2009 Eighth International Conference on Mobile Business

Mobile Marketing & Service: a reference framework

Antonio Ghezzi, Raffaello Balocco, Andrea Rangone

Department of Management, Economics and Industrial Engineering Politecnico di Milano Milan, Italy antonio1.ghezzi@polimi.it raffaello.balocco@polimi.it andrea.rangone@polimi.it

Abstract The purpose of this research is to provide an original reference framework capable of supporting the classification of Mobile Marketing & Service Management initiatives, thus filling the current literature gap and constituting an initial common ground for future studies in the field. The model, resulting from the integration of a wide literature analysis and 229 in-depth exploratory case studies on Mobile Marketing & Service user companies and supply chain players, identifies a set of significant classification variables: access devices; coverage area and the related technologies; types of Mobile Marketing and Mobile Service Management services further divided in Mobile Advertising, Mobile Promotion, Pre-sale support, Sales and Post-sale communications . Moreover, the research sheds light on the different application areas emerged from the crossing of the identified significant classification variables, thus presenting a first application of the model created. Mobile Marketing; Mobile Service Management; Reference framework; Marketing; Multple Case Studies.

rise to the concept of Mobile Marketing, that offers new opportunities to relate with the end customer [9]. Mobile Marketing allows to address market needs leveraging on the resident characteristics of the mobile channel. The interest towards such new way of doing marketing rose significantly during the last 5 to 6 years, and firms are starting to take advantage of this new instrument at a global level [17]. The market is starting to perceive Mobile Marketings potential, though a lack of a clear and unambiguous vision in terms of definition and classification can be found in the existing literature dealing with this relatively new phenomenon [12]. Given the previous considerations, the purpose of this research is to provide a unified definition of Mobile Marketing, and on the basis of such definition, to create an original conceptual framework as a point of reference for Mobile Marketing and Mobile Service Management sector, capable of supporting the classification of Mobile Marketing & Service Management initiatives. II. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY The research is focused on end user Mobile Marketing & Service Management applications (B2c). As a consequence, B2b applications (Business to business, directed to business partner), B2e (Business to employee, directed to employees) and M2m (Machine to machine, not involving people) are not included in the analysis. With respect to the mobile devices used to exploit these services, the analysis only considers mobile phones, consequently excluding all other types of Portables Devices, such as Industrial Devices, PDAs, Tablet PCs, Laptop computers, game consoles, Mp3 players, etc. On the other hand, an exhaustive approach was used regarding the Wireless Networks, through which Mobile Marketing & Service activities are supplied on mobile phones. Cellular Networks (Gsm, Gprs, Umts, Hsdpa); Dvb-h; Wi-Fi; RFId; Bluetooth.

I.

INTRODUCTION

The complex concept of Marketing is evolving continuously: today, its most advanced frontiers are in turn named direct marketing, interactive marketing, nonconventional marketing, viral marketing [11]; contemporarily, referring to the channel of interaction with the end customer, other terms are proposed often as synonymous , like digital marketing, wireless marketing, emarketing, mobile marketing and e-mail marketing. Beyond such proliferation of alternative terms, in the last years marketing as a body of knowledge and as a practice has been forced to cope with two main challenges: in the one hand, the transformation of the targets to be reached, organized in networks or communities and not any more segmented according to socio-demographic or behavioral variables [16]; in the other, the high rates of technology innovations that made new tools and channels to reach such targets available [10]. The growing focus towards the relationship with the customer [6], the content digitalization [13] and the wireless technologies consolidation [8] are three main drivers that contributed in modifying the meaning of marketing, giving
978-0-7695-3691-0/09 $25.00 2009 IEEE DOI 10.1109/ICMB.2009.39 182

Nevertheless, the operative analysis was focused only on cellular networks, Dvb-h and Bluetooth, as no significant cases of use and adoption of other technologies to support Mobile Marketing & Service activities via the mobile phone were found. Concerning the filed study performed, as Mobile Marketing & Service applications are a recent phenomenon, the research adopted an exploratory methodology of analysis [15], with the aim capturing the state of adoption and use of these tools, drawing insight and best practices from the main case studies analyzed. In addition to the exploratory approach, a contingent analysis was necessary, because the possible uses of new applications may be determined by the industry in which the company operates and its type of products and services. Actually, a wider range of variables could be used, taking account both of the overall organizational and managerial variables of each company, and, more in detail, of the marketing history and the marketing and customer relationship management approaches used, and the propensity to innovation in marketing activities and the contact channels between the company and its customers. However, given the explorative nature of the research, the focus was put on the above-mentioned macro variables, including the additional details when it was useful and when the information was available, as incidental and further elements of analysis [3]. Along with the explorative and contingent nature of the Research, a multiple case study methodology was chosen [18], with a significant sample representing the entirety of the companies which have introduced Mobile Marketing & Service projects during recent years. As a whole, 229 case studies were performed, all involving semi-structured interviews with top managers, encompassing three main categories of companies: 1. Mobile Marketing user companies (60 case studies). 2. Mobile User companies (63 case studies). 3. Supply chain players (106 case studies). The sample of user Companies with Mobile Marketing initiatives was chosen with the aim of satisfying the following criteria. Macro-industry of products coverage: - Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG), i.e. short shelf-life products (actually, Mass Market products); - Durables; - Services. The types of campaign coverage: Mobile Advertising and Mobile Promotion. The technology coverage: Sms, Mms, Microbrowsing, Download, Broadcast (Dvb-h) and Streaming. Sixty case studies of user firms of Mobile Marketing initiatives were undertaken. The number of interviews was different for the three clusters of analysis (FMCG, Durables and Services), reflecting the different aptitude and number of experiences in using mobile as a communication and

promotion channel both for products and brands, among the companies in the different segments. For the sample of user Companies, considering Mobile Service Management initiatives, the main drivers in choosing the sample on which case studies were undertaken were the following: More dynamic industries coverage: - Entertainment. All companies providing any kind of entertainment and any form of aggregation (amusement parks, sport centers, museums, theatres, cinemas, pubs, discos, etc.) were included; - Tourism. Tourism organizations and centers, travel agencies, tour operators, hotels, farm holidays, villages/resorts etc., were included; - Mass Market. Companies operating both in production and in distribution (retailer) were considered. Different product industries (grocery, textiles and clothing, electronics and electrical appliance, etc.) were included; - Finance. Any kind of financial institution was included (Insurance companies are excluded; they are considered in Other); - Transportation. Companies operating in all sectors were considered (airlines railways, skilifts, public transit, taxi, etc.) - Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG), i.e. short shelf-life products (actually, Mass Market products); - Healthcare. Hospitals and Clinics, public local health institutes or similar, analysis centres and institutes for medical research; - Public sector. i.e. Municipalities, Provinces, Regions, Ministries, etc.; - Non-profit Organizations. Trade unions, professional associations, voluntary and solidarity associations, etc.; - Utilities. Companies providing services for production and distribution of energy, water, gas and environmental services; - Other. All industries not considered in other sectors (for example, Automotive Insurance, Goods transport, eCommerce, Publishing, Small retail businesses, Freelances, etc.). Applications coverage of all main activities of the customer relationship process: pre-sale support, booking, transaction, payment, post-sale communications. Technology coverage: All platforms available on cellular networks: Sms, Mms, Micro-browsing, Download (Video-call, Dvbh and Streaming were not considered, since real applications based on such platforms do not exist yet). Sixty-three case studies of Companies using Mobile Service Management applications were undertaken, all involving interviews with top management of the company.

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In addition to the analysis carried out on user Companies, many case studies involving supply chain players were undertaken, which tried to involve all main players operating at the different levels of the value chain: Media and Creative agencies, Web agencies, Sales houses and networks, Service & Software providers, Mobile Network Operators, Publishers/Media, Bluetooth technology providers. More than one hundred case studies involving interviews with top management of the different players of the supply chain were undertaken. The case study above mentioned allowed to collect both qualitative and quantitative information concerning Mobile Marketing & Service, employed in shaping the reference framework of analysis created. III. THE MOBILE MARKETING & SERVICE REFERENCE
FRAMEWORK OF ANALYSIS

As a consequence of the development of a technology and its subsequent usage to support an enterprises business processes, there is often discussion about revolutionary changes new approaches of doing business. Additionally, in marketing, many attempts to develop more and more paradigms enabled by various technologies can be encountered. As a consequence, a proliferation of new adjectives before the word marketing i.e. Internet marketing, email marketing, web 2.0 marketing (or marketing 2.0), Mobile Marketing, Bluetooth marketing, etc. is emerging. Beyond this, it is important to point out that technology, particularly mobile technology, can induce further changes into consolidated marketing experiences, as a result of new dynamics with the customers involvement in the value creation process; even if companies still have to integrate and coordinate the information in order to provide added value to the customer. Focusing on the usage of the mobile technology as a marketing means, it is necessary to provide a clear definition of the term Mobile Marketing: as the literature review has displayed many and varied versions [2] [4] [5] [14]. The term Mobile Marketing is often associated to new models of highly interactive advertising (e.g., messaging initiatives), or it is considered part of a wider strategy to increase points of contact between the customer and the brand and so enhance customer engagement. However, despite these varied perspectives, it is possible to identify common elements behind this emerging marketing approach: the crowding of traditional media; the growing competition to capture the customers attention in more and more active and engaging ways; the need to balance the number of communication options involved with the cost/effectiveness of each, and mobile channel's potential for technological innovation. Attention towards a single advertisement is measured in terms of seconds, but this time slot is too short to create involving experiences for the customer. External hoardings are already an anonymous portion of the landscape, to which the customer dedicates little attention; switching between TV channels has reduced the probability that the audience watches a whole advertisement break. Likewise, advertising leaflets or other

mailing initiatives are expensive, while their effectiveness in catching the customers attention is little proven. On the other hand, Mobile Marketing, as a new media of relationship with the market, can engage the customer in an interactive and meaningful way, simultaneously providing a customized and personal experience while restoring the loyalty process towards the brand and the product. The different positions regarding Mobile Marketing are not in conflict or incompatible; on the contrary, they can be integrated into a broader definition that highlights the potential of this new media and, at the same time, underlines the need to act in accordance with integrated market logics. In this paper, the proposed original definition of Mobile Marketing is: the usage of wireless technologies on the mobile phone, like a device to use multiple services or a 2way communication channel with the customer for advertising, promotion and entertainment, in order to create engagement and provide contextualized experiences, and, consequently, to increase the relationship with the brand and its products. Hence, inside the varied and heterogeneous wireless sector, the attention of this study is focused on the mobile device par excellence the mobile phone while not considering other mobile devices, such as laptops, tablet PCs, industrial devices like those available in supermarkets for self-scanning operations , PDAs, portable game consoles, and mp3 players. Conversely, every wireless technology available for connecting and interacting has been considered, i.e. cellular networks (Gsm, Gprs, Umts, Hsdpa, etc.), Dvb-h, Wi-Fi, RFId, and Bluetooth (Fig. 1). The provided reference framework of analysis does not aim at supporting the definition of a new way of doing marketing through mobile technologies. Instead, the objective is to allow and in-depth and accurate understanding of the opportunities and impacts of mobile technologies on every phase of the marketing process; i.e. to, understand if how the mobile channel could support corporate marketing processes at both a tactical-operative and strategic level. In the first case, this is an additional contact channel in a wider media mix, while in the second, it supports activities of
Coverage area Coverage area Wide Wide
Cellular networks Cellular networks (Gsm, Umts, ...) (Gsm, Umts, ...) Dvb-h Dvb-h

Circumscribed Circumscribed
Wi-Fi Wi-Fi RFId RFId

Local Local
Bluetooth Bluetooth

Mobile Mobile phone phone

Mobile Marketing & Service

Devices Devices

Industrial Industrial device and device and Personal Personal Digital Digital Assistant Assistant

Tablet PC Tablet PC and and Laptop Laptop

Other Other devices devices (game (game console, console, mp3 players, mp3 players, etc.) etc.)

Figure 1. Mobile Marketing & Service: coverage area vs. devices.

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market analysis, target definition, and strengthening of the company/brand positioning, ultimately analyzing, connections between aims and strategic choices and tacticaloperative levers. Regarding the strategic marketing, mobile can be thought as a useful channel to collect information about the customer, in particular for companies that do not have direct contact with the end user. This is the case of companies that use an indirect sales network to reach the final market, and they often face problems in obtaining up-to-date information and insight concerning the consumer. Hence, digital access, and the mobile channel can represent an excellent direct means of contact with the final customer, not only in terms of advertising, but primarily as a bi-directional interaction able to collect information about the user (e.g., the purchasing propensity). At the same time, when companies have to choose target customers of their Mobile Marketing initiatives, they often tend to segment the customer base by contact channel. Both for prospecting and loyalty objectives, firms have to use personal and residential data, as well as predisposition to the multi-channel in the contact, to selects segments more inclined to interact with this channel. The mobile channel can represent a valuable means of differentiation of the company/brand positioning. In fact, many companies are migrating from a product-centric approach to methods based on the building of deep relationships with customers through the co-creation of multi-channel brand experiences. Consequently, the introduction of the mobile channel as a further contact point with the customer is in line with positioning geared to create interactive and multi-channel brand experiences involving the customer in an active way through engagement mechanisms. With a more experience based positioning, the mobile channel can widen the value proposition, enriching the product with value added services (product and service bundling), transforming this product into an experience and actively involving the customer, even on a multiple integrated channel (engagement). As a result, it is possible to observe that the mobile channel has a pervasive impact on every tactical marketing lever, enabling not only communication and promotion levers (Mobile Advertising and Mobile Promotion), but also adding service elements to the product and enabling value added services to support other marketing levers. The mobile channel supports the transaction and all phases immediately before and after of the sales activity, thanks to services supporting the bidirectional communication with the customer (Mobile Service Management). During the pre-sale phases, mobile channel can support the customer with services and communications, without advertising and promotion aims, e.g. pull communications (from the customer to the company) enabling the configuration of the service, such as the search for hotels via Micro-browsing, or the access to information, configuration and selection services using applications downloaded and used directly on the mobile phone. The mobile channel directly supports the selling phase, particularly the transaction, enabling value added services

usable by the customer. It is possible to refer, for example, to booking services for products and services with a deferred purchase process, whereas, in the case of services with a contextual purchase, the mobile channel can serve as the supply, usage and payment channel. Lastly, the mobile channel, and particularly the Sms, can serve as a means to support the relationship management with the client in multiple ways. There are transactional aims, such as the order confirmation of purchases made through indirect channels like the web. There can also be a strengthening of the relationship with the customer in order to satisfy security needs, such as Sms alerts when a banking operation using credit cards has been made, or the confirmation of receipt of a document by the company. Also the company may adopt a more relational perspective towards the customer, such as by sending of free Sms to reminders that the service is expiring, or to celebrate holidays and even personal events like a birthday. The overall marketing activity enabled by the mobile channel can be coordinated by actions geared to customize the relationship, in a bi-directional information exchange between customer and company. In this case, the reference is to the Mobile Customer Relationship Management supporting all Mobile Marketing services in a widespread way. In developing the present classification model, the scope of Mobile Marketing has been restricted, highlighting the relevance and peculiarity of all activities referring to the Service Management. Under this perspective, the reference framework introduced in this study is illustrated in Fig. 2 and summarized below. Mobile Marketing: this includes purchasing process activities supporting pre-sale phases and can be classified in different ways depending of the aim and mode: - Mobile Promotion: activities to promote sales providing the customer with added value (e.g. mobile games, ringtones, etc.) or a stimulus for competitions, product purchase (prizes, discounts, etc.) through mobile devices; - Mobile Advertising: activities aimed at communicating or promoting products and services based on tailor-made models for the mobile technology used (Sms, Mms, Download, and Micro-browsing). Mobile Service Management: services geared to create and/or maintain the relationship with the customer. These services can be further divided into: - Pre-sale support: i.e. communication services oriented at activating the relationship with the customer through value added information (without a promotional and advertising aim) and, in some cases, the opportunity to configure the requested service via mobile; - Sales: services that support the actual purchase process more directly, enabling the booking,

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transaction and payment of services via mobile phone;

The matrix represents a first application of the model provided to the theoretical sample of the companies involved in the case studies research. IV. CONCLUSIONS AND FUTURE WORKS The continuous evolution of theoretic definitions and concepts as well as of existing implementations and services related to Mobile Marketing makes evident the need of developing a reference model for the rigorous classification of marketing initiatives. Following this consideration, the present research, through the integration of a vast literature review and a set of 229 exploratory case studies, developed a unified definition of Mobile Marketing. Moreover, it provides an original reference framework for classifying Mobile Marketing & Service Management services and applications, through the identification of a set of significant variables: access devices; coverage area and the related technologies; types of Mobile Marketing and Mobile Service Management services further divided in Mobile Advertising, Mobile Promotion, Pre-sale support, Sales and Post-sale communications . The papers value for researchers rests in the filling of the literature gap noted, which is related, on the one hand, to the definition of Mobile Marketing, and on the other, to the lack of a unified classification framework for marketing and service management initiatives associated to the mobile channel. The value for practitioners lies in the provisioning of a valuable tool for supporting both user firms and supply chain players in the process of analysis of Mobile Marketing and Mobile Service Management market offer. The model here created represents an initial common ground, a conceptual starting point for future research on this field, which should focus on the description of services and applications provided, on the definition of the involved actors and on the identification of the different value chains such actors are organized in. REFERENCES
[1] R. Balocco, G. Bonometti, A. Ghezzi, and Renga, F., Mobile Payment Applications: an Exploratory Analysis of the Italian Diffusion Process, Proceedings of the International Conference on Mobile Business (ICMB 08), July 2008, Barcelona. S.J. Barnes, A. Carroll and E. Scornavacca, Consumers Perceptions and Attitudes towards SMS Mobile Marketing in New Zealand, International Conference on Mobile Business (ICMB 2005), pp. 434440. T.V. Bonoma, Case research in marketing: opportunities, problems, and a process, Journal of Marketing Research, 1985, vol. 22, pp. 199208. A. Dickinger and P. Haghirian, , An investigation and Conceptual Model of SMS Marketing, Proceedings of the 37th Hawaii International Conference on System Science (HICSS 04), 2004. A. Dickinger, J. Murphy and A. Scharl, A., Diffusion and success factors of mobile marketing, Electronic Commerce Research and Application, 2005, n. 4, pp. 159-173. T. Duncan. and S.E. Moriarty, A Communication-Based Marketing Model for Managing Relationships, Journal of Marketing, 1998, n. 62, pp. 113.

Mobile Advertising
Mobile Marketing

Mobile Promotion Pre-sale Support

Mobile Service Management
Mobile Crm Mobile Crm

Types of services

Sales Post-sale Communications

Figure 2. Mobile Marketing & Service reference framework of analysis.

Post-sale communication: support and communication services supplied via mobile phone allowing companies to respond to customer requests and so maintain a continuous relationship. As stated earlier, all the previous areas can be seen as part of a broader dimension, related to Mobile Crm. The matrix shown in Fig. 3, relating the above-mentioned activities to wireless technologies, outlines the different application areas emerged from the study: the cellular network is widely used to support all activities, both Mobile Marketing and Mobile Service Management; interesting trials exist, even if in an embryonic stage, for Mobile Advertising and Mobile Promotion via Dvb-h; Bluetooth is mostly used for supporting Mobile Marketing activities, even if the most important opportunities seem to be in the Mobile Service Management area.
Coverage area Coverage area Wide Wide
Cellular networks Cellular networks (Gsm, Umts, ...) (Gsm, Umts, ...) Pre-Sale Pre-Sale Support Support Dvb-h Dvb-h

Circumscribed Circumscribed
Wi-Fi Wi-Fi RFId RFId

Local Local
Bluetooth Bluetooth

[2]

Mobile Mobile Service Managenmet Service Managenmet

Sales Sales

[3]

Post-Sale Post-Sale Support Support

[4]
Mobile Mobile Marketing Marketing
Advertising Advertising Promotion Promotion

[5]
Focus: mobile device

[6] Figure 3. Mobile Marketing & Service: coverage area vs. activities.

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[7]

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