Mobile store locators drive foot traffic in-store and increase the likelihood of purchase. According to Millennial Media’s May 2011 S.M.A.R.T. Report, the number of mobile campaigns featuring store locator capabilities jumped 48% from April to May 2011.
“Local dollars are shifting away from traditional local channels like newspaper and radio, and that spend is coming to mobile,” said Mack McKelvey, SVP of Marketing for Millennial Media. “Retailers, auto dealers, and other local advertisers can use local deals and offers to drive neighborhood consumers into a physical store location, and can implement targeting parameters that will make sure they are hitting their desired audience. This is a growing mobile advertising trend that will continue to rapidly increase in the future.”
Millennial Media analyzed all data on their network to receive report results. During the May 2011 edition, the S.M.A.R.T. Report found that 49% of all retailers used local market audience targeting. Merchants also invested in demographic analysis to develop campaigns. According to report results, demographic targeting accounted for 38% of all targeted audience campaigns.
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“Depending on campaign goals, there are numerous targeting parameters advertisers can implement via mobile,” McKelvey said. “Each advertiser needs to find what works for their particular campaign, but in general, implementing targeting can effectively and efficiently help them reach their desired audience. In turn, when the ads are reaching the right audience, users are more likely to respond positively and potentially make a purchase.”
To increase customer interaction and word-of-mouth, and expand brand awareness, Millennial Media reported that companies within the telecom, entertainment and retail industries are including social media as a vital campaign component. According to McKelvey, a social media strategy will help to strengthen retailers’ relationships with consumers. As a result, the social media implementations have experienced a 36% month-over-month growth.
“In general, mobile has become an important channel for users to interact with their favorite social networking sites — therefore, it is a natural extension for advertisers to implement social media actions into their mobile advertising campaigns,” noted McKelvey.
Across markets, advertisers’ campaigns were designed to increase lead generation (28%), sustain an in-market presence (24%), and create buzz around a product launch or release (21%). Advertisers did not find extending brand awareness or increasing foot traffic as vital goals, both making up 12% of campaigns.
