Can you hear me now? Highlights from the 2011 Mobile Consumer Report

If you company or clients have been slow about exploring mobile marketing, it’s time to wake up and smell the coffee.

According to a new report from Experian Simmons, almost 1 in 3 cell phone owners today believe that their cell phone will be their primary entertainment device in the future. But more importantly for marketers, this new study says that 30% of adult iPhone owners now say they want to use their phones to pay for purchases in stores compared with just 12% of non-iPhone owners.  That means a customer could walk into a store, research a product, but then buy from Amazon or another source on the spot.

Interestingly, those same would-be mobile payers appear to be very receptive to mobile ads.  23% of cell owners interested in making purchases with their phone also say they are “interested in receiving advertisements on my cell phone,” versus just 5% of all cell phone owners who say the same. Furthermore, 52% of cell owners interested in making purchases with their phone are also “willing to accept advertisements sent to my cell phone if I were to receive something of value in exchange,” versus just 12 percent of all cell phone owners who say the same.

The growth in these behaviors and attitudes cannot be ignored.  Here are some other noteworthy findings and conclusions from the Experian Simmons study:

227 million Americans own a cell phone: Over 9-in-10 adults, 7-in-10 teens and 1-in-5 kids
Cell phone ownership among American adults stands at 91%, up from 72% in 2006. The vast majority of teens, too, have joined the mobile revolution, with 74% of those ages 12 to 17 porting a portable phone, up from 59% in 2006. Even tots are getting into the act - 22% of kids ages 6 to 11 own a cell phone today.

The Experian Simmons study identifies five distinct segments of mobile consumers.

• Mobirati (20% of users): Representing the mobile generation, they have grown up with cell phones and cannot imagine life without them. Cell phone devices are a central part of their everyday lives.
•  Social Connectors (22% of users): Communication is central in their lives, and cell phones allow them to keep up-to-date with friends and social events. Their phone is the bridge to their social world.
• Mobile Professionals (18% of users): Smartphones help them keep up with their professional and personal life. Their phone has become their all-in-one device for communication and information needs.
• Pragmatic Adopters (20% of users): Cell phones came to being during their adult years. They are now learning that there are other things they can do with mobile phones beyond just saying “Hello.”
• Basic Planners (21% of users): They are not into cell phones or the world of technology. Use of cell phones is just for the basics. The cell phone is just another communication device for these consumers.

While pictures are still the number one activity, web surfing and video are the fastest growing uses.
It’s not surprising that using a cell phone to snap photos is a routine, everyday occurrence (73% of cell phone owners say they have snapped a pic in the last 30 days).  The more important statistic for marketers is that web surfing is also becoming commonplace among smartphone owners.  56% of users now access the Internet with their phone at least once a month. That a 41% increase since 2008.  What’s the next big thing? Video: 18% of all cell phone owners now watch video either streamed or uploaded to their phone, up from just 10% in 2008.

Mobile phones are quickly becoming an indispensable shopping tool.
According to the latest data, at least 33.3 million Americans now use their cell phones for shopping-related activities. The most common mobile shopping activity is researching products and comparing prices, which 15% of mobile phone owners now do every month. The most common items consumers want to buy via their cell phones are: Tickets to movies/events; Travel services and Games/Toys.

There are many other findings on m-commerce in the study.  You can access the complete study here. 

Which I highly recommend if you have a client or prospect that can benefit from this knowledge.  With a little help from you!

Give your prospects new insights on their business to grow your business.

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Now, more than ever, clients are looking for help. Many are confused about how to build and maintain customer loyalty.

They are unsure of how to use all of the new digital marketing tools now available to them and many are simply overwhelmed by the enormity of the marketing task ahead of them.

CMO’s know they have a limited life span, so they are desperate for an agency that can do something to help them grow the company’s business and make them a hero to their management. And the best way to do that is with new ideas and new insights about their customer or their category.

In a 2011 study published by RSW/US titled A Client's Look Ahead at Agencies, 77% of respondents cited "understanding of your market", 63% “understanding your company direction”, and 60% “offering something fresh & new” as critical factors in their agency selection. The quality of the creative product is still important (72%), but if you don't understand the client's business and offer new insights, then the greatest creative in the world won't win the account.

A few years ago, I spoke with Stan Richards, founder of The Richards Group, on what he considered the key ingredient in a new business pitch. Without hesitation, he replied that the ability to give the prospective client a new insight on their company or category was the key factor in winning new business. His business development team worked hard to find that insight, and then spent the majority of their presentation supporting that insight and its potential to grow the client's business.

In today's challenging marketplace, I would add the ability to help a client expand their marketing efforts into new digital frontiers is also a key factor in choosing one agency over another.

Clients are not saying to their agencies, "How can you help us make ads or a new web site?" They're saying, "how much do you understand about our business in order to help us build a bridge between our brand and our customers."