Optism™

Welcome to Optism’s first blog acting as curator for the Carnival of the Mobilists. In our dynamic industry, we’ve found that keeping abreast of what ecosystem members are saying is critical to staying on top. That’s why we published our Permission Marketing in the News blogs for almost two years! Now, we’re happy and honored to be a Carnival of the Mobilists host — and we’ve got a great collection of articles to suggest to you this week.

Our favorite comes from mobileweb company’s Martin Wilson. Martin shared his thoughts on responsive web design and why he believes it is falling far short of what people need. According to Martin, responsive web design is “a lazy way to approach mobile.” It focuses on delivering content that suits the size, platform and orientation of the device in use, rather than the needs of the mobile user. Because the content is PC oriented, it includes information that is not relevant in a mobile context and bulky graphics that bog down the mobile experience. Worse still, the information the user is most likely to be interested in, such as store locations, is often buried under pages of this unwanted stuff. Mobile, says Martin, can’t be an afterthought. It’s time for businesses to think about “mobile leading their online strategy.”

Other interesting posts from this week: Read the rest of this entry »

Note: This blog post was originally published on Mobile Payments Today.

You may have read it: Best Buy’s Q4 results were below the expectations and the chain is closing 50 big box retail stores.  Margins are eroding as the retailer is being squeezed by both online retailers such as Amazon and discount stores like Walmart.

But definitely one of the most interesting side comments was that consumers increasingly use Best Buy stores as showrooms where they can simply view and test the merchandise before purchasing online, often from a lower-priced retailer such as Amazon. What a nightmare: investing in expensive real estate to help your competitors sell better.

With my sympathy for Best Buy’s situation — I am still a fervent shopper when I am travelling in the U.S. — but I look at this evolution as perfect proof that the consumer is completely breaking the boundaries of on- and off-line trade, and that retailers have not yet learned how to take full  advantage  of it.

Where we as professionals in commerce-land are still classifying the industry in 'eCommerce,' 'mCommerce,' or bizarre terms such as 'card present payments' and 'card not present payments,' the consumer behavior is already far ahead. The stove pipes of e-, m- and off-line retail do not exist anymore and retailers who do not adapt to this new reality will struggle to acquire, or maintain customer relationships.

According to a survey from Google/Ipsos in April  2011, 79 percent of smartphone users in the U.S. leveraged their device for help with shopping, of which 70 percent used it instore. U.S. consumers were using their smartphones for things like searching shop locations, browsing product reviews, consulting price comparisons, and seeking discount coupons.

So the real winner is the one who best leverages the anytime, everywhere connected smartphone to guide the consumer across their decision making process occurring at different times and locations:

• mobile search advertising to capture consumers with clear buying interest
• shop locators
• contextual promotions leveraging geo-marketing to drive consumers to the store
• in-store alerts for suggestive cross-selling of products
• post shopping loyalty programs

And this all without being too disruptive and intrusive, as consumers want to stay in control, and only want to have highly relevant notifications or alerts.

So I'm curious how Stephen Gillett, who recently joined Best Buy to lead their mobile strategy (and the former CIO of Starbucks) will drive the mobile consumer to the stores for real purchases.

The first of the MMA Forums for this year will be taking place in Singapore next week, 23 – 25 April. This year’s Forum is bringing together the world’s leading mobile marketers and big brands to showcase smart approaches to mobile marketing. Through their examples and discussions, you’ll learn how to capitalize on the power of mobile in your own endeavors.

We’re happy to report that Optism’s Avtansh Sharma, Commercial Director, Media Monetization for Alcatel-Lucent, will be presenting at the Forum. Avtansh’s session, Mobile Marketing Meets the Wallet, will focus on the promise of commerce aided by advertising and how you can use mobile as the connective tissue in your marketing strategies. Avtansh will explore the benefits of surrounding mobile payments with additional value such as offers, deals and loyalty programs. This topic is very timely, given the growing demand from the industry to bridge the gap from advertising to actual conversions and demonstrate the ROI from mobile marketing.

The MMA Forums provide an excellent opportunity to learn the inside scoop on our always-exciting industry. There’s still time to register so please check it out. If you can’t join us, then follow the conference chatter on Twitter #MMAF2012. We hope to see many of you there.