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The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA), a global organization leading the way in promoting the development and sustainability of mobile marketing, announced the winners of its Fifth Annual Global Mobile Marketing Awards during the Annual Dinner and Awards Ceremony on November 17 at the Mobile Marketing Forum in Los Angeles.

As the MMA's highest honors, these awards recognize companies and their campaigns for spearheading the adoption of the mobile channel for marketing purposes.

"The MMA, its members and the entire mobile marketing community come together each year to honor our industry's exemplary campaigns and remarkable leaders throughout the world," said Mike Wehrs, president and CEO of the MMA. "We congratulate this year's winners and finalists on their outstanding achievements, and look forward to their continued success as they help advance the mobile marketing channel's evolution in the years to come."

Each year, the MMA's highly anticipated awards ceremony serves as the conclusion of the Mobile Marketing Forum (www.mobilemarketingforum.com). The MMA received hundreds of submissions in 12 categories from companies across the globe. Winners are selected by the MMA Awards Selection Committee comprised of global industry leaders from wireless carriers, technology and content providers, agencies and industry publications.

Today, I spent most of the day at the Mobile Marketing Forum in downtown, Los Angeles. It was a well-rounded event that covered almost everything anyone would need to know about mobile marketing. I will be posting the winners of the MMA awards later.

Maria Mandel, Senior Partner, Executive Director Digital Innovation at Ogilvy, and North America Board Chair of the Mobile Marketing Association, summed up the state of mobile marketing in her closing remarks. Here is the text of her presentation:

Is 2009 the year mobile marketing took off?

Consider the stats:

• 3 billion mobile phones = most widely used technology on earth.
• There are 3x more mobile phone users than PC users.
• There are 2x more mobile phone users than Internet users.
• Every four seconds a baby is born...and 15 mobile phones are purchased.
• More people have mobile phones than credit cards.
• The mobile phone is more important than TV to 16-24 year olds.
• Mobile media spend is up 40% versus year ago. Making mobile media the fastest growing media channel today.
• Mobile spend is predicted to reach $6.5 billion in 2012 in the US and $19 billion worldwide. With mobile phone penetration in the US near 90% and increased use of advanced phone capabilities, marketing opportunities abound. Now over half of the US population uses SMS on their phone and a quarter of the population accesses the internet. Verbal communication is starting to take a back seat to texting, e-mail, and web-based activity. A recent Nielsen study found that the average US mobile subscriber sends or receives 486 text messages per month, but makes just 182 calls.

Mobile marketing has moved beyond an emerging media channel with SMS and mobile web having mass penetration and usage.

Mobile advertising allows marketers to engage consumers in personalized, always-on, location-based dialogue. From simple text based messages to robust iPhone applications, there are mobile-based tactics that can help with any marketing objective.

Effective mobile marketing is available today; it is time to start using it. If 2009 hasn't been the year mobile marketing took off, lets make sure that 2010 is.

The second annual HipCricket Mobile Marketing Survey shows that while 37 percent of consumers would be interested in participating in a mobile customer loyalty program from a brand they trust while 83 percent say their favorite brand has yet to market to them via their most personal device, their mobile phone.

Mobile marketing campaigns are becoming significantly more influential and effective, according to the study. HipCricket found that of those consumers who have received mobile marketing offers, 47 percent have brand recall and 94 percent of those remember the specific call to action.

The survey highlights the continued influence of text messaging/SMS as both a communications and marketing tool. Specific findings include:

• Aside from phone calls, 73 percent of people said they use their mobile device most for texting friends
• 34 percent have received a marketing offer on their cell phone via text message (up from 28 percent in 2008.)

Verizon and Nokia's Star Trek commercial is packed with a lot of details and fun. The ad asks, "Are you cut out for Star Trek Academy?"

The announcer continues:

"Find out when Star Trek action comes to V Cast with the Star Trek Mobile game from EA, 23rd century apps and exclusive movie footage. And for the coolest phone in Star Fleet the Nokia 7205 Intrigue. Plus enter for your chance to win a trip to space, boldy go to JoinStarFleetAcademy.com or text KIRK to 41414."

This humorous commercial focuses (scroll down to bottom of page to view the video) on a guy's reaction to what it will be like to beam down. He faints after beaming down to the planet. Then the announcer rattles off about the games, movie clips or even the Nokia Intrigue Star Trek phone.

We've played the commercial several times and it is very hard to hear the entire URL for JoinStarFleetAcademy.com.

When you  to get to the Verizon Star Trek website, you will notice that Verizon exists in the 23rd Century and has a prominent building in the foreground.  Although, you'll have to pay to download games to your phone you can interact with the website. There are simulations for engineering, weapons, helm and  a captain's test. In the weapon's simulator you get to shoot asteroids.

On the website is an interactive video system that requires a webcam.  After you launch the viewer while holding a special Star Trek printout you get a message from Star Fleet and get to see video, which some may call "Augmented Reality."

The Mobile Marketing Association announced that it has gained 28 more members since February. The new members come from all segments of the mobile marketing industry, from brands looking to incorporate mobile into their marketing strategies to agencies, mobile service and technology providers.

"The solid month to month growth that we've seen serves to demonstrate the desire of all involved in deploying mobile marketing strategies to play an active role in how the industry evolves, and that mobile continues gaining global recognition," said MMA President and CEO Mike Wehrs. "The increase in members from our Middle Eastern, South American and Asia-Pacific regions is also testament to the MMA's global reach."

The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) announced that the four largest U.S. wireless service providers - Verizon Wireless, AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile USA - have agreed to incorporate their mobile marketing guidelines within the MMA's best practices.

In addition to the four largest US wireless service providers, there was substantial help in securing this agreement from the major aggregators, brands and content owners.  In specific, VeriSign, Neustar, Limbo, and Thumbplay, all played critical roles in the process.
 
Under the agreement, the four companies, all MMA members, will incorporate their individual mobile marketing guidelines and codes of conduct - known as "carrier playbooks" - into a unified document to be maintained by the MMA. The MMA will work with each carrier, as well as other industry partners, to craft the unified best practices, which will have five key benefits:

• Promote a consistent consumer experience including standardizing key consumer disclosures.
• Enhance efficiencies in running short code programs.
• Accelerate the time to market for mobile campaigns.
• Ensure monitoring programs and audit results are more consistent.
• Reduce operational costs across the mobile marketing ecosystem.

Shortcuts.com, a free, paperless electronic coupon service that links coupons directly to grocery store savings cards and it is now offering Shortcuts.com Mobile.

Shortcuts.com users can now go to www.shortcuts.com on their cell phones or smartphones to select coupons and review coupons already loaded onto their cards with just a couple of clicks. Within minutes of selection, the coupons will be ready for use on the shopper's grocery store savings card. Users can search for specific coupons as well as view their shopping lists right from their mobile devices. The mobile coupon service is provided by Cell Fire.

Users can also search for coupons by category, including Baking, Dairy, and Health and Beauty. Once the user selects the desired category, a list of available coupons from top brands like Huggies and Healthy Choice will appear and the user can easily add the coupons to his or her card.

New users must first sign up at www.shortcuts.com from their computer before logging in from their cell phones.

How can Twitter help business? Simple, Tweet your Korean Taco truck location. 

Kogi Korean BBQ-to-Go posts the location of  its Korean Taco truck on its blog and on Twitter than taco lovers line up for the spicy multicultural food-stuff.

For example when the truck is parked near USC, there's post that says, first 100 to come by get a free taco. The truck seelse Koren short ribs and spicy chicken tacos, You can also get a torta with taro chips. Some times people wait an hour for the tacos created by a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America. The truck parks by colleges and hot night spots.

Kogi not only has over 8,000 followers on Twitter, customers are so crazy about the tacos they've created YouTube tributes and a song ("Ode to Kogi") on MySpace. Kogi-owner, Roy Choi hired a new media consultant to help Korean tacos Tweet to fame.

Juniper Research predicts that the redemption value of mobile coupons will increase by over 30% by 2010.

Juniper Research found that the twin effects of shoppers needing to make economies in their spending and merchants ever keen to make sales will combine to have a very positive impact on the overall demand for mobile coupons.

Mobile coupons are attractive to both consumers and vendors as they can be targeted at specific groups of customers and can be matched against particular interests and purchasing patterns, as opposed to the vanilla approach where "everybody gets every coupon" as in the traditional model.

Mozes, announced its Mozes Connect Live Edition audience engagement platform is being used to help some of the biggest brand names and agencies in the world make a mobile impression at SXSW 2009.

Mozes will be powering campaigns that include mobile ticketing, text-to-win, mobile list building and Mozes' newest feature, pics-to-screen.

Air2Web is now Domino's Pizza sole mobile services provider for Domino's new mobile coupon campaign management platform, which will serve its franchises across the country.

Domino's sends coupon codes to opted-in consumers via text message. Customers can use the coupons when they place orders online in English and Spanish by visiting www.dominos.com or from a web-enabled cell phone by visiting mobile.dominos.com.

Last year Domino's more than tripled their number of opted-in consumers, and continues to invest significantly in growing their mobile consumer base. In 2009 they plan to further expand their mobile coupon campaign efforts and will continue to enhance the consumer ordering experience at mobile.dominos.com by adding new ordering features, additional coupons, new products and an improved user interface.

Here's a new twist on contests to get more people to use TurboTax software. TurboTax has launched a campaign through social networking and widgets, only. They launced a  social networking website Freeloader Nation on myspace and are offering games with prizes for social networking status updaters only.

TurboTax SuperStatus is a contest where TurboTax gives users a challenge to solve it by updating their status on Facebook, MySpace and Twitter.

This weeks' prize is to a trip to New York to see a taping of Saturday Night Live by posting a status about TurboTax. Other prizes include, cash, iPods & DVDs, and tickets to sporting events and top NBC shows. The grand prize is a tripled TurboTax Refund up to $25,000. The game can be played through Facebook, Myspace, and Twitter, or all three.

The game requires that the user grab the widget or visit SuperStatusContest.com to find out when each TurboTax SuperStatus game is happening, read the challenge, and check out the prize that's up for grabs.

Then social networkers get to play on one or all of the social networks by updating status with answers to the challenge.There is a deadline and counter clock to see when the contest ends.

How to Play on Twitter:

1. Become a follower of TurboTax on Twitter
   
2. Tweet your response to the challenge
   
3. Increase your chances: play as many times as you want during each challenge countdown. Repeat steps 1 and 2.

According to Technology's latest joint Mobile Advertising Report for Limbo, iPhone users are more than twice as likely as non-iPhone users to browse the mobile web and use location-based services (1 in 3 used LBS) while only on in ten mobile users used location-based services.

iPhoners are also more than three times as likely to use a location-based service (LBS) or a location-based social network. More than 80 percent of iPhone users taking advantage of non-voice mobile data services, compared to just over 60 percent of non-iPhone users.

One in ten mobile phone users in the U.S. used a location-based service such as a map, friend or restaurant finder in Q4. The 25 - 34 age group saw the highest levels of interest in this type of offering, with 22 percent penetration.

In contrast, iPhone users are four times as likely to recall LBS ads as non-iPhone users. While 33 percent of mobile consumers recall seeing mobile advertisements this quarter, 41 percent of iPhone users recall seeing mobile ads. The vast majority of these ads were seen in SMS text messages, twice as much as mobile Web ads, which are the second most common mobile ad viewed.

Significantly fewer consumers see other forms of mobile advertising - unless they have an iPhone. iPhone owners are twice as likely to see mobile web ads and four times as likely to see an ad while playing a game on their phone or while using a location-based service.

Air2Web is deploying a text-to-win mobile marketing campaign during the 2009 Super Bowl for Johnsonville Sausage.

The Super Bowl is the most watched television event of the year, and Johnsonville Sausage is capitalizing on the event's high level of visibility for their first foray into mobile. To enter, all fans need to do is text "football" or "gameday" to 48775 on their mobile phone and let the games begin.

The campaign will run through February 28, 2009 and fans can enter by mailing in an entry form, entering online at www.johnsonville.com/gameday or via SMS on their mobile phone. Fans that enter have the opportunity to win one of three packages sponsored by Johnsonville Sausage and Coleman Outdoor Products. On the website you can also get coupons.

The latest AdMob report shows huge iPod Touch growth and smartphone Operating System (OS) market share..

Highlights from the December 2008 report:

• Smartphone share increased from 22 percent of total requests worldwide in May to 33 percent in December.
• iPod Touch requests more than tripled worldwide from November to December, with a particularly large spike in requests the week after Christmas.
• Symbian is the #1 smartphone OS worldwide with 41 percent share. In Asia and Africa it has more than 90 percent share, however the iPhone is challenging its dominance in Latin America and Europe.
• The iPhone OS had 32 percent worldwide share in December, up from 6 percent in May.(1)
• Worldwide RIM has 10 percent and Windows Mobile has 9 percent OS share. Both are strongest in North America and Latin America.
• Palm has 4 percent of smartphone OS share worldwide with more than 95 percent of its requests generated in North America. In the US, Palm had 9 percent share in December, declining from 20 percent in July.
• Android already leads Symbian in North America with 2 percent of OS share.
• The iPod Touch is now the #2 device in the AdMob Network with 4.7 percent share. While 70 percent of iPod Touch requests in December came from the US, it experienced strong growth across other major markets including Canada, United Kingdom, Mexico, Germany, and France. Combined, the iPhone and iPod Touch represent 15.5 percent of all worldwide requests.

MobileVerbs has launched mobile marketing program Jack-in-the-Box restaurants. The restaurant guests can provide their feedback and redeem coupons via their cell phones.

Jack's guests follow 'call to action' instructions on table tents and send a SMS message to the MobileVerbs service. The mobile service delivers a series of survey questions to guests' cell phones. Once the guests complete the survey in couple of minutes, they are provided with a secure mobile coupon on their cell phones.

The guests can redeem mobile coupons instantly at participating restaurant locations by showing a secure redemption code on their cell phones to the restaurant staff.

The system automatically detects the device type to send simple text coupons on feature phones and rich barcode coupons on PDAs with mobile browser. The management has full control over the number of coupons delivered per guest, expiration of coupons and overall coupon quota in a campaign.

Tomorrow is Mobile Tuesday, that's the day after Black Monday.  Mobigosee, a mobile-marketing firm, will launch  Mobile Tuesday on Dec. 2, even after loosing advertisers. Research found that Tuesday is a slow shopping day.

This debut year has McDonald's, Finish Line and RedTag participating. Mobigosee as of Monday had 18,000 people signed up for Mobile Tuesday updates, most through sites that leak Black Friday deals, notes Advertising Age.

It gets confusing because when we searched for a link we found a website in another country with the name "Mobile Tuesday." 

Their PR guy contacted and said that they are working on the website for the promotion that is not final yet.

Alltel Perks is a free content service for Alltel customers that is ad-supported. The downloaded app at the Alltel Shop, Alltel Perks delivers content to the phone’s idle screen when the handset is not in use. Customized content includes sports scores, weather, discounts and trivia.

Users will receive content including discount offers from local merchants, coupons for favorite restaurants. Delivered messages are maintained in the “Recent Offer Menu” folder for a short period of time, so customers can easily take advantage of current offers and discounts.

The service delivers offers and content to subscribers when their phone is not in use. As offers download to the handset, users can open the banner to display more content by selecting the “View” hot button as indicated on the phone. If any other button is selected the offer will go away, as to not be intrusive. While airtime charges may apply to the service, the initial download of the Alltel Perks application from the Alltel Shop is free for Alltel customers.

Just before Barack Obama made his acceptance speech last night, his followers recieved the following email message (without the fire works graphics):

Subject:  How this Happened

Friend:

I'm about to head to Grant Park to talk to everyone gathered there, but I wanted to write to you first.

We just made history.

And I don't want you to forget how we did it.

You made history every single day during this campaign -- every day you knocked on doors, made a donation, or talked to your family, friends, and neighbors about why you believe it's time for change.

I want to thank all of you who gave your time, talent, and passion to this campaign. We have a lot of work to do to get our country back on track, and I'll be in touch soon about what comes next.

But I want to be very clear about one thing...

All of this happened because of you.

Thank you,

Barack 

COMMENT FROM WIRELESS AND MOBILE NEWS:

Texters will note that the message was too long to be sent as a text message which is limited to 140 characters, this message is 674 characters with spaces.  To text this message it would be:

B4 I go2 Gran Pk, txt U. U made history every day U wkd 4 change. Don't 4get how we did it. Thnx 2 U all 4 time. More work 2 do. Txt U l8ter.

Unfortunately, Obama's eloquence doesn't work in text as well as it does in email or in speeches.

The Mobile Marketing Association announced the release of an updated version of its global Mobile Advertising Guidelines, that includes:

• Updated mobile web guidelines with added recommendation on automatic resizing of mobile web banner ads
• Updated Multimedia Messaging (MMS)
• Updated the Audio Formats best practices
• Revised the Size recommendations
• New Mobile Video and TV guidelines including ad units and aspect ratios.