Mobile Marketing

In 2015 smartphone has become the most important device from which people access the internet, ahead of computers, people spend more time on their mobile than on their computers: 2.8 hours vs. 2.4 hours daily. A lot of brands would like to engage consumers on mobiles, here is our quick guide on mobile marketing.

How to use mobile, smartphones & apps for brand building and marketing

Mobile advertising
In-app vs. on mobile sites: Users mix using apps and surfing the web on their mobile, so you have to consider both opportunities.
Mobile ads – the classical, you can book mobile ads in the biggest news portals say on CNN.com, NZZ.ch or tdg.ch mobile sites. Swiss prices are from 20chf / thousand impressions for simple banners to 150 CHF for niche targeting with full page or other high impact banners.
Google Search Ad (Google Adwords): just like people search on their PC, they do more and more on mobiles, and people take action following their searches.
Google display network: Google has a partnership with millions of sites where they can display banner (image) and text ads. Best is when combined with retargeting – you have surely come across banners of a hotel booking site or a web-shop, which were following you for days after having visited their site.
Facebook ads – Facebook is a powerful tool for advertising, you can target very precisely, based on demographics and interest. If you are selling ski boots, you can target men, 25-39 years old with a degree who live in Zurich with an interest of skiing.
iAds – Apple’s own advertising network where you can display your ads in the apps who are part of the iAds program.
Via media houses – you can also contact media houses who have multiple high traffic apps and book ads in apps who user profiles best corresponds to your target group.

 Sponsorship / Brand placement in relevant apps

Instead of going for a regular approach of buying standard advertisement, you can for a brand integration in relevant apps, where your message is a non-intrusive, useful information.
iSki app
In our opinion, it is the best app available for skiers with 2.2 million users. The app offers all info about ski resorts from maps, snow report, number of ski lifts open and you can also track all your ski runs. The app offers clever sponsorship possibilities, like Audi 4-wheel drive making sure you get safely to the ski slopes, or sun creams sponsoring UV warning push notification or geo-localised vouchers offered to users to get a free cap in a ski equipment shop.
Bring! Shopping
Bring! is a Swiss developed shopping list app where you and your family can assemble the things to buy. Bring partnered up with several food brands, where you can add their brands to the shopping list, like Red Bull & Nestlé yoghurts. Some brands represent a category, like Magnum stands for ice-cream.
Beach Guide App
The beach guide app is our own development: it showcases 500 lakeside beaches and open-air pools with photos, descriptions, services, webcams & water temperature. In 2014, Rivella, the iconic Swiss soft drink brand sponsored beach guide, as it was a nice match with their target group cooling off at the beaches.

Branded apps

Before you create a branded app, make sure it serves a real purpose and adds value to your users’ life. If there is no reason to re-open it for the second time, then think again.
Apps where the service is replicated in an app
Banking – Postfinance is a good example, where you can access most e-banking functions and even scan your in-payment slips or buy discounted vouchers, like iTunes.
Selling something – this is convenient over an app, good examples are eBay for products, Easyjet for flights or Pic2Real for photo products.
News app – reading your favorite portal in an app on the go with apps like NZZ, TdG or 20 Minutes.
Apps which offer a brand extension
Nike run – one of the best examples to market Nike running shoes. People love to track their runs on the mobile and Nike gives you all the statistics, shows you burnt calories and motivates you to always do more.
Hirslanden: Becoming a father app – a Swiss Clinic with a high quality maternity department. They built on the insight that fathers also play a crucial role in shaping a baby’s life, but they may need a bit more guidance to feel at ease with babies. Hirslanden developed an app that gives a good online course on basics like how to hold your baby or change nappies.
Plant Doctor Game – the Swiss Confederation has been sponsoring an NGO called CABI who helps farmers in 3^rd world countries, who lose 30-40% of their crop due to plant sicknesses. Their programme, Plantwise trains plant doctors and establishes plant clinics to help the farmers get the right treatment for their crop and help feed the world.
Swiss Logbook – the airline created an app where you can log your flights and be proud of all the places you have been and all the miles you have flown.
Choosing the right strategy will make the difference in your brand’s strength more and more – Swiss Tomato or other specialized agencies can help you find the right approach.