MMA 2008 guidelines for mobile advertising to be implemented
The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) has published its new codes and regulations for best practices on the mobile internet for mobile marketing and advertising. The report included changes in uses of web banners and ads used by companies all over the world that have to be adhered to. The report goes as far as to include new standardized sizes for banners and ads on websites that are not owned by the company advertising its product or service. The new guidelines are for the EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) group of countries and their subsequent network providers and companies that use the mobile internet as a medium of advertising.
The purpose of the MMA is simple and one that users greatly appreciate. The fact is, these new guidelines are hoped to increase the quality of mobile web content for users and decrease the unwanted and annoying banners and ads to a bare minimum, while allowing companies to promote and sell their products in a rich and meaningful way that will be understood and trusted by the mobile community. The benefits reaped form this new set of regulations will soon be seen.
$4.9 billion lost each year by lost SMS opportunities by mobile operators
Well, it is normal for companies to want to complicate things a bit to reap their own profits, but what if a slight complication could enhance user experience at the same time? Text messages are no longer just written messages used for communication. Now they are advanced text based links to downloadable applications that users can install on their phones to use the mobile internet more effectively.
For example, users of the mobile version Yahoo! Instant Messenger don’t always type the URL, log-in and then start communicating. Instead, they send a text to Yahoo!, which then sends them the application they need to run Yahoo! Messenger form the ease of their own device, with no 3rd parties whatsoever. They get an application, install it and they have a shortcut button on the comfort of their main menu. It is as easy as that. This use for text messaging will is hoped to bring is higher gains for mobile operators as well because of the higher importance of the content. Operators hope to use this as one way to close the great gap they are facing between potential and realized gains.
The W520i concept music phone my SonyEriccson®
The new market for mobile phones is in a spur of advancement in technology. It is true that this spur has been around ever since the introduction of the first cell phones in the world market, but today the multiplying effect of this advancement has derailed the traditional norm of technological progress as we know it. The concept phone by SonyEriccson is one of those great feats of mobile glory that never seize to amaze the masses. Simply put, the W520i would be the greatest marvel of mobile technology meets music central for many young and older generations of cell phone enthusiasts alike.
The new phone is a very similar device compared to many great names such as the iPhone and other new cell phones, but the truth is it is a small step further or into a different direction, some might say. This is due to the advanced features it posses in the MP3 capability field. The phone is touch screen with no stylus necessary (hmm… sounds familiar) and has as further advantage of having a four way navigational pad with 2 soft touch buttons for all those little functions we all need. The phone comes equipped with a Walkman 3.0 player as well as a 2.0 mega pixel camera with a VGA video recording capability of 30 frames/second. Not bad at all!
WAP: Is there anything it can’t do?
We already know about the advantages of mobile applications over mobile ads. But the truth about mobile advertising is much more severe than was previously accounted for. The truth is that mobile advertising is the least reliable source of advertising according to the latest Nielsen Internet Survey, which was conducted over 76 consumer markets across the world. In fact, the greatest influencer in any marketing campaign is word-of-mouth.
People usually tend to believe friends and family over companies seeking to make a profit. A very natural reaction, don’t you think? I mean, it is only normal that you will believe your best friends answer to the most reliable network provider over some ad you saw on TV, rite? It is more accurate than you think. In fact, 78% of the sample used said that they preferred word-of-mouth advice over any other form of ad awareness. After that comes, newspapers, magazines, TV, internet, radio and after a great many more, comes the least trusted, mobile advertising. The truth is, it scored the minimum consumer preference with only an 18%. Many argue that this is normal for a new emerging technology and rightfully so. The numbers have increased steadily over the years and no one can say otherwise. I guess time is the only element that will show what the future for mobile marketing holds.
The world retail industry in the hands of WAP users
Mobile internet and its many functions have impressed many. The uses that can be taken out of it are also very intriguing. But mobile phones are taking another step forward. The next target: The retail industry. For so long we’ve wondered how cell phones can facilitate buying goods from the internet or even stores in our neighborhood. The National retail Federation (NRF) says why wait? If the possibilities are endless, then why wait for something we already have the technology to provide? People across Asian nations like Japan and China are already using their phones to check prices and freshness of the goods they buy from stores with the use of their cell phones. Bar-code readers are a standard preset in most new phones introduced in these markets today. In fact, it would be safe to say, that it has become a luxury many have grown used to.
Whether it is something that may seem science-fiction to many, the fact is that it is there and we have to get with it already. Retailers from all around the globe gathered a the NRF meeting held in New York this year, simply to realize the potential of the benefits they could reap from this amazing functionality gained by mobile users. NRF officials even went as far as to recommend retailers to embrace the future of retailing services in mobile devices to participate in the future of the world economy.