Dear The New York Times journalist,
I do realize that Apple’s 3G iPhone is one of the most talked about consumer products today. I do realize that people are still interested in hearing about 3G iPhone, its merits, and demerits. But then, haven’t you already discussed this issue to death?
When you came up with the brilliant discovery that the new 3G iPhone actually costs more than the old one, I was really taken back. And if you remember, I already wrote a rebuttal for that. And now, you come up with this. What do I say?
The story is this – Apple sells its iPhone for $600 to those who don’t want the two-year contract with AT&T. Those who come under the contract can pay just $199. You see, we’re fine with that. But then, when you quote some market research firm and say that the iPhone is actually worth only around $170, aren’t you stretching things a little too far?
And how the hell did someone come up with that arbitrary figure? Based on the cost of the hardware components in the phone alone? Hello, ever heard of something called R&D? When you price a product, you have to take the cost of R&D, designing, and marketing into consideration. So, claiming that the iPhone is worth only around $170 based on the value of its components is not just incorrect, it’s plain stupid.
Sensationalizing issues is better left to bloggers like me. You, being a journalist, are supposed to be neutral and most importantly, well informed.
Thanks.
Tags: 3g iphone, Apple, bloggers, brilliant discovery, iPhone, journalist, journalists, merits and demerits, new york times, rebuttal
Technorati Tags: 3g iphone, Apple, bloggers, brilliant discovery, iPhone, journalist, journalists, merits and demerits, new york times, rebuttal
Categories: Rant, Apple iPhone.
Alright people. For one last time, one freaking last time, I’ll try to clarify some of the most common misconceptions about mobile advertising.
What is mobile advertising?
It’s time to come out of the cave, pal. Even my granny knows about it. Mobile advertising is nothing but ads on your mobile phone – as simple as that.
Oh dear god, why do they send me ads?
To help you take part in the space research program sponsored by the NASA. Okay; I’m kidding. Ads on mobile phones serve the same purpose as ads on TV, magazines, newspapers, radio, and the internet. All these ads want to sell you something.
Ugh; can you explain further?
Sure I can. You see, you take your mobile phone with you no matter where you go, don’t you? You get ads on TV, you see ads on magazines and newspapers, and you have ads all over the internet. However, there is a fundamental difference between these ads and mobile ads. The response rate for the former is not so impressive. The reason is – you can always skip those ads. You can change the channel during an ad break, you can simply overlook an ad in a magazine, and you can easily block ads in the internet using your browser. However, with mobile phones, the response rate is very high as people will surely check out text messages and attend calls. In other words, an ad on a mobile phone will never go unnoticed.
What the hell? How can they send me ads without my permission?
Relax bro. No one is going to send ads to your mobile phone without your permission. This is precisely the reason why they’ve come up with something called the opt-in facility. What this means is – you can opt in to a mobile advertising campaign any time you want. If you don’t like it for some reasons, you can easily opt out of it any time you want. Easy as 1-2-3.
But why would I say yes to mobile ads, even if I had the choice to opt out any time I want?
Good question. See, mobile ads are not sent by loonies on a random basis. There is something called targeted advertising which makes things better. When you opt in to a mobile advertising campaign, you’ll be usually asked about your interests, likes and dislikes, brands you like, products you use, and a whole bunch of such questions. Using this data, mobile advertisers will be able to send relevant, targeted ads to you.
For example, if you’re a big foodie, an advertiser can send a discount coupon for a big Mac. If you’re a fitness freak, he can send you a WAP link to a site which discusses the latest trends in fitness and bodybuilding. In other words, the ads you get on your mobile phone will match your interests so you can make use of the information one way or the other.
All that is fine. I don’t want mobile ads. Now what do I do?
That’s cool. If you don’t want mobile ads, don’t opt in to any mobile ad campaign. Strictly say no to them. If you’re already a part of a campaign, simply opt out of it.
Do I only get promotional offers and discount coupons via mobile ads?
No, there are more interesting offers. How does free talk time sound to you? Or how about free text messages? Hell, there are companies that pay you to get ads on your mobile phone. There are companies which offer such things for real. Virgin does that, Blyk does that, and a number of other operators are contemplating on that. If you have doubts, check out this, this, this, this, and this.
Oh that’s nice. But I read in XYZ website that mobile ads are intrusive, a threat to privacy, etc?
Screw them. What do you think? The telecom industry is highly competitive. They just can’t afford to annoy their customers. Especially in this age of internet, they just can’t afford to make a mistake for they’ll be ripped apart by thousands of websites and blogs.
But I’m still not convinced?
Well; I think this story will convince you. China Mobile, the biggest mobile operator in the world, was made to eat humble pie due to mobile ad spam. So, I repeat, operators will not take the risk of annoying their customers with spam ads.
But what if operators all over the world made a pact and started sending ads no matter what?
What if the sun exploded? What if aliens popped out of your PC? What if George Bush got elected for the third time? What if Paris Hilton became a professor in Harvard?
See, these what-ifs are endless. Most importantly, they’re not gonna happen. So, stop thinking like a fiction writer.
Phew; so there it is folks. Hope that clarifies all your doubts about mobile phone advertising. Now, tell me. What more could I do to convince the so-called experts who constantly spew hate-filled passages about mobile advertising without any basic understanding?
Tags: Blyk, China Mobile, discount coupons, free talk time, free text messages, George Bush, mobile ads, mobile advertising, mobile advertising campaign, mobile phone, NASA, Paris Hilton, promotional offers, rant, targeted ads, Virgin, WAP
Technorati Tags: Blyk, China Mobile, discount coupons, free talk time, free text messages, George Bush, mobile ads, mobile advertising, mobile advertising campaign, mobile phone, NASA, Paris Hilton, promotional offers, rant, targeted ads, Virgin, WAP
Categories: Cell Phone Advertising, Rant.
Hello folks,
It’s weekend time and as usual I checked out the feeds in my mailbox. One article stood out from the rest and caught my attention more than anything else.
Just when I thought mobile advertisers and operators will be more careful in the future to avoid unfortunate incidents like the China Mobile and Focus Media problem, I stumbled on to this news. Honestly, I was annoyed big time. Let me explain.
SingTel, a very famous mobile operator in Singapore, has the habit of sending mobile ads to its subscribers. What’s the big deal, you ask me? Well; here, the customers only have the option to opt out of the ads, not to opt in. Confused? Let me explain further.
With a mobile connection from SingTel, you automatically get ads on your mobile phone. You can’t do a damn thing about it. In other words, there is no opt-in option for people so that only those who want ads can opt in and those who don’t want can simply stay out. In this case, the operator only gives you the choice to opt out any time you want. In other words, you’ll get ads on your mobile phone whether you like it or not. If you don’t like it, it’s your duty to opt out of it.
Seriously, I cannot think of a better way to annoy the hell out of customers. But then, this has been a trend in some third world countries for quite some time now, and I know it better than anyone else. Airtel, the leading mobile operator in India, has been accused of sending unsolicited text message ads and marketing calls time and again in the past. Again, it’s the duty of the customer to opt out of these ads if he doesn’t want them.
This is plain stupid and someone needs to do something about it. At the end of the day, no matter how good your mobile ads are, there are still some people who prefer to stay out of them. And you have no rights whatsoever to poke your nose into their mobile phone. Like I’ve mentioned time and again, mobile advertising will be a success only if you respect the privacy of consumers and give them a choice to choose what they want and what they don’t want. Hope the powers-that-be realize this sooner than later.
Tags: advertisers, Airtel, china mobile, focus media, mobile ads, mobile advertising, mobile connection, mobile operator, mobile phone, rant, singapore, singtel, subscribers, third world countries
Technorati Tags: advertisers, Airtel, china mobile, focus media, mobile ads, mobile advertising, mobile connection, mobile operator, mobile phone, rant, singapore, singtel, subscribers, third world countries
Categories: Cell Phone Advertising, Rant.
Mobicom Corp. recently released its first quarter operating results as of March 31, 2008. The figures were astonishing to say the least. The total revenue was $1,382,858. The total revenue for the same period in 2007, just a year back, was only $54,959. No, that’s not a typo. From $54,959 to $1,382,858 in just one freaking year. That’s a whopping, unbelievable, incredible increase of 2416%.
The important thing, though, is that a major part of the revenue was from Mobicom Korea’s consulting division, which helps its clients develop mobile marketing campaigns. So, there you go. A company, whose revenue is driven primarily from its mobile marketing consulting division, has had an astounding increase in revenue – 2416%.
This brings me to a special request which I have for all the so-called experts who talk trash about mobile advertising all the time.
Dear old mobile advertising experts, the next time you decide to write something along the lines of ‘mobile advertising’s future looks bleak’, etc, etc, I humbly request you to read this news item. Once, twice, and then if you don’t understand, one more time. That, in my opinion, will do a lot of good for you.
Thanks.
Tags: first quarter, Korea, marketing campaigns, marketing consulting, mobicom, mobicom corp, mobile marketing campaigns, mobile advertising, mobile marketing, news item, special request, trash, typo
Technorati Tags: first quarter, Korea, marketing campaigns, marketing consulting, mobicom, mobicom corp, mobile marketing campaigns, mobile advertising, mobile marketing, news item, special request, trash, typo
Categories: Rant.
When I first read this, I thought of writing a line-by-line rebuttal. But then, I saw no need for that. So, I’ll just highlight a few points and express my views on that. First of all, I wanna say that I respect everyone’s point of view. You’ve got your point of view, your own opinions, your take on certain issues, and so on. But Mike, I have a little problem with your write-up. That is, you went on to ‘assume’ certain things about mobile advertising. Let me explain.
‘It audibly interrupts your life like telemarketing.‘
Well; just like you have a DND (Do Not Disturb) option for telemarketing, you have an option for mobile adverts too. You are presented with a choice. You can either opt in to mobile ads or just say ‘no thanks.’ So, there is no question of mobile ads interrupting your life.
‘But you know that once the floodgates open, and the spam comes rushing in, everyone will hate mobile advertising.‘
Well; It may happen. But then, it may not. Why? Just check out - exhibit A and exhibit B. Perhaps the largest network carrier in the world, China Mobile, learnt a lesson the hard way regarding mobile spam. That, my friend, should reassure folks like you that advertisers and carriers can’t get away with mobile spam. There will be severe repercussions to face.
‘Some marketers are talking about respecting the privacy of users and putting consumer in control of what they get and when. Do you find that reassuring? I don’t.‘
Why do you think so?
‘And support any movement or legislation that seeks to block or criminalize mobile advertising.’
Don’t you think it’s kind of a knee-jerk reaction?
Tags: advertisers, adverts, china mobile, dnd, knee jerk reaction, legislation, marketers, mobile ads, mobile advertising, point of view, rebuttal, repercussions, spam, telemarketing
Technorati Tags: advertisers, adverts, china mobile, dnd, knee jerk reaction, legislation, marketers, mobile ads, mobile advertising, point of view, rebuttal, repercussions, spam, telemarketing
Categories: Cell Phone Advertising, Rant.
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