Why mobile coupons will be huge in the next 18 months?
I have watched the mobile coupon space for almost 4 years now and haven’t seen a huge advancement or to correct myself I haven’t seen it getting to the stuff we were hacking around with 4 years ago.
A post by Andrew Grill has awoken my interest in this space and let me tell you this is definitely going to hot up over the next 18-24 months.
Andrew points to an article in The Times by Jonathan Birchall.
“As it loses customers to lower cost private label rivals, Procter & Gamble, the largest US advertiser, said recently it was “shifting funds where effective to coupons and consumer promotions that deliver better value”.
Bob Recchia, chief financial officer of Valassis, a third party distributor of coupons, said last week that the company had had a “good” fourth quarter in its newspaper insert business, and expressed cautious optimism about demand in 2009″
Cellfire are probably the most recognizable brand in this arena but I think that they also haven’t the model correct yet.
Cellfire still require you to enter your zip code, this is a step to far in my opinion, I think an “opt in” then to be pushed adverts based on your exact location is an absolute must.
Four years ago we were hacking with location based IMEI scanners and left it lie as we felt it was too far ahead of the curve, now with 3G getting location pretty much down to 250 metres in Europe its time to reevaluate this technology.
This is where Loopt, Locle, Google and lots of other companies will find their value not on where your friends are but where the bargains are.
Just a Sunday morning musing post but would love to hear your opinions??
Would you like an advert with a discount from say The Gap when you are within 500 metres of their store?.
If you take up the advert you get some free minutes and your carrier/The Gap share the rewards.
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Pat, this is obviously a growth market.
It also strokes with my opinion that it is not the client device but rather the “network edge device” that determines your location and pushes content accordingly. There are a few good Irish companies that are working in this space (Mobanode, Bluekulu etc.) and I expect great things from these guys.
Also as you well know money-saving services will be a growth market!
Huge fan of both of those guys Evert but and its a big but I think this needs carriers deals not Bluetooth.
I think Bluetooth is again another action which the consumers will not turn on without be specifically told to, this then puts another gap in the action.
If you could put the message that Mobanode does over GSM rather than bluetooth with a profit share with carriers I think someone will have a huge winner on their hands.
Like anything else in this venue, the devil is in the details or in the implementation. It sounds good at first. Now, how do I as the end user or recipient of the coupons be able or allowed to control the flow. I can imagine walking in a Mall or down the 16th Street Mall here in Denver, and having my phone, constantly buzzing with offers. Rather annoying it seems. From the business side, it’s a win, as the low cost of driving traffic to your business, looks great on the bottom line. I’ll be interested to see how this plays out.
Paul
This really quite simple
You pick who you would like to receive offers from at sign-up
I like books- Borders.
I like clothes- Gap.
I like movies- Blockbusters.
I like Food/restaurants- pick your favs
20 categories and your done
Pat, absolutly agree that BT is not the final technology for this type of service however it’s a quick technology that allows them to enter the market quickly and then grow and adapt…
I know this boys very well…. they’ve a good implementation.
http://www.yoose.com/
Barcode scanners in shops can actually scan the screen of modern phones now too – which is sweet as it gives it a physical real-world-ness. An important factor in this stuff.
-R
Would I like an advert like this – I think so, yes!
For many reasons too, I don’t see this any different than Barbie or Action Man advertising on a Saturday Morning during kids TV. Its targeting your resources in the best and most specific way.
This is very “minority report”, I don’t think we are at the “Retina Scan” stage just yet, but I saw a number of years back the use by banks of RFID chips in your Plastic cards to present relevant and targeted ads as you walked past or into bank branches on the high street.
The mobile is the ideal medium to do this – when you leave the house, you take probably 3 things at a minimum – Keys, Wallet & Phone.
Agree BT is not the way, maybe email/SMS/ChatBot or other specific app.
As per your note, with the increase in location based services, social networks and more – bright kite, latitude etc sending codes or barcodes to a handset to be used on relevant local offers is a natural if not imminent evolution.
ok, you had me until the location argument….
My initial thoughts on the mobile coupon angle was that with the coupons mentioned in the FT article being of the paper variety, they were screaming to be transformed into a mobile version that consumers could not only request themselves (via their mobile) but also take with them on the move (no need to remember to take the paper version with you) and also allow them to be redeemed via the mobile.
Let’s start simple – adding location to the mix seems like a great idea – but it actually is quite difficult if we look at the “push” model where either the mobile network or the handset needs to constantly scan to see if you are in a place where an ad is offered and then pushed to your handset. Technically this is very difficult and expensive – and likely not to happen (if at all) for some time.
The pull version where the user is doing a search, and location is added at the time the search is being done is more likely – and my old company, Seeker Wireless has started to provide this sort of service in Singapore with Singapore Press Holdings (SPG). The service is called Rednano.sg
In places like Singapore, this sort of service will thrive as
1) SPG own or have control over much of the classified ad market – so they can easily upsell a location based ad to existing shops
2) Singapore is quite small so adding lots of stores to the database and geo-coding each one (mandatory for a location service) is not impossible
3) There are not too many base stations to have to map to get good location fixes using the cell-ID method (ie without GPS)
This however does not translate well into larger markets where
- One media company does not have all of the inventory to themselves and it is fragmented across many companies and sites
- Large metropolitan areas mean that many, many shops need to be geo-coded so that even if a location search is done an offer will be presented
In most markets, only a Yellow pages type service has the cost structure to sell (and geo-code) down to an individual shop level.
Increasingly Google is starting to muscle into this market and give away a sticker for the front door (and a free listing) encouraging shops to get listed (for free) on Google.
So….for mobile coupons – let’s keep it real simple and get the paper version transferred onto mobile and consumers used to this method of sourcing and redeeming coupons.
Once that is done, then we can think about how location MIGHT play a part in SOME markets – but this is still a tough one.
Even if the technical issues around resolving location information were solved and available to any provide from any handset, the biggest hurdle will be having all shops tagged and listed in a location friendly database – this is the real challenge here.
I actually woke up on Sunday morning thinking about mobile coupons (someone get me a doctor please). A friend of mine worked in the space, and I know Mobanode, so I have some excuse. Lets be clear, there is a market. People are asking about price, they will go to more than one shop for all their grocery shopping. One point that is often overlooked is that Retail Tills, Stock management systems, and edge-systems within the mall/ store could fully enable retail outlets to maximise returns within the store, or shopping mall. Take these guys for instance http://www.nearbynow.com/. But perhaps there are also opportunities for Sneaky Edge Models, where the retailer uploads their “deals”, and as per Google Latitude, they “rotate in the icon/ display area”. Yes, its smartphone enabled, but twitter started out as SMS enabled. As a consumer the only thing I “demand” from a new coupon service is that it is useful from the getgo, and everytime I check it there is actually something I might reasonably want in there. Not like Amazon Gift/Gold Box, which is why I stopped using it after the first 3 goes.
Pat – very interested to see this post on your blog, even more piqued to see MobaNode mentioned quite a few times before I popped my head in here – thanks folks. Very concerned about Paul Sweeney waking up on a Sunday thinking about mobile coupons, but that’s another story…
The reason mobile is so powerful in this space is that it is a very personal device, that you carry with you always (as Nigel says – Keys, Wallet, Phone – but mostly phone!), and it is essentially your personal electronic identifier (unless some scumbag has nicked it!). However, as it is a very personal device, it needs to be treated with respect. Any type of mobile marketing must be opt-in and permission based, relevant and targeted, and localised. If we hit those five, we are onto a winner – as Pat says, if you can tailor the offers you receive, the likely hood of redemption climbs dramatically – e.g. I like Apple Products – if there is an Apple promotion on nearby, I want to know about it. Traditional media sucks at this – Powercity, the Irish electrical retailer, run nationwide TV ads and take a full page in the Irish Times every Friday – but they don’t have a stores outside Dublin – Fail! A total waste of print and airtime!
Bluetooth works well as a start in this space and as a “present day” technology, but it’s not the final answer. The final answer is merging lots of technologies to make this work on a broader scale –
Bluetooth – Initial localised Call to action
SMS – Out of range communication
GPS – Location awareness
QR Codes – Scanning and Redemption
NFC/RFID – Payment and Loyalty
At present retailers in the US are running scared, and banning use of camera phones in stores, all due to products like Shop Savvy. Shop Savvy users can scan the bar code of any product using their phone’s built-in camera. ShopSavvy will then search for the best prices online and through the inventories of nearby, local stores using the phone’s built-in GPS. They should be thinking proactively, and embracing mobile to enhance sales.
An amalgamation of all these mobile technologies will enable the presentation of information (and offers) at the right place, the right time and into the location upon which you are most likely to act – and all into the palm of your hand. As the saying goes “Fish where the Fish are”
Rather that total dependence on MNO’s AND the customer to fill in a ‘What kind of things do you like’ form, retail MVNO’s are already doing this in Europe. Since retail based/branded MVNO’s usually tie their loyalty club card to the customer’s SIM also they can, based on actual shopping patterns, suggest coupons that will actually get used. Retailer sends an SMS like ‘As a loyalty card holder, can we suggest discounts on items you have bought in the last week/month? press 1 for yes; 2 for no. If 1 then only coupons on appropriate products are pushed to phone. It is somewhat closed loop in that it’s not across multiple stores but since most people after mortgage, car, insurance + food/drink is the next biggest spend this is best place to start showing real money savings to a consumer.
Retailers will also be the first to embrace contactless payments/NFC which is looming for both phones and payment cards. This will only accelerate the pace to which Pat is talking about
Hi Pat,
With your super SIM’s you could probably implement Actionable Audio Messages which IMHO would be much better than this.
Check out http://www.cenoplex.com/ – take my word for it you’ll hear a lot about them in the next few years.
It works as simply as this… you just ring “Papa Mario’s” for a pizza. The MaxRoam Network knows you’re ringing the order number of a certain pizza delivery company. Advert plays eg. “Papa Johns are offering any pizza delivered in 30 mins for only $10 press 1 to order, press 2 for a SMS coupon” then the ringing for “Papa Mario’s” continues… obviously only if the customer isn’t tempted away by that attractive and timely offer.
The way i see it this will cannibalize the ad funded network model (eg Blyk) because it will enable MNOs to offer this ad funded model on their lowest value customers.
Depending on how good you can get the adverts i can imagine a day when kids ring burger king just to get the latest mcdonalds offer!
Do most retailers offer devices that can read mobile coupons?
They can keep their poxy advertising and location-tracking stuffs. bah
@will: Nearly there. Masabi have done some good work with UK Rail that’s worth checking out http://masabi.com/solutions_ticketing.html
Twitter: topgold
15th March, 2009 at 11:28 pm
I just wish mobile barcode readers actually worked in places like commercial buses where I’ve seen operators attempt to run with mobile coupon services. Because if they did, things like integrated ticketing across a city’s public transportation network would benefit from the technology as well.
The biggest hurdle for mobile barcodes replacing print is on the redemption side. Today, retailers still need to furnish a paper coupon to the clearinghouses to be reimbursed for coupons. Until this clearing process can take place directly at the POS scanner, mobile barcodes will continue to only work for non-traditional coupon markets (ie subway with Cellfire)
RFID/NFC solutions for “Mobile” coupons are already here. No more waiting in line and digging for your “7 Coupon Codes” or cliping 14 coupons and trying to find them at checkout.
MoLo Rewards, with a single swipe of your NFC device or your mouse you can download a coupon from the store shelves directly to your account.
Then proceed to checkout and swipe your phone. That applys any coupons and or “Loyalty” points applicable to your transaction immediately.
Nokia’s ready… the CPG’s are ready!!!
Barcode readers in busses will be replaced with contactless readers with payment options for RFID/NFC devices. Nokias releasing NFC compatible devices the 1st-2nd QTR of 2010
Hello all,
If you are into mobile coupons, you should check out Yowza! It’s now the third most popular app in the lifestyle section of the app store, and is currently working with Dairy Queen, Saks Fifth Avenue, Sports Authority, and a bunch of local shops and restaurants.
The brochure is available at http://www.retailsmartguys.com/Yowza.pdf.
Right now, it’s super cheap for retailers to get involved. The pricing is in the brochure.
This is obviously a growth market, although I’m not too sure if it’ll take off that soon.. as I understand, this involves a huge investment on the side of the network operators to push relevant content accordingly to location. Unilever has tested Mobile Coupons, i think, but I can’t really remember the results of their test.
Marry GPS info, caller ID, called party ID and readily available demographic databases using things like magazine subscriptions (lifestyle), income levels, type of vehicle(s) owned, etc. and carriers could hone in on everyone from soccer moms to game-playing teenagers. The possibilities are practically endless. If you want to learn more or talk about how to do this contact me at george.barlow@cloudharbor.com
I dabbled with some of this technology during the dot-com bubble. The “IT” part has been available for a looong time – its the ‘other stuff’ that needs 2 catch up.
There is too much fragmentation in the market. Too many technologies trying to chase a ‘perceived’ problem and market.
Large banks and retailers have been ‘trialling’ variations for years. I don’t c much movement. Look at Nokia trying 2 push this 4 yrs and very little uptake.
I believe its going 2 work in smaller markets (e.g. Singapore, Finland) where there much better awareness and ‘trust’ factor in making this work with buy-in from retailers, operators and banks.
Until there is a more global consortium/standard – good luck 4 mass adoption. Come back in another 5yrs+
Lal
Does anyone know how the mobile barcodes are generated for the coupons for different issuers(manufactures or retailers)?
Cellfire? the manufacturer? please help. i am doing research on this for a university project
I haven’t seen it really take off. I used to do a bit of mobile marketing but it has really gotten overboard recently and it seems that most just delete it. So I guess it will not take off as much as I used to believe it would.