Thinking about using mobile coupons? If you are, here are 5 things you absolutely must know about planning and managing a successful mobile coupon strategy.1. Make the Offer Relevant to the Consumer. “Opt-in mobile marketing has an enormous potential if done responsibly and is specifically focused on the stores/restaurants that matter to each consumer,” said Alistair Goodman CEO of 1020 Placecast.
A recent study conducted by Harris Interactive of more than 2,000 adults measured cell phone owner preference levels and receptivity for opt-in mobile marketing messages from brick-and-mortar businesses. The study revealed that 51% of cell phone-owning men ages 18-34, and 34% of women in the same age group were interested in receiving opt-in shopping alerts on their cell phones.
The ability to deliver mobile coupons that “personalize offers” to the profile, needs or purchase history of the consumer is a huge advantage for marketers because it drives traffic to stores. But like all things in database marketing, the key is having the right customer data and the right mobile marketing technology to deliver relevant and timely communications.
2. Integrate “Front End” and “Back End” Systems. One of the cardinal sins (and death traps) of any direct marketing campaign is not having your back-end systems and processes in place to properly redeem coupons and capture customer data.
Integrating your “front-end” POS coupon scanning technology with your “back-end” marketing database, CRM, call center, and customer communications software -- such as email -- is an absolute must.
One company on the leading edge of systems integration is Cellfire, a San Jose based mobile couponing service provider. Cellfire has begun matching store loyalty card numbers with mobile phone applications in an effort to solve some of the back- and front-end IT integration problems, according to August Trometer, co creator at Yowza, which provides location-based coupons for the iPhone.
Cellfire’s software application lets customers scan mobile coupons directly from their phones at checkout. The company is currently working with Kroger in Dallas, as well as JCPenney in the Houston area.
Starbucks has also announced that it has begun using Cellfire’s application to test a mobile payment option that lets people buy products by swiping an on-screen barcode that is scanned similar to a plastic Starbucks Card. Sixteen West Coast Starbucks stores are participating in the test.
3. Use Smart POS Technology. Today’s smart phones are wonderful tools for delivering mobile coupons to consumers. But everything can fall apart if your POS technology cannot read the barcode and accept the coupon.
JCPenney has begun testing a new system from Cellfire at Houston area stores that lets customers scan mobile coupons directly from their phones at checkout.
The program, launched in late September at 16 JCPenney locations, is enabled through new imaging scanners installed at registers that can read the "2D" barcode coupons and save sales clerks from having to manually enter promotional codes for coupons.
"These mobile coupons are the ultimate in customer convenience, because there's no need to clip or carry around a printed coupon, and they can be instantly scanned from a cell phone. It's another way we're innovating to enhance the customer's shopping experience," said Mike Boylson, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for JCPenney, in a statement.
4. Use Bar-coded Coupons to Track Customer Purchase Data. Using bar-coded coupons to capture the identity of the customer making the purchase, the promotional code, and the amount of the transaction is smart marketing. And we are about to see an explosion in the use of bar-coded coupons in the US.
Barcodes save time and eliminate errors in data entry. And for marketers focused on using customer purchase data to model customer product preferences and predict future product interests, bar coded coupons provide an ideal method for capturing the data needed for predictive modeling and offer targeting.
The key to using bar-coded mobile coupons is to use standard, familiar SMS, MMS and WAP technologies to deliver a scanable bar-coded message to consumers’ mobile phones.
Water Wheel Car Wash in California, uses mobile coupon technology from OzNet Systems, is to provide mobile coupons for their customers. The company sends bar-coded coupons to their customer’s mobile phones eliminating the need for customers to print out paper coupons therefore reducing waste. To get their mobile coupon, all customers have to do is Text WATERWHEEL to 84045. Customers can choose which product and coupon they desire from any location.
“We are a small business and we have to be conservative about our marketing dollars. As a small business you always have to be looking for something different,” says second generation Water Wheel Car Wash Owner, Alex Naber.
Users of the system can also pull an electronic report showing exactly how effective their marketing campaign has been.
5. Use Mobile Email Rendering Software. According to Len Shneyder of Pivotal Veracity, "The mobile smart phone market is evolving at a rapid tempo. Because the cost of smart phones, the most robust and powerful of the mobile market, is falling almost as quickly as the companies are innovating, the rate of adoption is skyrocketing. More powerful handsets mean more people accessing email on their mobile devices. More varied devices means there are more challenges for email marketers than ever to getting email to render correctly. "
For mobile coupon campaigns to be successful, you must have the right software to ensure your coupon offer and barcode appear the same regardless of whether the consumer is receiving the mobile coupon on smart phones from Blackberry, iPhone, or Palm.
What should you do? Check out eDesign Optimizer and the Design Guide from Pivotal Veracity. These design tools and guidelines will enable you to verify that your links and images work, validate your code, and visually ensure that your mobile email and coupons appear the same regardless of the mobile phone your customer uses.
The Takeaway
Jordan Cohen from Pivotal Veracity says it best, "What we are witnessing in the mobile space is unprecedented. Having the web in the palm of your hand is in demand like no other technology in human history, and it is fueling the biggest revolution in computing in at least 15 years. I've said it before, and now will say it again: The time to adopt a mobile email marketing strategy is now. Blink one or two more times and your competitors might just leave you in the dust."
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