| Joy of text: Lars Becker, Flytxt CEO and Chair of the MMA |
| Tuesday, 30 September 2003 | |
|
Sales Promotion, October 2003 - As with any other medium, using mobile as a way to communicate marketing messages to consumers requires a marketer to responsibly adhere to the guidelines. Unlike most other mediums, the relative infancy of mobile means there has been an absence of any solid legislation to govern the sector. Every regulatory body in the industry has devised its own guidelines to encompass mobile; the result is an overwhelming amount of information as well as sometimes-conflicting guidelines. But as of Halloween of this year, the Information Commisioner will be imposing the EU Directive which covers all electronic communication, including mobile. So what impact will this directive have? It calls for all electronic communications to be on an 'opt-in' basis. This stands in contrast with existing laws around direct mail, which can be sent out on an opt-out basis.The directive does make one exception to the opt-in rule though: in cases where an 'existing customer relationship' stands. In this situation communication can be sent regarding similar products or services, using an opt-out mechanic, instead of opt-in. Generally speaking, the difference between opt-in and opt-out is that with an opt-in consumers are required to 'tick the box' wheras with an opt-in they have to 'un-tick the box' in order to not be part of a service....with opt-out the default is that consumers want to hear from a brand. I believe the impact this Directive will have on the industry is, on the whole positive. It will prohibit bad practice, such as sending out blanket text messages to large databases of mobile numbers, where no opt-in has been aquired. Brands will be able to continue incentivising response and engaging an audience via mobile. They can continue to collect data on customers acquired via the mobile, if the consumer has given consent. Another likely effect of the Directive is greater scrutiny over the use of opt-in mobile databases: another positive for the industry.The internet spawned the practice of acquiring dubious lists by tricking users into having to untick the box in the small print if they didn't want to receive further information, as apposed to conscioulsy ticking it. On the mobile side, some of the vendors or ringtones and logos have surreptitiously collected the mobile numbers of people requesting a ringtone or logo and kept them on a database to sell on to a third parties. This practice is no longer commonplace, but the Directive should force purchases of mobile lists to ask more questions before sending out to so-called 'opt-in' databases. While the arrival of legislation to govern and protect the future of the industry is welcomed, a problem with the Directive is what constitutes an 'existing customer relationship'? At one end of the spectrum there's the relationship a television channel has with its viewers, which most probably not qualify. At the other, there's the billing relationship a utility company has with its customers,which almost certainly does. Besides the confusion that might be created on thing is certain, both pre- and post - Halloween: self regulation will continue to be the mainstay of our regulatory system. It is preferable to legislation in many instances because it allows for more flexibility. The mobile marketing industry itself is very young and it's impossible to predict waht it will look like in five years. Self-regulation can react quickly to changes - whereas the process of changing legislation is long-winded - and it can also be effective because industry players have a strong incentive to preserve the credibility of the medium. © Copyright Flytxt Ltd 2006. Unauthorized use of any content constitutes a material breach. |
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|