Honda of Seattle Hits the Gas on Mobile Marketing

Online, January 27, 2010 (Newswire.com) - Although most of the country is technically out of the Great Recession, sales are still down and unemployment is still up. Wary consumers are saving more and spending less, prompting some businesses to explore new forms of advertising, such as mobile marketing - marketing on or with a mobile phone.
In fact, the wireless industry is one of the few industries that seem to have weathered the recession quite well. CTIA Wireless's 2009 Mid-Year Survey shows that the total number of mobile subscribers continued to grow, by over six million from Dec 08 to Jun 09. This means cell phones are among consumers' most cherished and valued possessions.
Recognizing the potential of reaching customers through their cell phones, Honda of Seattle and Toyota of Seattle have launched a mobile phone campaign that makes it convenient to browse inventory and schedule test drives. By texting HONDA to 25735, interested carbuyers get immediate and anonymous access to vehicle data and dealership information.
"Text messaging is a great new way to reach out to potential customers," notes Matthew Turnbull, Head of Technology at both Honda and Toyota of Seattle. "It also provides the best results tracking of any form of advertising that we use. I can put different keywords in different ad locations around the city, then compare the number of hits from each ad to determine where my advertising is most effective."
Honda and Toyota of Seattle are using mobile marketing services provided by Knovolo, a Seattle-based startup. "The use of mobile phones is already widespread," comments founder Greg Bouwens, "and it's only going to get bigger. Before long, people will expect companies to have mobile-optimized webpages and text messaging campaigns. It will be considered normal to get text alerts when it's time for a hair cut or when your car is ready to be picked up from the shop. This is only the beginning."
While these sorts of mobile services are common in tech-savvy countries like Japan, the American consumer is only now starting to embrace the idea. Turnbull reports that each week the number of users who have texted in keeps growing, and several have come in for a test drive or scheduled a service appointment. Turnbull expects to see the numbers go up as people become more familiar with the idea of using these types of mobile services.
Knovolo's Jay Holcomb points out that many texters who see text message promotions don't participate because they are afraid of getting spammed. "What they don't know is that carriers and lawmakers treat cell phone spamming very seriously. There are serious consequences for SMS spammers, and therefore very strict rules and guidelines. Like other respectable mobile marketing companies, Knovolo strongly adheres to FCC and MMA rules."
Turnbull can't wait until more Seattleites warm up to using mobile devices for more than just a personal messaging tool. "The mobile web is the next big thing, and text message marketing is the link that will help bridge the gap."

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Knovolo is a Mobile Web service provider based in Seattle, Washington. Combining deep mobile knowledge, a wide array of services and a history of integrating Mobile Marketing Services to a number of different industries, Knovolo is your solution to text message and Mobile Web campaigns.
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