When our LBS marketing startup, ZagMe, went bust back in 2001, I spent quite a lot of time analysing why. The tendency in these circumstances is to move on to the next thing, without really learning the lessons. However, I know that one of the issues was that it was way ahead of its time and I didn’t wish to forget all the learning. I also didn’t want a bunch of entrepreneurs making the same mistakes all over again. Not that it hasn’t stopped quite a few in the last 7 years, as it’s hard to learn from others’ mistakes.
ZagMe (if you don’t know) sent special offers to consumers’ mobiles by sms when they were out shopping in a couple of UK malls. We recruited 85,000 people and send about 1500 campaigns, so it was neither trivial nor unsuccessful, in many ways. But there were some issues with the model, one of which was the necessity of recruiting consumers as well as retailers and merchants. For a startup, that’s a little like fighting a war on two fronts and one of the attractions of AdMob all these years later was that we partner with others to get the traffic and focus on the tech and adsales.
In the White Paper I subsequently wrote about the lessons of plucky, pioneering ZagMe (email me for a free copy, if you haven’t read it), one of the better models I identified for this type of activity was for credit card companies:
Credit and credit card providers (both generic and store specific) would be advised to look at the potential of this channel too. Again, they already have relationships with their merchants and a remit to increase spending in those merchants with their products.
The ability, for instance, to target a store card owner with a specific offer in that store, provided the purchase is made with their card, is highly attractive. In addition, a credit-based purchase is more of an impulse-based one and that means goods and services with higher transaction values can be offered.
Fast forward to today and it seems Visa are trialling exactly the same idea, with participating brands like with brands including Macy’s, Marriott, Old Navy, Papa John’s Pizza and Circle K.
I hope they’ve read my White Paper, because it’ll save them a whole bunch of teething problems.
Hi,
I would be grateful if you could forward me your whitepaper, thanks.
Regards
Owen
Russell,
I read the release but missed the LBS mention - are my eyes failing me or have I missed something?
Russell,
I would appreciate a copy of your whitepaper as well.
Thanks
Tim
Yep, Russell, looks like there’s no LBS (or even ZagMe-style “faux LBS”) involved. I fear (and it is so unlike you) you may have fallen into the ‘I saw a black cat, therefore all cats are black’ trap.
It does look & feel like ZagMe, though, just without the limitations of two shopping centres. And agreed, that notwithstanding the lack of LBS, they should read the whitepaper!
J
It would be great to get a copy of your white paper to take a closer look at it.
Thanks
Sebastian
Sorry guys, I didn’t mean to imply that it was an LBS idea, just that credit card companies are ideally placed to take advantage of mobile couponing generally. And that’s why they should read my White Paper.
But then I read the title of the post (which I obviously make up before I write - and read the original post in full - the post) and then d’oh. Yep - see what you mean. Sorry.
Russell
We forgive you
Hi Russell,
Please can you send me the white paper.
Thanks
Graham
Hello Russel,
I should be glad to receive a copy of your whitepaper.
Thanks.
Ramon
Hi Russell, would also love to see a copy of your white paper, please. Thank you in advance. KR, Anne
Hi Russel,
Please can you send me your wallpaper too.
Thank you!
Serge