Mobile Marketing Association Forecasts 2010 Trends for North America and Celebrates 2009 Accomplishments | MMA Global

Mobile Marketing Association Forecasts 2010 Trends for North America and Celebrates 2009 Accomplishments

December 15, 2009

New York – December 15, 2009 – The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) (www.mmaglobal.com), a global organization leading the way in promoting the development and sustainability of mobile marketing, today announces its top 10 industry predictions for mobile marketing in North America for the coming year. As 2009 comes to a close, the MMA also celebrates several significant milestones that will serve as a solid foundation moving into the new year.

MMA’s Top 10 for 2010

10. Hypochondriac? We've got an app for that!
Ongoing global pandemics and concerns about socialized healthcare warrant a prescription for mobile content geared toward the sick and the paranoid. Symptoms to watch for include apps that diagnose, doctors that text and medical reminders at hand. Mobile health is just what the doctor ordered!

9. Back to Reality…
Oh, those boring old coupons – they get lost, forgotten, left behind or expired. Look for augmented reality to start playing a larger role in location-based advertising. Now, when you're walking into your favorite coffee shop, the real-time mobile coupon you receive gives you instant gratification with your discounted daily grind.

8. I want my Mobile TV.
In the coming year, both the 2010 Winter Olympics and the 2010 World Cup will heighten mobile video consumption. The introduction of new ad units, including interactive and partial screen, will subsidize free content.

7. Practice Safe Text
Governments and safety advocates around the world warned against texting and driving in 2009. We expect 2010 to bring about technology solutions that disable handset features when the owner is driving.

6. A guy walks into a Barcode...
Proliferation of standardized technology and higher quality camera phones will not only lead to increased adoption of mobile barcodes and coupons, but will also offer a whole new access point to content.

5. Have you hugged your aggregator lately?
Look for aggregators to expand their businesses beyond shortcodes. Aggregation services in the areas of location, customer service and mobile commerce will begin to emerge.

4. Turn free in 1.2 miles
Free is a very good price. We’re keeping an eye out for no-cost turn-by-turn navigation applications rolling out on more devices in 2010. The end of stand-alone GPS is in sight. What great news for consumers…and McDonalds, Dunkin Donuts and Dairy Queen.

3. Your Skype is Showing
Services that enable video conferencing and the networks and handsets that support it (like cameras on the front of the phone!) will proliferate in the coming year. More consumers will connect via WiFi, offloading traditional non-wireless video conferencing services.

2. How does mobile measure up?
Moving into 2010 and beyond, campaign effectiveness will be measured in a variety of different and very creative ways. The number of eyeballs, shakes and finger swipes. The number of blogs, articles, tweets and diggs. The number of acquisitions, conversions, calls, responses or purchases. Total basket size, consumer recall, loyalty and recommendations. Check-ins on foursquare and check-outs on Amazon.

1. Mobile’s Sixth Sense
Over the past few years, the mobile device has moved beyond standard technology inputs. We're no longer talking, typing and clicking. Now, we're photographing, recording, touching, locating, shaking, accelerating and blowing. What's next? We're rooting for smell recognition.

Year-End Accomplishments

In just one year’s time, the MMA achieved a number of milestones:

  • Global Regulatory Leadership: The MMA remains at the forefront of establishing Consumer Best Practices, Mobile Ad Guidelines, the Code of Conduct and an updated definition of Mobile Marketing. Throughout 2009, the MMA worked at the global and local levels toward regional adoption of these industry standards. The MMA also introduced Premium and Affiliate Membership tiers this year.
  • Membership Growth Worldwide: MMA paid membership increased in 2009, despite poor economic conditions and decreasing membership experienced by many other trade associations. The MMA increased its regional presence through chapters in Asia Pacific (APAC), Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA), North America (NA) and Latin America (LATAM).
  • First Industry Certification Program: Launched in late 2009, the MMA launched the Certified Mobile Marketer Program: MMA Track, designed to provide marketers with the fundamental skills and knowledge that are critical for success in mobile marketing. Spearheaded by the Academic Outreach Committee, this Program consists of three certification tiers covering progressive levels of knowledge and experience.
  • Innovative Research Initiatives: The 2009 Mobile Marketing Forum is Los Angeles marked the launch of the MMA Global Research Panel, the industry’s first research capability to collect data via the mobile channel, produced in partnership with Kinesis Survey Technologies. In addition, the MMA established its fourth research collaboration with Scarborough Research as part of its Global Research Partners program.
  • Event Expansion and Partnership: Within the past year, the MMA presented a series of five Mobile Marketing Forum events around the World and strengthened collaborative partnerships with CTIA, GSMA, MRC, DMA and several other leading trade associations. Additionally, the MMA partnered with bnetTV to live stream its events online this year.
  • Fifth Annual Awards: The 2009 Global Mobile Marketing Awards, the MMA’s highest honors, celebrated a milestone year with 37 honorees recognized for spearheading the adoption of the mobile channel for marketing purposes. The MMA received hundreds of submissions in 12 categories from companies across the globe.

"This year has been a transformational one for the MMA, its members and the entire mobile marketing ecosystem," said Federico Pisani Massamormile, MMA Global Chairman, MMA Interim CEO and CEO of Hanzo Inc. "As 2010 approaches, we look forward to continued growth as the world's leading trade association for mobile marketing and the most influential source of best practices, guidelines and case studies which protect the consumer experience.”

About the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA)
The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) is the premier global non-profit trade association established to lead the growth of mobile marketing and its associated technologies. The MMA is an action-oriented organization designed to clear obstacles to market development, establish mobile media guidelines and best practices for sustainable growth, and evangelize the use of the mobile channel. The more than 700 member companies, representing over 40 countries around the globe, include all members of the mobile media ecosystem. The Mobile Marketing Association's global headquarters are located in the United States and it has regional chapters, including North America (NA), Europe, Latin America (LATAM), Middle East & Africa (MEA) and Asia Pacific (APAC) branches. For more information, please visit www.mmaglobal.com.

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

MMA North America
Valerie Christopherson or Kate Mossbarger
Global Results Communications (GRC)
+1 949 608 0276
[email protected]