Suzanne Elshult, http://hrnow.net Executive Yak, sponsors live round tables for senior marketing and human resources executives in the Seattle area and offers executive / professional coaching and virtual learning opportunities for leaders, business owners, consultants and coaches committed to growth and high performance.This week my marketing executive roundtable group had a very intriguing session on mobile marketing. Here are some highlights:

What’s Happening in the Market? We are seeing a definite shift in how people consume. People are spending less time reading, listening to the radio or watching TV/video. Mobile is engaging and helps us find consumers in a more personal way. People are accessing weather reports, ESPN, news sources and lots more via mobile:
• 29% search info in the bathroom
• 21% during dinner
• 11% during business meetings
• 5% in bed

The mobile market is growing at an exponential rate and has huge potential in the US. While it took radio 38 years to reach 50mm consumers it has taken mobile 2.5 years. Right now we only have 19% smart phone penetration while total mobile phone penetration is 94%. Smart phones are only 1 in 4 phones today, but there is a huge number of consumers who want one! Mobile makes sense for marketers because consumers have it on them all the time. It is personal and immediate and can connect existing media campaigns to the consumer by exploiting opportunities that don’t exist with traditional advertising (right now mobile advertising is only 2% of ad market in the US but it is growing 60% annually). Mobile is really enhancing the classic marketing model (moving from attention to interest to action) by adding “search” (Google, quick response codes etc) and “share” (mobile SMS and mobile e-mail on social level) to the steps marketers can take to take consumers through the process. Ultimately this is all about convergence: how we will be able to draw content and become educated consumers leveraging mobile and how marketers are able to tap into this by drawing us in and engaging with us. The companies that are most successful moving into “mobile marketing” are the ones that leverage the ability to engage and be interactive.

What are we interested in right now? How do you get started and develop a meaningful strategy? How do we get into the game if we are a small company with a limited budget – trying it on a smaller scale? What’s possible based on what we have seen in Europe and Japan? What are the resources we can turn to?

What are some interesting campaign examples?• Sony music is encouraging people to download movies…”JuJu Pair Movie” where one person downloads half the movie and another downloads the second half so you watch it together – engagement!
• AXE “Chocoman Hunter” where you collect response codes…like a treasure hunt where you have to collect codes from your friends’ phones too. It’s more of a game, and not just an ad.

How intrusive will mobile be?
Are we going to be bombarded with text messages when we visit the mall? If you’re in a browsing experience, you may see a GPS-directed ad, but you’re not going to get a text message unless you’ve opted in. Companies are developing opt-in programs where folks can sign up for special offers. Or radio stations may run a contest sponsored by, for example, a mortgage company and that allows the mortgage company to gather prospects for SMS campaigns.

What will experience of the consumer look like?
Your receive a happy hour ad for the bar around the corner or get a message/offer from the restaurant down the block. You will scan a QR code on a billboard. Scan your phone (NFC = Near Field Commerce) to pay for your train ride (like the Japanese). Use your phone like a credit card or security badge you scan (there is an iPhone app that allows you to swipe a credit card on your phone for a merchant to process payments). Remember how we were able to donate to Haiti by texting a number – ended up on our phone bill? In Norway you can buy coke on a vending machine or pay for your McDonald’s burger by using your cell phone. Mobile flight check-in and boarding passes are becoming more common. TV Shopping – you can now buy from “As Seen on TV” on your phone with a code from the infomercial. Trade Shows & Events – – mobile provides opportunities for exhibitors to get the attention of attendees and to stand out before, during and after the event. We will likely give up our landlines, We may give up cable. We may get rid of radios and other personal electronics equipment. We may be able to give up our homebased internet. We may be able to get rid of our plastic credit/debit cards.

This is amazing and it is happening very fast. Don’t get left behind!!!!