Report shows growth in receptiveness to new marketing techniques
Mobile marketing company Pitch has commissioned research which it says shows an increase in receptiveness to mobile marketing amongst UK consumers, especially in the 16-25 age range.
Almost half of the 16-25 year old respondents to the poll said that they would be happy to receive ads in exchange for free content and over 30% said that they would be likely to respond to marketing messages – the most responsive age group by a notable difference. 60% would visit a company’s website after receiving an ad and over half would visit a store if the incentive was strong. 48% would pass advertising messages on to their friends, creating the potential for a self-perpetuating viral campaign.
32% of British consumers outside this age bracket said that they would be happy to receive marketing text messages, videos and pictures on their mobile phones in exchange for free content.
With response rates to traditional forms of direct marketing falling, the research also found that mobile marketing has the potential to become a highly responsive channel. Over one in four consumers indicated that they would be likely to respond to mobile marketing, providing that it was relevant to their interests. 45% would follow the advert through to the company’s website and 41% would visit a store or venue to redeem a promotional voucher. The report found both sexes to be equally receptive to mobile marketing.
The report also showed that the success of a mobile ad is influenced primarily by its quality. 38% of consumers would respond based on the value of an offer or promotion and 20% would respond solely based on the type of brand. The design of the ad was considered the least important factor by all age groups.
Audience receptiveness also varied according to the time of the day the message was received. The most popular time of day to receive messages was the evening (15.5%). Least popular was during the working day (6.3%). 42% of UK adults claim they would be happy with anything between 1 and 12+ adverts delivered to their mobile per week in exchange for free mobile content
However, some concerns do still linger over the quality of marketing messages provided. 38% of consumers worried about being bombarded by advertising messages while 33% worried that they would be charged and find themselves unable to unsubscribe from the service.
Commenting on the research, Pitch Executive Chairman David Warburton said:
“The power of mobile marketing has always been in its ability to target a distinct group of consumers, unlike spam or junk mail, which rely on sending out millions of messages in the hope that a tiny percentage respond. The report shows that the consumer is now receptive to receiving mobile advertising – as long as the messages sent out are well designed and carefully targeted.
“If brands are prepared to take this message on board, this will be the year that mobile marketing realizes its full potential.”