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It’s time for a little celebration in good old Blighty. Blyk, the London based ad funded mobile operator, has reached yet another milestone quietly. The company has increased the number of its subscribers to a whopping 200,000.
To understand the significance of this feat, we need to put things in perspective. Blyk is the first ad funded mobile operator in the world. When it started off, it had just one goal. It was to get 100,000 subscribers within the first year. However, since the company was funded completely by advertisements, no one really thought it was possible. The idea of people getting talk time in return for getting ads on their mobile phone didn’t sound majorly appealing at that point of time. However, the response was so good that it reached its goal in just six months.
Now, just a few months after reaching its goal of 100,000 subscribers, the company has crossed yet another milestone – 200,000 loyal customers – All of them willing to get ads on their mobile phone to get free talk time and free text messages.
The important thing to be noted here is that the response rate for these mobile ads has been nothing short of terrific. 25% of the customers who get ads on their mobile phone respond to them. In other words, it costs only around $0.85 per response, making it highly profitable for the advertisers.
200,000, when compared to the millions of subscribers in the UK, might seem like a small number. But you have to consider an important point here. This is the beginning of a trend. Mobile advertising is still in its infant stage and a lot of mobile users around the world are yet to realize its benefits. So, in a relatively new market, Blyk has been able to get 200,000 loyal subscribers within such a short span of time. And it has managed to achieve the highest response rates at the lowest costs possible. In other words, it has got a highly targeted customer base which is a dream for any advertiser. With the number of mobile users increasing by the day and people becoming aware of mobile advertising, you can only expect these numbers to up. To put it simply – watch out for Blyk. 
Tags: Blyk, free talk time, free text messages, loyal subscribers, Mobile advertisers, mobile ads, mobile advertising, mobile operator, mobile phone, mobile users, response rate, talk time
Technorati Tags: Blyk, free talk time, free text messages, loyal subscribers, Mobile advertisers, mobile ads, mobile advertising, mobile operator, mobile phone, mobile users, response rate, talk time
Categories: Cell Phone Advertising, Blyk.
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.
Blyk is one company which I’ve written a lot about in this blog, even at the risk of sounding like a paid blogger. But then, that’s me. If I like something – it might be a concept, a company, a person, or whatever – I’ll write about it.
The success story of Blyk is one of the most talked about stories in town right now. When the company first announced that it will offer free talk time and free text message facility to customers who opt in to mobile ads, not many thought it was a good idea. But then, it reached its target of 100,000 subscribers in the UK in just six months. The company’s customer base is full of young people who don’t mind getting targeted, relevant ads on their mobile phone. Now, thanks to this great success, Blyk has announced its plans to expand its virtual empire further.
The company will soon start its operations in Germany, Spain, Netherlands, and Belgium. If you remember, it announced its plans to further expand its network quite some time back when it got the much-needed funding from Goldman Sachs and Kuwait’s Industrial Financial Investments Company.
In my opinion, Blyk has set an example, a precedent for operators around the world. If you know your target customer segment and target them properly with the right plan, you will almost always succeed.
Tags: blogger, Blyk, customer segment, free talk time, free text message, goldman sachs, mobile ads, mobile phone, relevant ads, talk time
Technorati Tags: blogger, Blyk, customer segment, free talk time, free text message, goldman sachs, mobile ads, mobile phone, relevant ads, talk time
Categories: Blyk.
First, I read this article a few days back. I thought of coming up with a rebuttal immediately, but then I was too tired to do that. Thankfully, a few days later, Allen Wastler has come up with another article which makes a little sense.
Now, if you notice, in the first article, he had assumed that mobile phone ads, especially location based advertising, will be annoying for everyone. He mentioned that there is an opt-in facility available for mobile advertising – meaning you get ads only if you want to. But immediately he went on to add that he was not sure whether it would stay that way or people would be compelled to get ads on their mobile phone, even against their choice. Now – THAT – got my goat and other domesticated animals.
In this latest article, he has expressed his surprise for the fact that he didn’t get as many voices against mobile advertising as he expected. While a few of them have expressed their opinion against mobile advertising, an equal number of them have also said that they don’t mind getting ads if they were to get something in return – like subsidized mobile bill or some kind of value added service from the carriers.
This is precisely what I’ve been trying to tell people around the world ever since I started this blog. I’ll say it once again. Repeat it with me.
1. There is an opt-in facility available as far as mobile advertising is concerned. In other words, you get ads on your mobile phone only when you want to.
2. You get lots in return for getting advertisements on your mobile phone. Ever heard of Sugar Mama? Virgin gives free talk time to people who get ads on their mobile phone. Blyk offers free talk time and free text messages for people who get mobile ads. Talkster allows you to make international calls free of cost, thanks to ads. The list is just endless.
3. If you feel that you can manage your mobile bill all by yourself and don’t need any sort of freebies from the advertiser or the carrier, fair enough. You just don’t have to get ads on your mobile phone. It’s as simple. Nobody is pointing a gun at your head. So, stop screaming.
When I thought of starting a Rant section in this blog, I was wondering what to write in this section. But there are people who help me keep this section alive. Thanks guys.
Tags: Allen Wastler, Blyk, carrier, free international calls, free talk time, free text messages, location based advertising, Mobile advertisers, mobile advertising, mobile bill, mobile phone, mobile phone ads, opt in facility, rant, subsidized mobile bill, Sugar Mama, Talkster, value added service, Virgin
Technorati Tags: Allen Wastler, Blyk, carrier, free international calls, free talk time, free text messages, location based advertising, Mobile advertisers, mobile advertising, mobile bill, mobile phone, mobile phone ads, opt in facility, rant, subsidized mobile bill, Sugar Mama, Talkster, value added service, Virgin
Categories: Cell Phone Advertising, Rant.
Few people in the world will be as happy as Pekka Ala Pietila and Antti Ohrling, the founders of Blyk. Blyk, the well known ad-funded mobile phone network, is planning to expand its territory into the Dutch market and has laid a strong foundation for that in the form of additional funding from Goldman Sachs and Kuwait’s Industrial Financial Investments Company.
Both Goldman Sachs and Industrial Financial Investments Company think Blyk has a great chance in the Dutch market and have provided with a large additional funding to support its operations. Not just that, both these companies have also got a considerable stake in Blyk, which makes Blyk even stronger financially.
In case you don’t know, Blyk stormed into the limelight by offering free text messages and free talk time to customers who opted to receive mobile adverts in their mobile phones. Blyk will host its mobile phone network in the Netherlands through Vodafone. The service is expected to be launched later this year.
Tags: ad funded mobile network, Blyk, Dutch market, free talk time, free text messages, funding, Goldman Sachs, Industrial Financial Investments Company, Kuwait, mobile adverts, mobile phone, Netherlands, Vodafone
Technorati Tags: ad funded mobile network, Blyk, Dutch market, free talk time, free text messages, funding, Goldman Sachs, Industrial Financial Investments Company, Kuwait, mobile adverts, mobile phone, Netherlands, Vodafone
Categories: Cell Phone Advertising, Blyk.
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