Monthly Archives: December 2012

Dec 21 2012

Majority of holiday purchases made by US adults to be influenced by mobile

The majority of US adults will have their purchasing decisions influenced by a mobile device, a new report has revealed.

A joint survey conducted by Sybase 365 and the Mobile Marketing Association found that 87 per cent of respondents will use their mobile device to change the way they shop this Christmas, with an additional 50 percent planning to make a purchase with their mobile device. These purchases will either be made via the mobile web, with apps, using their mobile at the point of sale or through SMS.

Furthermore, consumers are also planning to use their mobile device to compare the prices of products, researching deals and coupons, looking at product reviews, avoiding long queues, and tracking loyalty points. Last year, just 62 per cent of respondents to the same survey revealed that they used their mobile to assist their purchasing decisions over the holiday season, highlighting how mobiles are playing an increasingly important role in the customer transaction journey.

The poll of 1,000 adults in the US revealed that there also a number of improvements which could be made to improve the attractiveness of mobile payments. A total of 61 per cent of consumers revealed that they would be more willing to use their mobile devices to help them make purchasing decisions at if improvements were made to the consumer experience. Among the improvements cited by respondents which could encourage them to use their mobiles more included the inclusion of more accurate results that are relevant to their shopping habits and exact location. Furthermore, people also would like to see more secure connections to ensure their transactions are safe and faster connection speeds so that they can get immediate results before making a purchase.

“The results from this survey clearly indicate that we are starting to see meaningful adoption of mobile commerce solutions,” said John Sims, president of Sybase 365, a division of SAP.

“While progress is being made, the industry needs to make a collective effort to better educate and inform consumers about pressing issues surrounding mobile payments, such as available technology, security, and usage benefits.  This will ensure that consumers are comfortable enough to embrace this extremely pervasive industry as part of their everyday lives.”

This phenomenon is not restricted to the holiday season either, with 42 per cent of respondents revealing that information they found using their mobile devices influenced their decision the last time they made a purchase.

“Consumer adoption of mobile will continue to climb as new technology is introduced and evolves,” said Michael Becker, managing director of the MMA.

“With mobile payment and commerce options expanding, marketers have an unprecedented opportunity to leverage mobile along the path to purchase and turn awareness into preference and preference into transactions.

“The survey results indicate that consumers are ready and willing to use their mobile device not only to search brands but purchase as well. It is up to the industry to advance the mobile commerce experience and take advantage of this opportunity to engage more meaningfully with consumers.”

Dynmark is the power behind global cloud mobile messaging and mobile marketing. We help organisations from SME through to global enterprise, to leverage the power of messaging as a business communication tool, for marketing or operational uses. Read more about Dynmark here.

Dec 21 2012

Consumers becoming increasingly open to mobile payments

Consumers are becoming increasingly open to mobile payments as the number of Near Field Communication-enabled smartphones continues to rise, a new report has revealed.

The study, from IMS Research, has revealed that 60 per cent of consumers were either “interested” or “very interested” in replacing their traditional plastic bank with a mobile device. A total of 700 people from the UK, the US, Japan, Poland, China, South Korea and Turkey were surveyed for the research, with those from the latter four countries expressing the biggest interest in the technology.

The report, called The World Market for Payment and Banking Cards, underlined how the proliferation of NFC-enabled handsets has helped to open up the possibility of mobile payments to millions of consumers across the world. A total of 35 million such phones were shipped globally last year, with this figure set to rise this year as demand continues to rise.

“Apart from Apple, virtually all of the leading smartphone manufacturers have launched NFC-enabled handsets over the last 18 months,” said Don Tait, the report’s author and senior analyst for IMS Research’s Financial and ID Technology Group.

“This bodes well for technology and applications such as mobile payments. With ISIS finally launching its NFC payments and offers service in Austin, Texas and Salt Lake City, Utah last week and Google Wallet updating its offering to include peer-to-peer payment, momentum is certainly behind NFC.”

Mr Tait added that it will still take years for banking smart cards to be completely phased out, with IMS Research predicting that a total of 3.4 billion smart payment cards will be shipped in 2017, compared to the 1.1 billion in 2011.

“The death knell of a payment and banking smart card as a form factor is still a long way off,” he concluded.

Meanwhile, international financial services group BBVA Compass has launched a new bilingual app for the iPhone. The new app will allow customers to access mobile banking information in both English and Spanish.

“This is part of our on-going commitment to continually improve our mobile banking solutions, adding features and services to better serve our customers’ needs,” said Alex Carriles, executive vice president and director of Mobile Strategy and Retail Innovation at BBVA Compass.

“We currently serve a number of markets with a growing Spanish-speaking population, so we wanted to give those customers access in the language that is most comfortable for them.

“We already operate as a fully bilingual bank in the US, and these additions will support that commitment.”

The latest iPhone app offers users the chance to benefit from a range of features including bill payments, account transfers, balance reviews, an enhanced branch locator and enhanced views of paid checks with zoom capabilities. Furthermore, the new updated version of the app also enables customers to not only issue payments, but also add payees, manage payment source accounts, display past payments and display or cancel pending payments.

Dynmark is the power behind global cloud mobile messaging and mobile marketing. We help organisations from SME through to global enterprise, to leverage the power of messaging as a business communication tool, for marketing or operational uses. Read more about Dynmark here.

Dec 20 2012

William Hill launches iPad app as it continues mobile expansion

William Hill has launched a new app for the iPad as the firm continues to expand its mobile operations following the success of its iPhone offerings.

The app offers sports fans the chance to bet on all of the sports and events that they would be able to do so on William Hill’s main web page, with the added convenience of being able to do so on the move. According to a company press release, the app includes more in-play markets than any other bookmaker’s iPad app, as well as the best odds guaranteed on all horse races in the UK and Ireland. Users will also benefit from fast access to accumulators and a ‘hot picks’ list so they can see the most popular bets without having to search for them.

It is part of William Hill’s mobile drive, with the bookmaker’s iPhone proving to be successful as it has been downloaded over 550,000 times since its launch in February 2012 – making it the most downloaded betting app. Overall, app betting now accounts for nearly a third of all William Hill’s online betting and is predicted to reach up to 50 per cent over the next couple of years. One of the biggest sporting events of the year is the Grand National and an incredible 2,500 bets were placed every minute on William Hill mobile in the build up to the big race, highlighting the growing popularity of mobile betting.

Juergen Reutter, director of Mobile for William Hill, said: “Mobile betting is booming. Customers have been clamouring for a specific William Hill app for the iPad and this is simply the best betting app available.

“Whether used as a second screen solution whilst watching sport at home, or simply whilst on the move, we’re sure it will become a favourite way for many of our customers to bet.”

With football the most popular sport among mobile betters, closely followed by horse racing, tennis and cricket, users of the iPad app will be pleased to know they can bet on 1,001 football Leagues, divisions or cup competitions from 97 countries across the world.  William Hill estimates that around 40,000 football matches will have been bet on in-play by the end of the year, with this figure no doubt set to be boosted by the release of the iPad app.

The iPad app, which allows users to register, manage secure deposits and withdrawals and bet on any market, offers a number of exclusive rewards. This is an oft-used technique by firms who are looking to attract more people to mobile and William Hill is no different. Among the rewards offered to users of the iPad app include refunds on stakes for those who place an accumulator and only miss out on the win by one match, while refunds will also be offered as free bets for those who put a first goalscorer bet and see their player score second instead.

The app also harnesses tablet computer’s main benefits over a smartphone, with users able to see more information on the larger screen.

Dynmark helps gaming companies engage customers through fully automated SMS communications; from welcome and activation to in-play bets and service messages. With proven experience integrating with gaming platforms such as Playtech, Dynmark has been providing SMS messaging and services to the gaming industry since 2006. Read more about Dynmark’s gaming experience here.

Dec 20 2012

Mobile devices account for more than a quarter of Christmas search clicks

Mobile devices have accounted for more than a quarter of online clicks on retail paid search ads during the Christmas period so far, a new report has revealed.

The first edition of Kenshoo’s 2012 UK Online Retail Christmas Shopping Report shows that 28 per cent of all clicks on paid search ads run by retailers originate from a smartphone or tablet computer as shoppers begin to turn their back on traditional desktop computers.

The study, which is based on data from retailers using the Kenshoo platform, revealed that tablets were the most popular mobile device, as they accounted for 15 per cent of all ad clicks, with mobiles making up 13 per cent. Tablets were also found to be one of the most effective devices, accounting for 16 per cent of conversions and 17 per cent of all revenue. In comparison, mobile generated just three per cent in both metrics.

Tablets also compared favourably with the performance measured on PCs, with the study showing that it costs 5p less per click to reach tablet-based shoppers compared to those using computers. Moreover, shoppers who used tablets, which are generally owned by more affluent consumers, spent an average of £85.55 on their transactions, compared with £75.93 for computer users.

“Tablet shoppers are a goldmine,” said Kenshoo Europe Middle East and Africa managing director Chris Ward.

“They convert at higher rates and spend more money than the average online shopper. Device segmentation should be a key search marketing strategy for UK retailers to adopt this Christmas shopping season. The savviest retailers are breaking out their keywords, ads and landing pages by computer, phone and tablet to better control budgets and bids.”

The report, which is based on data gathered between 3rd November and 12th December, found that online retailers have invested 20 per cent more funds in their retail paid search efforts year-on-year, resulting in cost-per-click rates surging by 26 per cent over the same period.

Meanwhile, another study from telecommunications watchdog Ofcom showed that 16 per cent of all website traffic in the UK now originates from a mobile device such as a smartphone, tablet or other connected devices. It means that Brits are the most mobile savvy consumers in Europe, with smartphone penetration now at 58 per cent and a quarter of UK smartphone users visiting mobile retail sites.

“The fact that Brits are spending more online compared to the rest of the globe shows our huge appetite for internet shopping and brands can clearly see the value of the online and mobile channels as a result,” said Mark Haviland, managing director of affiliate network Rakuten LinkShare.

“The huge amount of mobile web traffic reveals that consumers are taking advantage of their connected devices to browse and buy. While it is important to have a mobile strategy in place, marketers and brands should also remember that the mobile purchase journey does not exist in isolation. A consumer will often go on a non-liner journey while making a decision to buy, which could touch the online, in-store and mobile worlds multiple times.”

Dynmark is the power behind global cloud mobile messaging and mobile marketing. We help organisations from SME through to global enterprise, to leverage the power of messaging as a business communication tool, for marketing or operational uses. Read more about Dynmark here.

Dec 14 2012

SMS marketing to become ‘more effective’ in the US following FCC ruling

SMS marketing is set to become “more effective” in the US after the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued a new ruling on the sending of certain types of text messages.

Last week, the FCC confirmed that companies could send a final confirmation text message to consumers who have chosen to opt out of receiving text messages, reports the Mobile Marketer website. Mobile marketing company SoundBite Communications, based in Massachusetts, pushed for clarification over the issue after several mobile marketers were sued for sending such messages.

Previously, the wording of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) made it unclear as to whether firms were able to send this final message to consumers to confirm that they wanted to opt out of SMS communication. However, this has now been cleared up in the FCC’s new ruling, which the regulatory body labeled as a victory for consumers.

In a statement, the FCC said the move “ensures that wireless consumers will continue to benefit from the TCPA’s protection against unwanted autodialed texts, while giving them certainty that their opt-out requests are being successfully processed”.

Of course, the decision will also widely be welcomed by firms across the US, with Jim Milton, president and chief executive of SoundBite Communications, revealing that many companies were previously put off from investing in SMS marketing due to the potential legal ramifications.

“The big news is that thanks to the FCC ruling on the petition we filed back in February, it has taken one more hurdle away from marketers using the mobile channel to do effective marketing,” he told the Mobile Marketer site.

“The regulatory environment, the ambiguity, has caused a lot of marketers to say, let’s stop using the mobile channel, even though the response can be so good, we are worried about the legal implications.

“We do expect this ruling for some companies to remove that roadblock now.”

In the past, when a consumer opted to receive SMS messages from a firm but then subsequently requested to stop receiving the texts, it was generally considered good practice for the firm to then send on another text message acknowledging that they did receive the request and will stop sending on any more promotional text messages. However, issues arose as the TCPA was written before the advent of mobile marketing and therefore the issue was never directly addressed or resolved. Because of this, a series of lawsuits came to the courts claiming that these messages broke TCPA regulations.

In a bid to clear up this confusion, SoundBite Communications filed a petition with the FCC in February to clarify the confirmation text issue. Many industry bodies supported the move, including the CTIA – The Wireless Association, US Chamber of Commerce and the Mobile Marketing Association.

“For confirmation texts of the type SoundBite describes, we conclude that a consumer’s prior express consent to receive text messages from an entity can be reasonably construed to include consent to receive a final, one-time text message confirming that such consent is being revoked at the request of that consumer,” the FCC ruling said.

Dynmark is the power behind global cloud mobile messaging and mobile marketing. We help organisations from SME through to global enterprise, to leverage the power of messaging as a business communication tool, for marketing or operational uses. Read more about Dynmark here.