Ahh, walking around New York City in 2012, it’s hard to find a common theme across the various cultures and diversity that New York City offers. With anyone that’s experienced New York; you know people are quickly adaptable and eager to find things to make their life easier. Today if you step foot outside, on the train, at work, it’s obvious mobile devices are becoming an everyday necessity for people to connect and view content. If mobile advertising and media have not been a core part of your media budget in 2011, you will need to quickly get on board before you fall behind as was the case with Social Media back in the mid-to-late 2000’s. Planning for a mobile campaign can be a hectic process as it’s not as standardized as the desktop landscape. Here are 5 steps to help create a successful mobile media plan:
1) Know your client’s goals: As with any campaign across any channel, you need to know your client’s objectives. Do you want to create engagement, viral sharing, branding, app downloads, mobile commerce sales or the most fun of them all, “We just want to drive traffic at the lowest cost possible!” Also take into account the device and consumer habits, is a campaign driving mobile commerce at a strong CPA delivering lifetime value compared to a campaign driving app downloads? Know how each media works per device, there is much fragmentation in mobile. Buying media on iPhone is different than androids, iPads, or other tablet devices.
2) Diversify: In the spirit of Easter (I know it’s passed), let’s just use the motto “don’t put all your eggs in one basket”. It may be easy to fall into the trap of buying the lowest cost per click to drive App Downloads, but think of how you came across an ad that really sparked your interest on mobile to actually ‘convert’ and take an action. Display banners across ad networks are not the only solution on mobile, and there should always be some thought into attribution. Search, Video, Display Advertising, SMS are all unique touchpoints on mobile that consumers view. So although your Search or 5 cent cost per click display banners may be getting all the credit, think about the bigger picture of a video, online banner, or even a TV ad driving that search to eventually download your app.
3) Measurement and Tracking: As everyone knows, tracking is still in its early stages on mobile due to privacy concerns. There should always be a measurement to reach the client’s objective. The online world has set a precedent that X amount spent should generate X amount which keeps many brands and decision makers stuck on strict direct response metrics to keep their jobs. THINK outside the box; develop a campaign that will go well and beyond your paid media to drive unearned media and lifetime customers! Also remember, the most important thing with tracking mobile is the various devices, fragmentation and limitations due to privacy concerns. Make sure tracking is in order and tested before every campaign you launch.
4) Test! : There are a lot of people that think they know it all when it comes to media buying and planning, which tends to give the same cookie cutter model. Remember, mobile is growing at a rapid rate, with new ad units, devices, and startups trying to become the next best thing. There is always something to learn from every plan, and testing is the key! Test across various vendors, creative, and devices to find the best mix to reach your goals. Sometimes you may be surprised at the results. Also, take into account the same tactic you ran last month may not produce the same results, continually test and throw some fuel into the mix to spark the fire!
5) Back to the drawing board: Once you’ve executed the plan, it’s time to review the results and find your clear-cut winners. Media planning is an ever-changing and ongoing process. Go back to what worked, scale it up if you can, find similar opportunities and continue to mix your various elements to find the perfect recipe for continued success!
M&C Saatchi Performance is an award-winning performance marketing company focused on driving measurable results for organisations in all industries. Feel free to get in touch with us about your new project.
