Optism™

Two years ago, we started with a simple – but innovative – idea. We introduced a permission-based mobile marketing solution, called Optism, which put the user at the center of the experience. We asked people to tell us a little about themselves and their preferences so we could be sure that the ads they received on their mobile devices were relevant to their lives. And we gave them the ability to opt out of the service easily. We told them exactly what we were going to do and then we did it. Finally, we assured them that we would always respect their privacy.

Our solution provided a critical link between mobile operators and advertisers. Operators were able to leverage their unique relationship with subscribers to create advertising media that was more valuable to advertisers. For their part, advertisers loved being able to reach targeted, receptive audiences.

Like everyone else in this dynamic industry, we have learned from our experiences. We developed our own “best practices” for mobile marketing, based on the concept of “thinking human.” When you think human, you remember that there is a real person at the receiving end of any mobile marketing initiative and you engage with them in an open, honest and transparent way.

Our ideas have found fertile ground with many mobile operators, including Mobinil, Etisalat, Tigo, and most recently, Orange France. (We’ve got some other really exciting deals in the wings, but we can’t tell you about those just yet!) With Optism’s help, operators and advertisers have run successful mobile campaigns for big brands like Visa®, Nike®, Volkswagen® and adidas®.

For example, adidas recently took advantage of Mobinil Ads, the Optism-enabled mobile advertising service from Mobinil, to promote the adidas® Predator® shoe in Egypt. That campaign garnered a 28% response rate. We’re also looking forward to big things from our recently-announced collaboration with Orange France and MEDIAPOST Advertising. This latest partnership will bring relevant brands to the mobile devices of over a million qualified subscribers in France.

As we look towards the future, we’re exploring solutions for enhancing people’s mobile shopping experience. We believe that we can marry the 3 Ps (permission, preferences and privacy) with technological innovations like mobile wallets and other emerging mobile commerce developments. Our new solutions will enable people to enjoy an end-to-end shopping experience that is tailored to their lifestyles. As always, we’ll be focusing on delivering more value and convenience to consumers. And we’ll be taking our cue from what real people are telling us they want and need.

We know that many people are reluctant to entrust mobiles with the details of their personal lives and particularly their finances. So we’re building solutions that will earn people’s trust. We also know that within a trusted relationship, people are willing to exchange a bit of privacy for a whole lot of personalized service. We believe that people should have the ability to choose a balance that works for them.

It’s been an exciting, rewarding and educational two years. Stay tuned — there’s a lot more to come from Optism.