Last December, Carlo and I wrote our predictions for 2006. As well as being a bit of fun, we do take them seriously and have quite a good track record of being right.
One of my first ones was to suggest that 2006 would finally start to see a thaw in mobile marketing, as agencies and brands finally started seeing the light. Note, this won’t be the the year it really takes off, but it will start to gather pace.
Lots of people have been predicting that “next year” would be the year that mobile marketing started to happen - for the last 5 years - but I never have actually, always retaining a realistic or bearish market view, depending on your viewpoint.
But I really think that it’s starting to happen. We have signs like the CMO of Verizon predicting that 20% - 30% of marketing spend would be through mobile and Martin Sorrell of WPP suggesting that it’s all going to happen quickly.
Another green shoot popped it’s head through the snow today, with the launch of AKQA Mobile, a division of one of the UK’s leading and most high profile digital agencies, AKQA.
More importantly, they’ve actually appointed someone who knows their mobile stuff to run it - Dan Rosen, who helped run the UK arm of 12 Snap. This is important, as it’s a clear sign that AKQA are acknowledging that mobile is very different from the web and it needs new talent to run it.
Nice quote from AKQA Chairman and Founder, Ajaz Ahmed:
“The world has moved on and I think ad agencies are living in the past,” said Ahmed. “No one has even scratched the surface of what could be done with mobile, so we’re very excited about the potential.”
I couldn’t have put it better myself! Seriously, stand by for a raft of announcements of other mobile related launches by agencies, both traditional and digital in the coming months.
Of course, what’s good news for some, may well be seriously bad news for others. I’ve long questioned the solus mobile agency model and I fear that this may well be the death knell for those companies. The silver cloud will be the rush to employ anyone with mobile experience in the coming staffing frenzy.
Thanks to Helen, for the story.
[...] UK ad-agency Akqa has launched a mobile division, appointing Dan Rosen — who launched mobile marketing agency 12snap in 2000 — to head the division. Plans are currently underway to see how the new division should intergrate with Akqa’s other global operations. Moves by large agencies into the mobile space is seen as a big threat to pure-play mobile marketers — I think it will thin the flock a little but the good ones will remain. This is via MobHappy, where Russell Buckley sees this move as the latest sign that 2006 will see a thaw in mobile marketing as it begins to be taken seriously by large advertisers and the industry. [...]
I question whether any solus Mobile Marketing agencies exist today. Many so called ‘agencies’ are no more than application houses with some understanding of the mechanics and best practice required to run a Txt2Win. This alone is clearly not a sustainable business model, and I think Russell has alluded to this in his comments on the longevity of the traditional ‘Mobile Agency’ model and I would have to agree. So many ‘mobile agencies’ have supplemented their incomes with Premium Rate SMS and IVR services, voting platforms and bulk SMS that they have become Mobile Application Service Providers - more TelCo than AdCo- effectively a big pipe to the operators, with an even bigger server to run applications and a roomful of developers huddled around a whiteboard. What’s missing? Creativity. Brand Strategy. The Big Idea. It’s almost laughable that so many MASP’s adorn them selves with the label of ‘agency’ when they are about as close to this description as Big Brother’s Chantelle is to Celebrity.
I’ve just returned from a brand summit yesterday with most of the CEO’s and Marketing Directors from the top 100 advertisers in the UK present. What everyone agreed was that digital is fundamentally crucial to the success of the future of consumer engagement. BBH - arguably the best advertising agency in the world - spoke eloquently on the concept of consumer engagement vs. interruption but one comment stood out; “consumers engage with the idea not the medium”. So true. The medium - mobile, web, IPTV - is not important to the consumer, it is the the Big Creative idea that entertains, informs and engages.
I think AKQA recognise this but they need to place mobile as a media vehicle on a pedestal so that they can tell their clients they’ve got it covered. They’ve isolated mobile as a media vehicle and this is wrong. I’ve been in the mobile advertising business for five years and competed head to head with Flytxt, 12Snap and Enpocket since 2000. Some of my peers in this industry have taken the MASP route and no longer call themselves an agency - this focus is commendable. Those that call themselves agencies whilst isolating the importance of one medium - I now believe have short shelf lives. The time has come for everyone in the ‘mobile marketing’ business to recognise that mobile is and will increasing become another medium through which we will deliver big powerful ‘portable’ creative ideas that integrate with web, iTV AND above-the-line (TV, Radio Print) advertising. Any one calling themselves a mobile marketing agency today can ill afford to believe that mobile is a standalone medium through which we can deliver isolated creative ideas - mobile is simply now part of the digital mix and will increasingly become part of the traditional mix. For now, I believe there are much bigger opportunities to help the brands we serve communicate with consumer networks that are connected by web, TV and mobile. It’s about the consumer’s digital network - not the media vehicle they use to create their network.
AKQA and other online agencies are moving into mobile. The Mobile Agencies are moving into online. The lines are blurring, inevitably, but it will be those with the strongest creative ideas - that measurably increase brand’s market share - that will win.
Good comment, Chris. Thanks for taking the time.
I always liked Aerodeon’s approach as it seemed to be the most marketing literate of mobile marketing 1.0 (I hate that phrase, even though I just invented it!) in the UK, with others being more technical enablers.
Good luck in Mobile Marketing 2.0
Russell