Mobile users respond to customized messages

Just like more traditional online advertisers are beginning to target specific users, a recent study indicates that targeting - or customizing - messages to a demographic or geographic area could result in better campaign ROI. Mass messaging is no longer the best way to attract mobile users.

by Kristina Knight

The study found that mobile consumers do not respond well to generic advertising, especially on mobile devices. Rather, 55% consumers studied wanted specific, relevant ad messages delivered by SMS, MMS or mobile display and video.

Further, researchers found that 5% of mobile users wanted access to commerce via a mobile device and 10% wanted to access their banking information from a mobile device.

“Mobile’s capabilities are changing consumer expectations and therefore will have broader implications on how marketers approach all forms of communication moving forward,” said Angela Steele, Starcom vice president/activation director and leader of the study.

Finally, researchers discovered that mobile users are more apt to respond to an ad delivered at a specific time of day. This daypart advertising isn't all that different from radio daypart advertising except for one thing - the daypart is all day long. Researchers found that users are accessing the Internet via their mobiles, checking email, texting friends and talking to family at a near-constant rate. That means the right daypart for mobile advertisers is all day long.

Users who need to quickly check personal email or check the score of a ball game are doing so at work, on the road and while at dinner, making the mobile Internet an even hotter property than ever before.