Mobile operators must get the marketing mix right
November 15, 2002
Mobile operators are depending on new data services to dig them
out of debt and build positive expectation around 3G, but you’d
never know that from their marketing approach. Matt Hooper, VP Marketing
& Alliances, of UK mobile data software specialist elata, says there’s
never been a better opportunity to address a critical marketing
imbalance, which could spell disaster to many operators if their
marketing strategies are not adapted to the very different market
of mobile data..
The recent slick television campaigns of the 3G licence winners
have been an education of a sort. Advertising can only achieve so
much and the real issue is developing marketing strategies focused
on the user experience at device level and the marketing support
infrastructure that supports the point of sale.
Operators’ marketing plans are certainly heading in the right direction.
There’s now a groundswell of opinion that operators must begin marketing
to narrower, more specific subscriber segments or risk confusing
their audience yet again.
Global mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) members have already
voiced concern that operators need to apply improved segmentation
to make marketing programs more effective. elata believes this type
of approach is vital to the future success of operators’ fledgling
mobile data services as they make the transition from being simple
airtime and bandwidth retailers to well-rounded service providers,
who are trying to capture the subscribers imagination.
Therefore, operators still need to master the two necessary components:
improved organisational resources and a complementary service delivery
platform.
Firstly, technical and marketing teams must begin working more
closely together. Operators need to avoid marketing led by technology
in order to keep subscriber propositions understandable and attractive
to the consumer. Historically, the marketing department has been
brought in too late in the service proposition.
Secondly, operators should integrate a service delivery platform
that can be used to create subscription propositions based on target
markets and can provide new services to a wide range of devices
coupled with comprehensive real-time subscriber management. Subscribers
can then purchase new services and begin using them without specialist
technical knowledge, and service providers can accurately target
customers with further propositions they know are likely to be successful
and most importantly charge for them.
So, although the service delivery platform is an integral technical
means to an end, it is more importantly the means for creating service
propositions. A growing number of operators are trialling service
delivery platforms that can replicate their subscriber segmentation
model and effectively bridge the gap between the marketing department
and their target subscribers.
Operators must further use these platforms to create revenue models
to avoid the situation of having to give services away for free.
This was seen with ringtones and bitmaps, where operators lost out
to small specialist players and, if they are not careful, the same
will happen with applications such as wireless Java. In the rush
to get to market, some operators are perhaps forgeting about billing
integration and launching free download services, which will make
little revenue and drive the potential value of the market down.
elata’s approach, through its elata senses service delivery platform,
is to help operators’ marketing approaches become more affinity
lead. elata senses allows subscribers to discover, through mobile
browsers and Web portals, only the services they will find attractive,
thereby reducing the likelihood of churn and increasing revenue
potential. It provides metrics on service usage and device popularity
that can be used to create strong new propositions and then segment
subscribers based on knowledge of the services they have already
enjoyed and paid for.
3, Hutchison’s UK 3G service provider, has built a comprehensive
segmentation model and utilises the elata senses platform. This
approach is important to 3, as its portfolio is likely to be based
around lifestyle services such as Java-based gaming and MMS.
The GSA noted in its survey that there was an “increasing picture
of maturity matched by more targeted marketing initiatives,” such
as event-specific content launched during this year’s World Cup.
Operators such as Orange have developed their own proposition marketing
groups to build services for particular technologies and segments.
The message for operators is that mass market, above the line advertising
must no longer be the focus for driving subscriber uptake. Subscribers
need to be treated like ‘customers’ and receive targeted education
and service support to ensure their path to data services is a simple
and painless one.
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