However, in the context of mall-type marketing, I think some input would be required by users as to when they wanted to receive messages. For instance, if you worked at the mall, constant messaging could be irksome, so you’d be able to specify when you didn’t want them.

If you lived so close as to be included in the geography of the mall, I’d hope that likewise, you could opt out at certain times.

Marketers have to realise that access to your phone is a privilege, not a right and you can very easily switch off that access.

Again, for mall type marketing, I’d suggest that the area should be defined as “within the mall”. Outside that, the messages no longer become “while you’re here….” but “why don’t you come down to the mall?” Different messages would be needed for each.

Marketers would also need to recognise that the further away the recipient of the message was, the more compelling the message would have to be. In other words, asking someone to traipse from one end of the mall to the other would need to feel much more motivated that someone who just needs to go 10 metres to take advantage of it.

I hope this answers your question.

Russell

If I were to subsribe to service, would I be constantly ‘beeped’ letting me know that all these ’secret sales’ are going on?

In other words, with LCM, how wide of an area do you see it covering?

The new hype in mobile phones is no longer web surfing but web hosting! According to Nokia. ‘We are now able to provide a Web server on a mobile phone with a global URL than can be accessed from……

–simon

But actually I wasn’t writing about Mobile Marketing generally, I was writing about Location Based Marketing specifically. Therefore, the whole context of the post takes into account location.

Furthermore, I mention location as part of the elements within the IDEA framework. eg “Tell them something they donǃÙt know. And possibly, thatǃÙs relevant to where they are. This could be news of a ǃ?Secret Saleǃ? happening in the vicinity, but could be as wide as sports scores, music chart and gossip or breaking news.” and “The premise here is that the user will get access to deals they wouldnǃÙt have otherwise, if they sign up and use the channel. This can be location specific (ie discounts and promotions from local shops) or non-location specific”.

LBM embraces two scenarios:

1. Locally transmitted messages, which may or may not have location relevance. The reason for these is cost – transmitting over Bluetooth or wifi in due course, as an example, is cheaper than over an operator network.

2. Centrally transmitted messages, which MUST have a location relevance, otherwise they’re not LBM (they’re just mobile marketing).

Of the two, I believe that local transmission makes the most sense and location plays second fiddle to the other IDEA elements. It doesn’t HAVE to be incorporated into a campaign, while the other elements do.

By way of example, if we send a message out saying “Turn left into Starbucks now” it takes account location, but won’t work as it doesn’t Inform (OK, you could argue that you might not have noticed it, but it’s pushing it), there’s no Deal, no Engagement or Advertainment.

So location can certainly be relevant, but in my view, isn’t central to LBM success. Odd, but there you have it.

Russell

I do think phone advertisers will get to us. Yes they could pay for your phone or part of the ǃ?dataǃ? service. ItǃÙd be in the guise of discounts on your phone service via paid endorsement enabled. ItǃÙd be wrapped up with sexy Hollywood actors in tasty packaging, theyǃÙd show you how it worked for them, where it worked and how IT is the new pink— and youǃÙd buy it.

Personally, I see it more than messages on my device, I see me affecting the environment. Rather than the messages come to you on your phone what if your phone affected the displays around you? No one wants ads on their phone, at least not ads that are hard sells, ads with potential discounts or offers could be acceptable in the form of an SMS or vCast image flash or something. I think having consumers affect the environment around them via their devices is more interesting. Things like the idea of air posting where a set space marked with GPS data is coded to trigger displays to turn on content when a ǃ?deviceǃ? passes thru though them.

Ideas like this are banking on the fact that you signed up for a service or game to do just that. I could see it happening though ÇƒÏ Nike Nokia Coke all team up to give me this wild urban experience where bits of my profle data loaded on a Bluetooth enabled phone enable me to play a game with Nike coolness sponsorship, and Coke machines that can sense my presence and give me clues as to where to go via their lcd screens. ItǃÙs all coming and its going to be fun.