Short-termist mobile marketing spells trouble
Short-term mobile marketing tactics are narrowing marketers' long-term strategies for customer loyalty, according to research from 2ergo, suggesting that the early development of a comprehensive mobile strategy is vital to long term customer loyalty and profitability.
While many marketers are deploying a mobile tactic such as an app or offer coupons, only a small handful of brands are implementing full-featured mobile loyalty schemes.
2ergo's own retail research has shown that 56% of consumers would use a personalised loyalty scheme on their mobile and 21% said they would spend more if a brand had a proactive loyalty scheme that provided relevant and timely offers. Despite this, only 6% of high street retailers currently have a mobile-based loyalty scheme.
As a result, the company warns that simply paying lip service to mobile strategies is likely to seriously damage both long term profitability and customer engagement. A full mobile strategy - which includes mobile couponing, targeted offers by location or previous preferences, and the 'mobilising' of loyalty cards - is essential if brands are to add real value to the customer experience as well as improve post-purchase perceptions.
"We know that smartphones are changing the way people interact with brands. For example in retail, mobile is used to provide store directions, in-store product reviews, and self service m-commerce, all of which delivers enhanced customer service," concluded Ariya Priyasantha, director of loyalty for 2ergo. "The ability to target via mobile enables marketers across all sectors to establish a proactive and intimate relationship with a customer."
Simply using the mobile channel as a method of offering untargeted discounts does a disservice to both brand and customer. Using the mobile channel as a platform for an integrated, intelligence-based loyalty programme means that marketers can target customers much more effectively either at home, or in real-time when they are physically inside the store, promoting relevant products or rewards based on their purchasing history.
The full survey report, entitled 'Mobile Loyalty: Are marketers missing the point?', has been made available for free download from 2ergo's web site - click here (free registration required).
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