I’d like to welcome Christian Ehl, as an occasional Guest Blogger to The Mobile Weblog. Christian runs an interactive agency here in Munich called Hillert & Co Interactive and I’m impressed with their understanding of the mobile space. More importantly, they understand that mobile is just one part of the marketing channel and mustn’t be viewed in isolation. As I’ve written before, I don’t think there’s much future for a stand-alone specialist mobile agency.
Today, Christian writes about how ski resorts need to get more savvy about how they attract visitors and keep them coming back:
Going skiing in the Stubaier Glacier in Austria the other day, I noticed how many people take their mobile phones with them on the slopes. Everywhere I looked I saw people taking photos, SMSing to arrange meeting points, kids playing games in the restaurant or listening to music on their mobiles, and wherever a crowd gathers, you can hear a symphony of ringtones. Nearly everybody out there must be carrying a mobile phone and more astonishing, lots of people are using them.
Here’s a chance for innovative mobile marketing services. Today almost every skier prepares his trip online. Finding the right ski resort, checking the weather conditions, selecting the right ticket, finding out how to get there and back – all this is done via the internet.
And then, when people leave for their trip, this connection is cut off and they are on their own. But everybody takes their phone. So why are there no services available for us skiers? People are spending time waiting to get into the gondola/ski lift, the ride up to the glacier takes nearly 15 minutes (with great phone reception!). There’s so much time where the users can get the latest information, exchange information or even take part in competitions and quizzes. Ski resorts should be a Mecca for mobile services.
And when you talk to the resorts? 1.1 million people come to the Stubaier Glacier every year alone – and they’re all anonymous.
This means that there’s a great potential to get skiers’ permission to open a dialogue with them and then provide them with ongoing services. Want customer retention? Then, start communicating!
This is a natural opportunity for some great mobile marketing. So, come and see what Stubai will start offering soon. Other ski resorts take note!
Russell adds: I’ve been doing a lot of skiing this season too and have also been struck by the way mobiles have penetrated this area of society. One of the things I like about skiing is the peace and beauty of the mountains themselves. And it’s disconcerting to be standing there and have a mobile go off next to you.
Some people stop half way down the piste to answer calls!
But this just proves Christian’s point – there’s lots of potential demand for some very fine mobile marketing.
If you want to be a Guest Blogger on The Mobile Weblog, drop me a line russell at mobhappy dot com and give me some ideas. We have an audience of 50,000 or so readers, so it’s nice exposure, if you’re looking for it. 70% of the readers come from the US, with the remainder mainly in Europe and Asia.
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