The greener fields of multimedia content

“The author could expound on the integration with other media, and perhaps explain what a mobisite is and what its significance is in the mobile space, instead of the brief mention,” said Arthurficial Intelligence.

“The title of the article grabbed me... really grabbed me... but the author failed to deliver on follow-through.”

In response, here are some examples:

MMS in Financial Services

With the interest rates rising all the time at the moment, credit is becoming a real problem. While the National Credit Act has tried to clamp down on financial institutions ability to grant credit, the reality is that there are enough people who had access to credit through credit cards and overdrafts to mean that people are still borrowing substantial amounts of money.

In fact, in a recent new24.com poll about the issue, it was stated that one in two of the people who responded lived on credit. It's not surprising then that the banks are seeing credit cards maxed out and the minimum payment not being made by numerous consumers who are completely stretched financially.

One of the banks therefore decided to run an MMS campaign to all its customers who were about to have their credit cards suspended. The MMS popped onto customers' MMS inboxes on their cellphone and informed them of an account in arrears. Being media rich, the message was able to communicate the intended tone from the bank and multiple sets of information. The MMS informed them they needed to make a payment to avoid suspension and if they could not make the payment, they would need to call a call centre, which would assist them in making an alternative arrangement.

The audio clip and the visual display all combined to communicate a message clearly and effectively. The bank recovered literally millions of rands in minimum payments in a matter of days - all because consumers saw a multimedia presentation on their phone that explained something to them in an unobtrusive manner.

MMS in retail

A previous article of ours details how Bradlows used MMS to promote specials in stores on weekends.

Multiple campaigns of 100 000 MMS each went out to consumers telling them about in-store specials. Some of the campaigns included SMS short code competitions and calls to action.

The key metrics to note from the campaigns were that people forwarded the MMS on to friends and family and there was an significant increase in the amount of people visiting the Bradlows stores on promotion days.

MMS, traditional media and a mobisite

Let's use a more detailed example. A mobisite is merely a website customised for viewing on a cellphone. For examples of mobisites, visit www.mmspro.mobi, m.iol.co.za or m.24.com from your cellphone.

One of the cellular networks used traditional media such as TV and radio advertising, as well as MMS campaigns ,to alert its customers to a new mobile website (mobisite), created by the network, which enabled its customers to apply for an upgrade to their contract from the mobisite.

Through the mobisite, consumers coould browse through phones and their specs, as well as see which contracts they are available on at what cost. The MMS campaigns were more targeted than traditional media, being sent to customers whose contracts were due to expire within months.

Consumers were therefore drawn to the mobisite from traditional and mobile advertising where they were able to surf the site for a whole host of information and, most importantly, services themselves as opposed to having to go into a store or call a call centre.

None of these messages could have been effectively delivered in the same detail through SMS. Multimedia rich mobile technology therefore enables a much deeper level of communication with consumers, making it a vital component of any marketer's strategy.

Measurability and integration

The above campaigns have an advantage over all other mediums used to communicate with consumers - they are measureable. Each client received detailed reporting after the campaign showing them what the results of the campaigns were. In the case of the mobisite, cellphone numbers downloading the mobisite were matched to the numbers of people who received the MMS. This could be taken further to include profiling customers, spending patterns and trends.

Mobile advertising is also widely used to enhance other media channels, including TV, radio, print and outdoor advertising, to give them an interactive element. And it is consumers who are slowly becoming the trendsetters on when, what, where and how often they would like to receive their advertising that is relevant to their lifestyle. Mobile advertising gives them the choice to make that decision using their cellphone.