networking time and a special cocktail function provide the basis for in depth engagement to ensure maximum benefit.

Delegate passes are R4,999 and include full two day access to the exhibition, ten plenary sessions, five workshops, the panel discussion, cocktail function, mobile vouchers, tea & coffee breaks, two luncheons and a copy of the Mobile Marketing Winner$ handbook “Everything you ever wanted to know about mobile marketing but didn’t know who to ask”.

Book your seat now at http://thinking-mobile.com/registration.php or SMS mobi to 31771 for more info (your standard network SMS rates apply).

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Every now and again something irritates me so much that I cannot sleep until I get it off my chest. So bear with me as I have another one of those…

When it comes to “effective” and “successful” mobile marketing campaigns it never ceases to amaze me how much wool clients allow their agencies to pull over their eyes.

Let me explain.

Over the last couple of weeks I’ve attended a few events and read a lot of articles where the primary focus was on “facts and figures”, read: statistics. I came across companies who claimed success based on certain statistics and I came across agencies who seriously wanted to make their audience, and me, believe that they produced some sort of amazing success.

Now I firmly believe that you should compare apples with apples and oranges with oranges and I happen to have experience with the media outlets these companies have been exploiting. So I claim a certain authority over what I am about to share. I also believe in common sense, so I’m just going to give you the facts and let you be the judge…

Case number 1:

About five years ago I had this really cool idea to launch a pay per view/listen/read mobile download service. I launched the service under the name MOBmix on the well known MXit platform in 2007 (incidentally it was the first service of its kind on MXit, a dead cheap IM service). MOBmix quickly attracted over 400,000 subscribers and generated monthly turnover of between R150,000 and R250,000. What makes these figures even more impressive is the fact that MOBmix offered exciting but very limited content because I struggled to get content providers on board (today they are banging against my door, asking for distribution).

Okay, 400,000 subscribers is an impressive number by itself, but in relation to MXit’s subscriber base back then it was a phenomenal 25% !!! This would equate to 6 million subscribers in accordance with MXit’s current subscriber base. Take that and compare it to the meagre 56,000 subscribers, which the well known brand Seventeen Magazine was able to generate on MXit, calling it a “success” – and that was for a service where they gave away stuff for free!

Okay, just let this percolate: 6 000 000 PAYING customers versus 56 000 FREEBY seekers – count the ZEROS!

Impressive numbers, right? The simple fact is that no service on MXit since MOBmix has been so successful, neither in actual numbers nor in percentages. Or has it? By the end of 2008 I unplugged MOBmix. Why?

Because it was NOT successful!

Cutting to the chase: the networks took 50% of my turnover, MXit took another 25% and the 25% I was left with had to be shared with the content providers. I don’t know about you but I’m not prepared to only earn R20k a month, much less run a business on this budget.

Now you can argue that I’m just aweful at business because other companies are very successful on MXit. Well I beg to differ because, and this is my point, it all depends on how you define success. And more often than not your ad agency defines your campaign’s success in a way that is nothing but bull, but they wrap their figures up so nicely that you think your campaign has been “successful”.

400,000 subscribers generating R250k a month, sexy, isn’t it? Not!

Which brings me to…

Case No 2:

For this one you really have to sit down. So I’m listening to this presentation by the GM of this fancy ad agency and he shares this amazing campaign they did for the 4×4 model of one of the main car manufacturers. You could win one of these 4×4′s and they really went all out. I mean, boy, TV, radio, print, billboards, online, social networks… mobile, yeah, they actually had a mobisite. Can you imagine the budget for this campaign? Creative, production, media buying, hey we’re talking AT LEAST R20 million here, right?

Now get this: apart from some feedback and responses, which the campaign generated online for a measly R20 million plus, the campaign’s main “success” was the generation of 1,000 test drives of the 4×4. Hmm… even if the campaign cost “only” R20 million, that’s still R20k per test-drive – and that’s WITHOUT one car sold.

And that’s also apart from the fact that a woman won the competition and the car – this in a campaign that was aimed a men. Great job of reaching your target market guys. But actually even that’s besides the point.

What IS the point is how you define “effective” and “successful” when it comes to measuring the results of your campaign. I cannot believe that ALL marketing managers out there are happy to accept what are nothing more but half-truths. Sure, some ride on kickbacks and golf buddies to make their living but hey, SOMEONE out there surely must actually care and have the profits of their employer and the dividends of their shareholders at heart. Or at least their own earnings – because unbelievable as it may sound, owners of unlisted businesses also fall for the agency schmooz.

Just as having 400,000 MOBmix subscribers and R250,000 monthly turnover was no success, so are many, many campaigns that cost too much money for the results they deliver.

But the shit DOES look good, doesn’t it…

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Now in its 2nd year, the Thinking Mobile™ Conference is brought to you by SABC Mobile. Building on the success of the 2009 event and by popular demand, Thinking Mobile™ 2011 is a two-day gathering that incorporates 10 plenary sessions, 5 hands-on workshops, a delegate exclusive exhibition as well as a panel discussion hosted by Stuff magazine editor Toby Shapshak. Designed by marketers for marketers, the annual Thinking Mobile™ champions mobile from a marketing perspective rather than the usual techno approach.

The event focuses on the development of marketers who are serious about fine-tuning or upping their “mobile marketing game” past an SMS campaign. Top mobile marketing experts will share their know-how, unveiling relevant statistics, data and the “orchid and onion” campaign outcomes of the South African environment. The practical workshops have been strategically designed to represent relevant sectors and industry so as to allow participants the opportunity to learn how to design brand specific mobile strategies.

Too often and to the detriment of numerous brands, marketing efforts tend to present ROI campaign results as RESPONSE on Investment instead of RETURN on Investment data. South Africa, although a leader in the mobile technology arena, is not immune. With shrinking marketing budgets and the pressure for accountability on the rise, marketers and advertisers are looking to find the balance.

In addition to being able to attend 10 plenary sessions, 5 workshops, Toby Shapshak’s panel, the exhibition and a network cocktail function, the 2011 event delegates will walk away with a copy of the South Africa focused e-handbook “Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Mobile Marketing But Didn’t Know Who To Ask” and can claim a variety of mobile vouchers with special offers and discounts on the mobile products and services from the event exhibitors.

Whether a novice, marketing student, business owner, NGO, brand manager or advertising executive, the Thinking Mobile™ 2011 Confex is the one-stop shop for mobile marketers and those gearing to launch in the mobile space.

The event takes place on 14 & 15 April 2011 at the IDC Conference & Training Centre in Sandton, South Africa.

Early Bird and Groups Specials are on offer. Simply click HERE to register or SMS mobi to 31771 to also get immediate access to your mobile vouchers (South Africa only).

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Not so long ago marketers were excited at the prospects of a new tool: online marketing. They could send out personalized emails directly to leads via email at almost no cost, create a store front of their business with websites, place banner ads on other websites , create newsletters and blogs. Then the whole thing became more sophisticated with tools like Google AdWords, social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter and e-commerce.

Suddenly the whole world was connected and marketers had unleashed an animal. Not only did online marketing become actual work for which companies had to employ staff or a specialized agency, but now clients, customers and consumers could also praise or bash their brands, products and services.

This posed, and still poses, considerable challenges for marketers.

Enter from stage left: mobile marketing!

Oh my gosh. What is THAT? Another tool that seems to confuse more than be helpful. Yet MORE work and yet another specialized discipline that has to be learned and mastered. Well, mobile has come a long way and clever marketers quickly understood that INTEGRATION is the keyword. They supplemented their existing marketing tools with simple, yet effective mobile marketing tools to maximize the ROI of their marketing strategy and objectives.

Others were not so “lucky”. One of the mistakes made was the lumping together of online- and mobile marketing, based on the true but misleading fact that both are making use of the Internet. Granted, a simple SMS campaign does not involve the Internet but if you want to run an integrated campaign, instead of wasting your bucks on creating databases with worthless cell phone numbers, the Internet comes into play, e.g. with mobisites and apps.

Well, the truth is: online- and mobile marketing are two different disciplines. They have different rules and objectives, and they both work best when they are integrated into an overall marketing strategy.

Imagine this scenario: a company has built a website and used newsletters to build an opt-in database with whom they communicate regularly. They are cutting edge, so they also have a LinkedIn group, Facebook page and Twitter account. Now they heard that SMS, or texting, is much more personal, that only 10% of SMS’s are spam (versus 90% of emails) and that 98% of SMS’s are opened and responded to within 60 minutes (versus 5% of emails).

So they decide to send SMS’s to use their opt-in database, for example to alert their leads of a new special. SMS’s only allow 160 characters, so they include a hyperlink to their website for more information.

First problem: clicking on a hyperlink to a website from a mobile phone will, for most phones, not display the website correctly. In fact, it will be so bad that it can be regarded as useless. Lead and potential sale lost!

So the company decides to build a mobisite, which would render properly on the mobile phones of users but a mobisite has different objectives to a website, so they get entangled in the intricacies of its function and design. The result is a mobisite that works great technically (in some cases) but does not produce an acceptable ROI because it is not geared towards user expectations and preferences. In short: users are not using it!

The result is that this company takes the “informed” decision that mobile does not work for them.

Sadly, they are thus losing out on what is arguably the most exciting, cost effective and valuable communication tool since the invention of marketing. And it could all have been different if that company just understood that online and mobile are two different tools.

If I argue that mobile goes online then I point to the integration of these two marketing tools. Think of the millions of consumers who are using traditionally “online only” social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter from their mobile phones. If you want to stay ahead of the pack you have to embrace this reality and offer your potential and existing customers the opportunity to remain in the mobile environment when they continue their dialogue with you by e.g. clicking through to your website.

To do this right requires professionals with the knowledge of both the online AND mobile environment (and a principle understanding of traditional media would’t hurt either). So don’t remain stuck with your traditional-, online-, or even digital agencies. Make sure you have someone on your team who understands mobile as well!

P.S. If you want to learn more about what mobile marketing can really do for you without straining your budget and with 100% measurable ROI, book your seat at the upcoming Thinking Mobile Conference & Exhibition, – brought to you by SABC Mobile HERE or get more information HERE.

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Compliments of the Season and a prosperous and healthy 2011 to each and all of you! Today is the 3rd of February 2011 and if anyone of you wonders if my Season’s Greetings are not somewhat belated then you are probably right on the money. Well, I guess once the year reaches the month of February even the laziest bum and notorious holiday maker has to somehow drag him- or herself back behind the desk to continue the schlepp of a daily routine.

Am I sounding frustrated to you? Hell yeah! I mean we all kick start the year with fresh enthusiasm and maybe even a couple of New Year’s resolutions and we go through the year being hit with the daily realities, until we slowly fade away and become burnt out. That’s why we have the Holiday Season and we use the time around December and January to re-load our batteries and spend time with loved one’s and our family (not that the latter is actually a rejuvinating experience – at least not in most cases).

So why do I sound frustrated in February when I should have enough “vuma” to at least last me through three quarters of the year?

I tell you why: I read mobile outlooks and reports for 2011!

Believe me, that’s enough to make a grown man cry. Let me explain. As usual, every year at around this time every Tom, Dick and Harry publishes or releases some kind of outlook or forecast for the coming year. In marketing circles this is usually based on what happened in the previous year, combined with some sort of “trend” analysis.

Mobile marketing is, of course, not exempt from this practice and if we can believe publications by the MMA, Opera Software or the numerous Mobile Marketer articles about what companies are up to in mobile these days (and we should!), then mobile is indeed “alive and well”. In between you still get the odd nitwit who headlines his article on mobile marketing with the pre-fix “2011 is the year of…”, but I think we can all agree that these people are somewhat out of touch with reality.

2011 is really “just another year” for mobile, as was 2010 or 2009 for that matter. Just like many other things in life mobile marketing is ever evolving and we see more and more exciting things happening along the lines of smart phone penetration, HTML5, faster mobile internet access (mine works faster and more reliably than fixed line ADSL for years) and so on. The only thing that’s changing, and it’s changing fast, is that almost every company now does “something” in mobile.

And herein lies my frustration, the reason why I already feel “burnt out” in February. You see, the medium is growing so fast as an advertising tool that the demand to “go mobile” seems to outweigh the supply of marketers who understand the medium. Consequently, many companies go mobile, for example with a mobisite, but then don’t know what to do with it.

The times when you had to convince a company to add mobile to their marketing mix are long over. That’s the easy part. The challenge today is to get them to do it right. But who is to tell them? Definitely not the developer who made a quick buck by selling his product.

You might find this hard to believe but these are actual statements I overheard some marketers make recently:

“Our agency told us not to use our TV ads to tell viewers that they can order our Pizza with free home delivery on their mobile phone. After all, who would do that during the commercial break while watching a movie.”

“I agree with my developer that we should first build a mobisite and then look at our strategic approach as to how we want to use it.”

“We have a mobisite but it has very little traffic. In fact, I have no idea how to measure our mobisite ROI. Consequently we will not be investing much in mobile this year.”

Should I go on?

This reality is further made worse by terribly confusing statistics that are released by various established companies and that are published in “heavy weight” magazines. For example, World Wide Worx just released a study, which claims that 6 million South Africans are on the mobile internet. In 2010 they released a study, which claims that 9 million South Africans are on the mobile internet (by the way this is the only study I ever read which claims an actual decline in mobile usage).

Both studies were based on focus group interviews.

MXit, initially an IM, which has now grown into a full on mobile entertainment, information and shopping portal, claims over 25 million South African subscribers (who, mind you, all have to have mobile internet access to log on to the service), and a daily growth rate of 40.000 new subscribers. Opera Software claims an increase in mobile web browsing of over 200% year on year in South Africa alone, and these figures only reflect the use of their browser, which as we know, is one of many that are available for mobile phones today.

Interestingly, both MXit and Opera Software do not base their figures on focus group interviews but on actually measured online activity such as logging on to their service.

So who should we believe? (Okay, that was a stupid question, duh!)

With so much literally diametrically opposed information out there I am not surprised that the “average” marketer who rightfully followed the hype to venture into the “mobile space” is completely confused and now takes a wait and see attitude. It will take some time and a lot of effort by the real mobile marketing strategists to fix this mess and help marketers use mobile as the effective, integrated marketing tool that it really is.

Of course there are countless case studies of how to do it “right”, But you know the argument “my mind is made up, don’t confuse me with facts.”

It is this release into the market place of what I cannot but call false and misleading information by so called “experts”, who contradict themselves while they claim to “look at the situation realistically and without the hype”, that has me praying for another Holiday Season to start tomorrow!

The “good” guys have worked long and hard to bring mobile to centre of mind. Let’s not allow a few naysayers to spoil the party by confusing our audience

P.S. If you want to learn more about what mobile marketing can really do for you without straining your budget and with 100% measurable ROI, book your seat at the upcoming Thinking Mobile Conference & Exhibition, – brought to you by SABC Mobile HERE.

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