UK Broadcaster, FIVE, has just given the mobile internet a shot in the arm with the launch of a new mobile internet site to support the new series of CSI Miami (which debuts tonight).
The site has been built by recently launched Kilrush, the company that now sits within the Mobile Interactive Group as its mobile internet arm and follows launch news that it has been selected as the mobile interent partner for ITV (dotcom).
Crucially the site will give viewers made for mobile rich content such as video and will be cross pomoted online, on air and via SMS push messages. FIVE already has 20,000 opted in mobile subscribers so, combined with the CSI faithful, its safe to assume that the service will be a great success.
Tessa Cannon, marketing campaign manager at Five said: “This is the first time we’ve opted to integrate a mobile site to promote the launch of a new series of any FIVE programme. CSI Miami has a broad viewing base and we wanted to provide a more integrated approach to promoting programmes on FIVE. The Kilrush team worked closely with marketing and the digital, technical and creative teams to deliver a great site and we’re planning to integrate more mobile internet activity for other FIVE programmes throughout the coming year.”
AdMob’s May metrics report is out and its taken a long hard look at the iPhone App store. The great social media guide, Mashable, has published an interesting analysis of the numbers and what they mean. It concludes that what is surprising is that of the 2,309 apps in their network and 15.1 million unique users. Morover, the AdMob report shows that its only the top 116 apps have 100,000 users or more and there are only 322 apps with 10,000 to 100,000 users. Taken together these intervals make up 19 per cent of the entire number of iPhone apps. The other 81% have less than 10,000 users, and 54% of applications have less than 1,000 users.
When a market gets over populated there seems to be a few rules that apply in particular the long tail theory where the distribution curve or long-tail means that those ‘things’ that are ‘good’ gravitate towards the upper end of the sales curve and those that are less well thought out make up the tailing slope. This is amplified by ’search’ and of course, marketing of the app.
So…a good and a bad thing but the inevitable nature of the beast.
I’ve just read an interesting blog entry from e-consultancy on mobile augmented reality. This is a really smart new growth area in mobile where the user points his mobile phone camera at a scene and an app executes that layers useful information over what is being viewed.
The e-consultancy piece references a Wimbledon Seer application from IBM, which runs on Google’s G1 smartphone. The app gives tennis fans the ability to superimpose additional information about the match when viewed through the handset’s camera lens. This includes match info, news and the location of find outlets around the Wimbledon grounds.
At the moment development seems to be clustered around Google’s Android OS using the compass and GPS functions to grab what you are looking at (so that’s what a compass if for!). Other companies such as the Dutch firm Layar have produced an app that turns your phone in to a sort of business directory – point the camera lens at your built landscape and all sorts of local business info such as the location of ATMs or houses for sale appear on the screen.
Obviously, handset penetration is fairly low but the thing that I really like about it is that it plays to the specific charactistics of the mobile device, allowing spontaneous interaction with the users environment in a way only mobile can. Check out the video on Gizmodo.
Something is up with the agency way of doing PR or is it?
By ‘agency’ I mean a typical structred way of doing PR with an exec (usually the most junior member of the team, on the frontline doing calls, writing releases etc.) a manager (managing the campaign execution, planning and client relationships) and a director (strategy, ideas etc.)
So, there is a minimum of three mouths to feed, plus IT support, rent and the cost of other admin staff….which can all add up to an expensive monthly retainer.
I’ve taken soundings over the last few months from various small agency owners. Pretty much, without exception, all have shrunk. This, of course, may be due to the recession but it strikes me that it is also due to significant changes within the industry (and perhaps the recession is the catalyst that has expedited these changes?).
New techniques have arrived, with social media in particular signalling a new channel for communicating and creating engagement between a company and its audiences. This technology is easy to use and accessible to anyone (plenty of posts on this elsewhere).
PR is much less of a dark art than it used to be so is there a way forward?
Of course there is. This industry is big, with lots of bright and talented people but for smaller agencies with smaller clients there is a real need to adapt and change the way of doing things.
No doubt when the green shoots arrive some of that nourishment will be diverted towards PR, but for many of us I think there is a real need to challenge the traditional agency structure and develop a new PR currency that ultimately delivers a wider set of marketing disciplines better value and more measurable results.
One newish model that is growing in popularity is ‘freelancers under one brand’ (couldn’t think of anything snappy). Under this view, PR professionals and other marketers work together under one brand to service a client. It may be that client X needs elements of a PR campaign, some SEO, some email marketing, some social media training etc. etc.
The structure is very flat – a team of experts with no hierarchy and crucially much lower overheads. By pushing a collaborative model, freelancers obvioiusly get the opportunity to pitch for bigger and more interesting clients and for the clients themselves, they get the opportunity to work with a much wider set of marketers as part of one connected campaign.
I had a great lunch with Lloyd Gofton from Liberate Media last week and they have been successfully doing business this way for a couple of years.
….and to these ends we’ve been quietly rolling out our own version of a small connected model under the name Goose.
I’ve just read a press release from what is one of the first (of many?) companies to exploit the video features of the just released iPhone OS 3.0.
Envivio has launched iLiveTV a complete package for encoding and distributing live TV (yes broadcast) services to iPhone. It also supports premium services such as Catch-up TV, Video on Demand and a channel guide.
Smart cookies.
Video is power hungry so I wonder will the iPhone battery life extend long enough to watch a footie match or the omnibus edition of Eastenders on the train home?
For marketers the obvious advantage now is the ability to include made-for-TV spot ads. That said, there is also a danger that the mobile format will at the same time be misunderstood….imagine having to sit through a full ad-break whilst watching your favourite show.
Ad-men please go gently!
I’m a very happy chappy today.
I just received coverage for a client of mine, Mobile Interactive Group in the FT. It spans 3/4 of a page in the business life section and it struck me that this might feed the deabte on online PR versus traditional media relations.
We’ve been with MIG for five years since the company began and our initial brief was to help build the company reputation in the trade media. Along the way we’ve adapted and changed and added new techniques and fully embraced online PR.
But achieving a landmark piece in the FT must jar with the new breed of online PR professionals and agencies who see traditional media as somewhat outmoded by web 2.0 (or is it 3.0 now?).
Roger Warner from online PR agency C&M makes some very valid points in his recent blog post on the subject…..however it seems to me that we are all at risk of getting caught up in the dogma trap.
Surely what is really important is skillfully employing a range of PR techniques to help build a client’s reputation, growth, sales, or whatever else its strategic objectives might be. As good consultants we should be recommending campaigns and tactics that meet these objectives head-on, be that by applying SEO and conversational marketing or traditional media relations (that sometimes results in a massive article in the FT).
I agree with Roger that PR agencies need to move and explore online PR now and, if there isn’t any in-house expertise to do this then take a few risks, train or employ a specialist. No doubt those that don’t will miss out but there is still a huge benefit in participating in print and online media via traditional media relations techniques.
So, isn’t it time we all moved the debate on a little and keep focussed on what is important to our clients?
I’m talking about a third way which sounds a bit new labour but to me and my clients actually makes lots of sense….its a blend of old school and new school PR that actually gets my client’s phone ringing and that is the point.
Apple’s launch of the iPhone 3GS has had twitter alive today. A cursory look at the hashtags (#O2fail) tells a skewed story on how rumpled iPhone lovers aren’t loving the price plans…that said, full marks to O2 for dealing with it on a conversational level. Good social media planning has probably done them a lot of favours and nipped a lot of negative noise in the bud.
But back to the product – lots of significant new features such as faster internet browsing and in-app video capture.
What does this all mean for marketers?
Mobile Interactive Group’s David Glennie has just written a piece for Revolution magazine that sums it up nicely:
Apple’s iPhone 3GS: what it means for marketers
09 June 2009, 3:25pm
LONDON – Apple has announced that its new iPhone, the 3GS, a faster, upgraded version of the iPhone 3G, will launch in the UK on 19 June. The iPhone has already transformed mobile marketing, but its latest incarnation looks set to offer brands much more. We asked David Glennie, product director at MIG, for the lowdown.
What’s New
The iPhone 3GS is the next step in the evolution of the iPod from music player, to video player, to app runner, to softphone, and now to something that looks a lot like a real phone. It adds a raft of new features including improved speed, a three megapixel camera, video support, spotlight search, a compass (no, really), MMS, Bluetooth, tethering (using your phone as a modem to access the internet), voice control, text-to-speech, and (at last) cut and paste.
What difference will it all make?
Speed is of the essence (hence the ‘S’). Apple is saying that apps will load more than twice as fast (or at least they will until developers create a new breed of app that exploits all the new features).
The camera sounds good
Yes, you can do video and take pictures at three megapixels with autofocus – just like you could in 2004 when Casio launched the A5406CA. The smart money will be using video and MMS as part of an integrated brand or app experience. This is big news for UGC and social media apps – out with ‘mobile blogging’ in with ‘mobile broadcasting’.
Will there be new apps?
All apps will have to be OS 3.0 compatible from now on. Big players like Shazam, EA and SMULE have had the 3.0 SDK for a good couple of months, so expect prominent offerings from launch.
Will it impact mobile marketing?
Very much so! 81 per cent of iPhone users browse daily for news and information – as opposed to 11 per cent of other mobile users. The new super fast javascript processing of the 3GS (a very specific 2.9 times faster) will make the internet even more attractive. MMS and Bluetooth support offers new opportunities for innovative customer interaction.
Will people upgrade?
Ultimately they may have no choice. Looking at Apple’s Modus Operandi the new hardware features and power of the 3GS will trigger an arms race among app developers. In time the app experience on poor old 3G devices will become unpalatable to many consumers.
100% GROWTH IN IPHONE TRAFFIC PUSHES 4TH SCREEN ADVERTISING OVER 1 BILLION MOBILE ADVERTS
100% GROWTH IN IPHONE TRAFFIC PUSHES 4TH SCREEN ADVERTISING OVER 1 BILLION MOBILE ADVERTS
Powered by proprietary ad serving platform Mpression
4th Screen Advertising, the UK’s leading independent mobile advertising sales agency, has served over 1 billion UK mobile adverts through its proprietary ad serving engine Mpression.
The Mpression mobile ad network includes sites such as O2 Active, Virgin, ITV, Tesco mobile, Zoo, Heat, Metro, London Lite, Flirtomatic and Eyevibe.
Over 20 million page impressions per month are being served to iPhone and blackberry devices, allowing brands to target this cash-rich time-poor audience. Recent brands to include mobile as part of their communications strategy include: Barclaycard, Coca-Cola, Nike, Natwest, Doritos, Peperami, Fitness First and McDonald’s.
Mark Slade, MD, 4th Screen Advertising said, “Reaching this milestone is a huge achievement and a testament to our carrier grade technology ad serving platform Mpression. In the current economic climate, brands are looking for more measurable channels and mobile provides not only a completely track-able solution, but also a highly targeted audience, reducing wastage and ensuring campaign’s successes.
“With big brands now embracing mobile we’re delighted to be able to deliver highly innovative, creative campaigns. The recent significant growth in iPhone and blackberry traffic will be a significant catalyst to developing truly engaging mobile communications.”
4th Screen Advertising, the UK’s leading mobile advertising agency has significantly expanded its off-deck advertising network by signing deals with Associated Newspaper Group (exclusive) and Teletext (non-exclusive). 4th Screen Advertising has partnered with Associated Newspaper Group, the management company of major newspapers such as, Metro, The Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday; securing exclusive rights to serve mobile advertising on the recently developed Metro WAP (mobile internet) site using its wholly developed and owned ad-serving platform, Mpression. Popular with commuters, Metro will open up a host of mobile advertising opportunities for brands wishing to target customers during peak travel times for WAP browsing. In addition, 4th Screen Advertisng has signed a publishing deal with Teletext. The company currently has service offerings in the key areas of news, sport, racing, entertainment and a new ‘Teletext Holidays’ mobile site planned for Q1 2008. Teletext attracts a large customer base that drills down in to targeted demographic groups. By joining forces with Teletext, 4th Screen Advertising now has the ability to offer agencies and brands an increased opportunity to reach Teletext’s vast and highly targeted audience.
Sarah McCluskey, Account Director of 4th Screen Advertising said, “By teaming up with such highly regarded, and wide reaching publishers, we have opened up major new advertising channels, allowing 4th Screen Advertising to offer our clients a much larger target base.” Annabel Hembry, Head of Mobile at Associated Newspaper said, “The deal with 4th Screen Advertising allows us to offer our existing advertisers a new channel for advertising, and big brands the opportunity to reach commuters during peak travel times of the day for WAP surfing.”
David Butler, Head of Mobile, Teletext said, “Optimising campaigns across our publisher network is key to providing our consumers with relevant advertising offers, and a great opportunity for big brands to interact with consumers on the move. We look forward to working with the team at 4th Screen Advertising, the leaders in the mobile advertising space, over the coming year.”
