Ofcom comes down hard on 'silent calls' | The Register

Ofcom comes down hard on 'silent calls' | The Register

Hard - £35,000 fine for Carephone Warehouse... Gee - that hurts. NOT.

These type of fines are insulting to the consumers who are allegedly protected from illicit business practices such as silent calls and other forms of unwanted and intrusive marketing.

From my point of view the scale of penalty for the fines - and the fact that it took nearly 3 years to actually levy the fines - is a huge part of the problem.

So long as there is no meaningful punishment for these types of business practices, the laddish yobs of business will continue to take advantage of the general consumer.

So - what to do?

I believe that fines should be sufficient to be relevant to the business. Rather than fixed penalty fees they should be a percentage of gross revenues.

For instance: If a fine is agreed for silent calls at £50,000 - it will be a major impact to a small company, but have absolutely nil effect on a big company. A fine of £1,000,000 will kill a small company (rather than just penalize them) but will make a larger impact on a big company.

However - if you say that the fine is 5% of the gross revenues of the offending company - then you have guaranteed to make a significant impact that is representative of the company - regardless of how large or small.

Education is part of the solution.

But - I'm a bit of a realist too. Until we can begin educating the students of today that these types of business practices ( silent calls, SPAM, anonymous flyers and leaflets ) are not only ineffective, but also socially unacceptable to the point that there is a significant negative impact on profits - then we'll continue to have the yobs of business assaulting the general population.

DMA report claims door-drops are more effective than TV ads - DMBulletin - Direct Marketing news by Email - Brand Republic

DMA report claims door-drops are more effective than TV ads - DMBulletin - Direct Marketing news by Email - Brand Republic

Door drops - or commercial rubbish - are one of my biggest frustrations in that there is no way to combat them. Everything fro taxi companies, to Indian takeaway menus to offers for Reiki massage come through the letter box day in and day out.

And day in and day out people take them by the shovelful and put them into landfills.

Door drops are some of the most ineffective, environmentally irresponsible and brand damaging activities that you can engage in - 2nd only to street muggers that shove calling card and dance club promotions at you on the high streets.

What really aggravates me is when people take research such as this and spin it in a way that actually encourages people to use door drops.

It is possible that 72% of the 400 respondents had taken some action as a result of receiving unaddressed door-drop items ( the action was to throw it into the rubbish bin while cursing under their breath - or out loud for that matter! ). But why don't we ask the real question.

How many door drops do you get in an average week. At my home that number is between 12-15 individual items. Some weeks more than that. Over a year that is between 624 - 780 individual items. And out of that maybe 1 or 2 takeaway menus wind up in the drawer for future use. Everything else is thrown away.

Effectiveness of door-drops: 2/780 - .25%
Brands that I have actively stopped doing business with because they won't stop shoving stuff through my door ( where it is clearly marked - NO DOOR DROPS )
32 at last count

So what's the solution:

Give people the choice. If you don't mind receiving piles and piles of rubbish for your recycle bin then you can receive them. But if you don't want them you should have the option to opt-out of door-drop marketing.

About 1 year ago the DMA UK was considering such a scheme but I haven't heard any updates on that proposal of late. (I'll have to check)

And what about businesses that rely on door-drops.

The thing about door-drops is that businesses have talked themselves into believing that it is an effective marketing strategy. If you want an effective marketing strategy use your door drops with your existing customers and ask them to give them away to their friends and family. There is no better business than referral business.

And if you are willing to make even a small investment in a point of sale coupon system you can make the entire program viral. If your customers hand out flyers for you and they come back, those good customers earn discounts and special offers.

This is not rocket science folks. It is good marketing.

Stop adding to the landfill. Give consumers a clear way to opt-out of door-drop marketing in the same way they can opt-out of direct mail, telemarketing, mobile marketing, email marketing etc.

MPs call phone-in quiz shows a form of gambling - Media Bulletin - Media news by Email - Brand Republic

MPs call phone-in quiz shows a form of gambling - Media Bulletin - Media news by Email - Brand Republic

Well DUH! - Why do you think it's so popular!

But what about all those thousands of people phoning in from their mobile phones and text'ing in their guesses for £1.50.

I'm still trying to track down the terms and conditions associated with the text message gaming but I'll bet you that everyone's number is being collected and will be added to a mobile marketing list.

So if you vote and don't win - it is only the beginning of your pain!

P.S.
Just the other day I received a SPAM message asking me "How many 0's in million?" A) 6, B)5 C)0 -- The answer: 0. That's right there are no zeroes on the word million.

Couple sued for sending 5 million spam cell phone messages

Couple sued for sending 5 million spam cell phone messages

You know - I used to get really angry at these type of people. But now I just sort of sit back and shake my head at them.

Old question: "Who do these people think they are that they think they can blatantly break the law?!?"

But now I'm somewhat convinced that they really don't see anything wrong with what they are doing... which is a much different problem.

New question: "What kind of parents did these people have that they would bring them up to think that SPAM-ing 5M consumers was a good idea!?!"

If you are the parents of one of these two - I think you should ground your kids immediately!

If you are parents of budding marketers and entrepreneurs - GREAT! Be sure to show them the benefits of good ethical business practice along the way! Too many TV shows illustrate the joys of being a charlatan without ever really showing the penalties!

Mobile marketing : Business News : Redding Record Searchlight

Every so often my article filters turn up something that is "mobile marketing" but in a different light. I decided to take a quick read and it wasn't too long before my blood started boiling.

Mobile marketing : Business News : Redding Record Searchlight:

"'You can't ignore these ads,' said Blake Pollack, the younger half of the father-son partnership behind Mobile Vision Marketing Inc., a Culver City-based company hoping to thrive off renewed interest in outdoor advertising."

I won't rant about this I'll just list out some points;

Blatantly environmentally irresponsible

These guys are creating huge carbon emissions running large trucks on the freeways and at the same time creating more traffic and congestion (both on freeways and sidestreets) - which results in more carbon emissions

Ignoring brand damage

You know - it seems that some people just don't get it. There is a certain level of ambient out-of-home marketing that everyone just sort of accepts. These guys are arrogant enough to point out that "You can't ignore these ads,..." - Spoken like a true 24 year old that doesn't give a toss about the consumer and is obviously too lazy to employ his talents in a means of engaging consumers in a positive way.

Now I'm not suggesting that you ram these trucks to get them sidelined and out of your way - but I would definitely suggest that you (*safely) write down the number of any product advertised and drop them a little voicemail telling them exactly what you think.

If you scream loud enough you can get these guys - and their ads - off the road!

Just An Online Minute � Blog Archive � Just An Online Minute… SpiralFrog Hits Snag

Just An Online Minute � Blog Archive � Just An Online Minute… SpiralFrog Hits Snag:

"Last summer, SpiralFrog announced it intended to launch a music service offering free ad-supported downloads. At the time, the plan was to require users to spend about 90 seconds per track, or two minutes per video, navigating through pages that displayed ads next to photos, articles or other content."

And they wondered why this failed?

Consumers are very cautious about potential charges from mobile data. I've been working with a ringtone and music content provider and high quality WAV fiiles can be as much as 2-3Mb per track. That's huge! -- and expensive.

MTV isn't even promoting their WAP site right now because the mobile data charges are actually more than the cost of any single track downloads.

Until mobile data comes down to a reasonable fixed price this will be a problem.

And - to add insult to injury - due to the fact that mobile operators have charged so much for mobile data to start it will take a period of time for consumers to build up an understanding that mobile data isn't going to cost them. In short, they've polluted the market with pricing fears and now it will take even longer for mobile data to take off.

MediaPost Publications - Pushing The New URL - 01/23/2007

MediaPost Publications - Pushing The New URL - 01/23/2007:

"Ironically enough, offline media remain the most effective ways to engage users in mobile campaigns, Air2Web finds. Except for ringtone offers, which Web sites can demo easily, TV, radio and billboards beat the Internet for driving people to first engage a program via texting."

Gee - I don't find it ironic at all. Actually I find it rather intuitive.

There are very few use cases where mobile is a marketing channel all unto itself. Mobile works best when incorporated with other traditional forms of media.

This is a great article and it actually describes traditional marketing inviting consumers to use mobile as a "direct response" mechanism and then using "mobile direct marketing" to continue to engage them in a dialogue.

They do not talk about mobile advertising (mobile banners/mobile search).

I think there are some excellent points to be learned here for anyone considering adding mobile to the mix of marketing channels for engaging consumers.

Musings of a mobile marketer: Qwikker and Virgin Bites are up for a 3GSM Award

Musings of a mobile marketer: Qwikker and Virgin Bites are up for a 3GSM Award:

"Having spoken to some people in this area, because that initial message *isn't* stored on the phone, it's ok to send it and isn't covered by the European Data Privacy rules."

Helen is a sharp cookie and you can bet I'll be speaking to her about this to find out who is giving this advice. I completely agree with her summary statement at the end....

"...but I don't see why it should be one rule for bluespam and another for text spam (equally odious IMHO). The direct mail analogy is that Junk Mail is equivalent to a text message but a Bluetooth notification is the equivalent of a door-drop - the difference being that you don't have the address (mobile number) of the recipient. You still end up with junk on your doormat (phone). Hmm, the vagaries of European law!"

As Bluetooth marketing is something I've been following for quite some time there is only one particular interpretation that I'm currently giving any credence to:

Promiscuous Mode

Look for an article coming soon about Bluetooth Marketing, Permission and Promiscuity!

Philipine Political Campaigns via Text

In an article from GMA News today there is reference to the desire for an exemption to text message legislation for political campaigning.

GMANews.TV - NTC seeks Comelec ruling on text campaigning - Nation - Official Website of GMA News and Public Affairs - Latest Philippine News

The article states what I believe to be the obvious:

"Our legal department will evaluate the circular on text spam. We will include campaigning through text if the Comelec says it is allowed. What we want is to regulate the text campaigns so that only those who want to receive will be sent," said Espinoza.

If you have collected someone's mobile number and they have given you permission to communicate with them via their mobile phone -no problem.

But this smacks of some bright-spark in the political arena trying to arrange a mass mobile SPAM attack... and they have the cheek to actual go to the regulator and ask permission.

This is almost as comical as the legislation in the US which actual tells marketers how they "CAN-SPAM" people legally.

What do you think?

Mobile SPAM Reporting 07text0spam

I came across an interesting little service today at

http://www.07text0spam.com/

Although it doesn't look like they are getting many spam reported through them I figure it is always a good idea to support those who are fighting the good fight.

The only downside I see to them is that it does cost the consumer a standard rate text charge to forward the message to the service.

A review of their Privacy Policy shows no indication that these guys are anything other than legit.

If anyone has had an experience with 07text0spam - I'd be happy to hear about it.

Transparency in list rental - List Brokering gets clean(er)

Reading through the news this morning I came across a fellow blogger who feels almost as strongly about mobile SPAM as I do.

Ok - here's my idea and it is one that I've had for a long time.

Let's start making it a requirement for advertisers to provide access to the source of the opt-in. In other words. tell me what box I ticked (or didn't tick). Show me the terms and conditions where I agreed to this. Explain to me what existing business relationship I have that permits this communication.

List brokering is BIG BUSINESS. If we add an entirely new level of transparency to this business it will cause a few very important things to happen.
1) List owners will be a lot more careful about how often - and to whom - they rent their hard earned lists.
2) The resulting increase in value of a transparent list will go up causing the price of list rental to go up resulting in fewer low quality campaigns.

Mobile as a response mechanic

Another article describing how mobile can be used as a response mechanic as part of an integrated marketing campaign.

One of my favourite messages to marketers is that mobile marketing has many meanings to many people. I even provided a starter to help define: mobile marketing.

Mobile does not stand on its own very well but is well suited to part of a multi-channel marketing campaign.

Sprint and WiMAX 4G Networks

Following on from an article I wrote earlier this week, Mobile Tracker writes about Sprint updates on WiMAX 4G bulidout.

Sprint Nextel is doing exactly what they do best - build and run networks. In this case it is not a mobile network but a wireless Internet network using WiMAX technology. Yes - this network will be available to consumers with Sprint Nextel devices that support WiMAX - but it will also be available to any home Internet user with a WiMAX card for their laptop or home PC. The article even references that,

Sprint has previously hinted at trying to market the technology as a replacement for in-home internet access.

When is an SMS promo considered spam? - INQ7.net

When is an SMS promo considered spam? - INQ7.net

Reading through the text of the article it would seem that Citibank has actually made an effort to do everything right. They have sent messages only to those who have expressly chosen to opt-in and/or to those consumers who are existing customers and have provided their mobile number. The latter group falling into the category of soft opt-in from an existing business relationship.

And yet still the cry goes out far and wide that this is SPAM. And suddenly Citibank is on the defensive.

As marketers we must remember that SPAM is more than a legislative description - it is a word that consumers will use for any marketing communication that they deem not to pass the TRVR test Timely Relevant Valuable and Requested.

Content Owners should avoid mobile network operators.

I was having lunch with a colleague the other day and we were talking about some content players that were desperate to have their service listed on one of the big operator portals! - we both laughed. She said, "If they do get to the Portal!, they'll be dead in a year."

Content partners who make eventually make it to the top of the deck don't stay their for long and die slow and painful deaths. Big operators (mobile network operators or mobile carriers in the US) want content owners to make loads of big changes to their service and then can take up to 6 months to pay you for your tiny content license fees.

It is a painful way to watch your business die after spending so much time and energy to get listed on the operator portal in the first place.

This week Clickz news talks about the Wireless Carrier Ad Promise and all I can say is "So what?"

Content owners and marketers need to stop being lured in by the siren song of big money through operator portals. Those waters are filled with nothing but crashing waves, shallow waters and huge rocks!
And if the operators think they are going to make money from selling banner ads across their own portal content then they are looking at a tiny - and short lived - revenue stream.
In 18-24 months 2 major trends will take hold that consumers will love, marketers will benefit from and operators will be terrified of - until they get to understand it.

• Affordable flat rate mobile data


• Elimination of walled gardens

Affordable flat rate mobile data

It has already started with some operators in the US - and even "3" in the UK has come out with flat rate mobile data plans that are affordable to consumers. Consumers have been on their home Internet with a virtually unlimited bandwidth for years. Until consumers can surf - without fear of costs - there will be limits to mobile data adoption.

And if the operators don't get it right soon - then not to worry - WiFi will come along and take care of the problem for them. More and more handsets are coming WiFi enabled. WiFi is freely accessible in some Internet cafe's and in other places it is being offered at low fixed cost package prices. If operators don't change their pricing structure, consumers will take their business to WiFi. (By the way - the handset manufacturers will love this!)

For the benefit of mobile data adoption - and to ensure that mobile consumers don't dump their operator's mobile data plan altogether in favour of cheap (and fast) WiFi access - Flat rate mobile data will arrive.

Elimination of walled gardens

Walled Garden: A business practice of mobile network operators to provide specific content that is designed specifically to be available to their own mobile subscribers, and often times to prevent subscribers from accessing any content that is outside the mobile operators portal.

Then - once consumers have the ability to surf freely without fear of high data charges, consumers will quickly tire of the limited content choice made available from the operators. They want the same level of choice on their mobile phone as they do on their home computers. I mean seriously - who lives completely within the Yahoo! or MSN portals? For Pete's sake - even AOL users are using the entire Internet these days!

And although I'm not a big fan of mobile search (largely because it is hard to see a winning business model more than because it isn't needed) consumers will soon be able to much more easily access content that is exactly what they want and is not found in the operators walled garden.

In a very short period of time the operators will be a small player in the mobile advertising market and will resume the job that they do best - which is running the network.

"Know what you're good at and know what you're not good at."

Operators are good at running networks - they are absolute crap at managing content - and even worse when it comes to planning and executing a marketing campaign that doesn't involve brand extension or minutes of airtime.

The result:

In 18-24 months there will be a few mobile Internet sites that everyone will come to know and will bookmark. There will be a "MySpace" of the mobile world. It may not be MySpace - but something like MySpace. People will access The Weather Channel and ESPN directly. Ebay mobile will come into its own. And all of these companies - that know how to run Internet businesses and monetize them from advertising - will do what they do best. And none of them will require consumers to use the operator portal.

If you are a content owner or a marketer trying to get an audience with a major carrier or network operator. STOP! Stop wasting your time and energy. Figure out the place on the Internet where your target customers will be going when they can truly access the content they want from their mobile device - for affordable flat rate data prices - and without walled gardens. Invest your time in a relationship that has long term viability!

Carnival of the Mobilsts #58

Be sure to read all the latest and greatest from this weeks Carnival of the Mobilists at Wap Review!

Marketing backlash

One of the predictions from David Polinchock is that the marketing backlash will continue - and I couldn't agree more.

More than ever we, as marketers, must take a long hard look at how we are reaching consumers.

The days of interrupt , invasive, intrusive marketing are quickly coming to an end. And what this means is that we will need to focus more than ever on honing our communications to ensure that they are TRVR (Timely Relevant Valuable and Requested).

Mobile Marketing goes social and viral

Ok - this is a really great article that captures some key points that are music to my ears.

1) Mobile is one of the best marketing tools around for measurement and accountability
2) Mobile doesn't operate in a vacum - it enhances and enables
3) Mobile camera phones were used to take pictures of traditional OOH (Out of home) marketing and then share them with their friends leading to a viral spreading of a marketing message across a social network.

This is great stuff!

Thanks to: Gothamist for the photo!

Mobile - 1st it is a response mechanic

Burger King turns to mobile to serve its customers

This article by Alice Z Cuneo describes how fast food retailers in the US are trialing mobile and learning a lot along the way. But the specific point that I want to make from this is one that seems to be hugely unpopular with the majority or marketers.

Mobile is 1st - and foremost - a response mechanic.

That's right. Mobile is about letting consumers communicate with brands - not the other way around. And the only way you do that is to reach your consumer 1st via traditional marketing. Whether that is an on-pack promotion, print, radio, television - or people standing on a street corner handing out flyers ( which I personally object to ) - you have to use traditional media to reach the consumer first.

THEN it becomes a marketing channel

Once you have the consumer on board - and they have sent in their first text and chosen to opt-in to hear from you again, THEN mobile becomes a marketing channel.

You can send your consumer valuable coupons, sponsored ringtones and games, links to your WAP site - anything that will continue the relationship and ahderes to the TRVR (Timely - Relevant - Valuable - Requested) hallmark.

Why is this so blasphemous?

Marketers don't want to hear about a new response mechanic, they want to hear about a new means to reach new consumers and they think that mobile is it. Do you want to know why?

For the answer, check back next week.

Yell.com lost in mobile search

Yesterday I found a really fantastic bus shelter ad promoting Yell.com and their new mobile search tool. And - being the good early adopter in mobile I decided that I'd give it a go.

However, I didn't get very far. The application doesn't work on my phone - a Nokia N73.

This was truly amazing - and not in a good way.

I would like to take the product manager at yell.com off to one side and ask him a few questions. I'll bet you he doesn't have answers to all of these.

• What describes the type of consumer yell.com is trying to reach with this application?


• What type of phone do they have?


• How do you think the application will be used?


• How easy is it for the consumer to use the application?
  -- AND --
  


• How do you expect to make revenue from this?


• What are you doing for analytics and performance measurement?


• Where is the complete list of supported ( and tested ) devices?
  

Who will use a mobile yellow pages application?

The type of people who will use yell.com for mobile search are those who have company phones where they don't pay for data charges or have some form of unlimited mobile data in the phone package. Regular consumers don't use mobile data at all.

At the moment operators are discouraging mobile data use through restrictive pricing.

Now - if you have a corporate phone you most likely have a Symbian (like the N73) or Windows ME type phone. I don't know if this application works on Windows ME or not. I am guessing (and it is just a guess as I didn't get the application downloaded) that the application is probably a little Java application. (But even that should have been suitable for download on my phone!)

Another point about these tiny applications - whether search applications or any other - there has to be a very simple user interface or the application is better suited for a PDA device. People will get frustrated trying to type in the name of the business or even the type of business they are looking for. And face it, no matter what menu system you put on a yell.com application people are going to use the service (at least initially) in the way they use the big yellow book. They'll look for something by business type - it will be the wrong type and they will be directed to some other relatively obscure and seemingly unrelated business (Try looking for cabs in the Yellow pages)

Mobile Search in General

I've never been a believer in mobile search.

Just because Google is doing something with mobile search doesn't mean that it is going to take off.

There are some major issues that are probably good for a separate post - but just to sum up:

Internet search makes money by selling advertising on the page with the search results - right?

• When the screen size is somewhere around 3cm square - you just don't have enough real estate to include a bunch of extra information.


• The ability to navigate around these pages is not easy and sometimes just plain non-intuitive depending on your device. Mobile phones don't have a mouse and unless you have a PDA they don't even have a touch screen.


• This also means that it is hard to click-through on any advertising you do see. Ultimately you see what you want and you struggle just to click on that one link. (Which - by they way - typically takes you to a website that is not WAP enabled )

This means that it is going to be very difficult to make money from mobile search through advertising. And if not through advertising then what? And please don't say subscriptions.

And as for Location, Location Location

I've been around the technology needed for mobile phone location for years - and there are so many technical, legislative and business hurdles to making a consumer's physical location available to marketers and application providers that it doesn't look like location will be widely implemented by operators for at least another 2+ years (at least). I know that it has already been rolled out in trials in a few operators - but not widely.

Mobile Search -- for the moment I think everyone is still VERY lost.

Mobile Banner Advertising - Spark or Damp Squid

There are a few articles that I've seen today talking about Verizon and their recent step into the fray of online advertising:

AdJab offers a word of caution on mobile budget expectations. And AdWeek looks at 200M mobile enabled US consumers and the barriers to access for this community - and awards the biggest obstacle award to the operators...


What we are seeing is more banner advertising on WAP pages.

A significant percentage of all page impressions are content downloads where no banners are displayed. If you consider that the majority of mobile internet traffic today is related to content downloads - and that an average content download takes no less than 3 page impressions to complete - you will soon realize that there are far fewer actual pages being viewed. Of course that will become evident when we start looking at available inventory.

Laura Marriott from the MMA - reporting from 3G World Congress and Mobility Marketplace reports that,

"Agreement on the number of page views was actually up for debate on the panel, but bottom line, there are a lot!

WAP banners are great for brand extension - but due to the limited user interface on the majority of mobile devices ( except mobile PDA devices of course) they aren't much good for actually driving people to further websites. People cannot easily "click-through" because the user interface is poor and it is not always clear which banners are clickable.

And although attitudes are changing - the mobile operators are still the barrier to entry.

John Mellow over at TechNewsWorld.com reports US ready for mobile marketing - maybe

"Before the carriers began offering inventory, an advertiser would have to go either off-portal or to a mobile ad network. Neither would have the number of impressions that they would get by going to a carrier," Lagattuta explained.

The carriers' moves represent a change in attitude for them, according to Jason Ankeny, editor of FierceMobileContent, a mobile news Web site.

"Carriers have always subscribed to this 'walled garden' mindset," he told the E-Commerce Times. "They do not want to share revenues or editorial control over the content that appears on their decks. That is slowly changing."

As long as the only inventory available is that directly from the carriers/operators themselves, there will never be enough interest to really get the market off the ground. It is only when the operators stick to what they do best - running a network - and take down all the walled gardens and the incredible price barriers for consumer access to mobile content that we will begin to see real marketing power come to bear.

And only when the devices in the hands of the ordinary consumer become WAP site friendly will we see the true power of banner advertising in the way we think of it when it comes to the Internet today.

Mobile Spam Slows Down

It looks like there are some good things happening in South Korea when it comes to Mobile Spam.

The majority of mobile spam was not sent through open gateways but was actually sent from individual mobile phone accounts. Using honey-pot phones to identify the source of SPAM - as well as limiting the number of SMS to 1,000 per day seems to have addressed the problem.

There is a subtlety here in that what has been stopped is the literal definition of SPAM - Completely unsolicited messaging. What hasn't been stopped or reduced are the volume of messages that consumers "perceive" to be SPAM.

As marketers we must always remember that it is SPAM when a consumer says it is. Period.