Today, I had the opportunity to interview Mark Emery, Senior Director of Agency Relations, at Air2Web (www.air2web.com) - the premier mobile marketing solutions firm based in Atlanta, GA. Here is an excerpt from that session :

What is Air2Web ?

Mark : Air2Web is a Mobile Marketing Infrastructure and Solutions firm. Air2Web provides tools to ”promote, service and transact” to brands and ad agencies on the mobile phones. ‘Promote’ means customer acquisition campaigns, promoting products and services using mobile coupons, trivia, polls etc. ‘Service’ includes services like loyalty management, customer service management, some examples being store locator, account updates/alerts etc. ‘Transact’ includes purchases by consumers of content like ringtones, games, wallpapers etc.

Air2Web is technology ambivalent and works across all carriers, all devices etc.

Air2Web is not a mobile advertising firm but rather bills itself as a mobile marketing leader. The distinction is important because Air2web works with carriers, brands and agencies for running custom mobile marketing campaigns using its cutting-edge mobile platform. Air2Web does not sell ads or ad space as is the case with classic ad placement firms.

What kind of mobile channels Air2Web uses ?

Mark : Air2Web uses messaging / SMS as the primary platform for mobile marketing but also has done campaigns using WAP site banner ads, J2ME handheld applications etc.

Air2Web specializes in custom marketing campaigns using SMS as underlying technology but has several successful instances of custom WAP sites like Starbucks locator service, live Weather Channel doppler radar tracker etc. Air2Web can further personalize marketing campaigns if users opt-in for location sensitivity using their zip code transmission or via customer preference databases with brands.

What is the customer reaction to Air2Web marketing campaigns ?

Mark : Air2Web has seen very positive feedback from its marketing campaigns, one of the main reasons being that it is an opt-in “conversational” service as opposed to a broadcast platform. All Air2Web campaigns involve customer desire to review certain brand web sites, download specific content like ringtones or wallpapers or participate in promotions like coupons, gaming etc.

Why does Air2Web succeed with so many brands and agencies ?

Mark : Air2Web has a ready-made infrastructure platform with premium carrier partnerships in place. Air2web can launch marketing programs very quickly by sharing its pre-booked SMS shortcodes across a no of campaigns. Air2Web has standard pricing structures and clean packaging for brands and agencies.

How does Air2web measure customer impact for its campaigns ?

Mark : This is an area which is still maturing in mobile marketing world. Air2Web has measured the customer response via print campaigns run by brands like SelectComfort to track user response to various marketing techniques like coupon, shortcodes etc.

Also Air2Web does direct marketing campaigns on demand and on customer opt-in so it can track the profile of its audience and their interest in Air2Web campaigns.

What is the most effective strategy in mobile marketing ?

Mark : Opt-in by customers works best when it comes to consumer effectiveness. This is facilitated by users sending shortcode SMSes, participating in polls or downloading content on demand.

Who are your top competitors ?

Mark : Sybase (Mobile365), ipsh!, The Hyperfactory etc.

(CellStrat note : This market is fragmented. We feel it will consolidate at some point when there is critical mass)

What are some of your clients ?

Mark : Air2Web has a roster of blue chip clients eg AT&T, AmEx, UPS. PGATour, Walmart, FootLocker, Weather Channel, Domino’s, eTrade, eVite etc

What are Air2web strategic advantages ?

Mark : Premium partnerships with carriers, robust and ready mobile messaging solutions which scale rapidly, cross-carrier and cross-device support and partnership with agencies are some strategic differentiators for Air2web.

What are future growth areas in mobile marketing ?

Mark : There is blurring of lines from a technology perspective. SMS-based, on-device/J2ME, WAP sites, video streaming are all coming together as a comprehensive marketing strategy in the mobile world.

Thanks Mark for the time spent. Stimulating discussion and great ideas on mobile marketing.

 MT

Air2Web ou le marketing mobile.

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The field of mobile marketing startups continued to winnow as Atlanta’s Air2Web and Germany’s MindMatics agreed to merge.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Air2Web launched years ago as a wireless messaging and technology firm, but has morphed into a firm that executes mobile marketing campaigns and builds wireless Web sites for brands including The Weather Channel, Procter & Gamble and others. The company’s backers include The Carlyle Group, Jupiter Ventures and Vantage Point Venture Partners.

MindMatics has gained traction in Europe delivering promotional and marketing applications with partners such as Unilever, T-Mobile, Sony Ericsson, Budweiser and McDonald’s. Investors in the Munich-based firm include T-Mobile Venture Fund, Tempo Capital and Holtzbrinck Ventures.

The deal follows a flurry of recent M&A activity in the mobile marketing space. AOL L.L.C. was one of the first into the fray with the May acquisition of Third Screen Media; since then, Nokia Corp. has agreed to acquire Enpocket, Yahoo Inc. pocketed Munich’s Actionality, Microsoft Corp. snapped up France’s ScreenTonic and content provider Buongiorno S.p.A. has made several smaller acquisitions.

Air2Web and MindMatics claim the merger will result in “the world’s largest, independent, pure-play mobile marketing agency.” Ingo Lippert, MindMatics’ CEO, will serve as managing director of European business for the combined company, which apparently will do business under Air2Web’s brand.

“Mobile marketing is evolving and, in turn, creating remarkable value and opportunity for vendors, marketers and consumers alike,” Lippert said. “Together we are very focused on meeting changing market needs and consumer demand, and are well-positioned to leverage those resources for the benefit of our customers worldwide.”

www.air2web.com & www.mindmatics.com

Air2Web, MindMatics merge – RCR Wireless News

technorati tags: mobile, mobile alley, mobile news, mobilemarketing, mobile marketing, marketing mobile, interactive marketing, marketing interactif, digital marketing, marketing, Air2Web, MindMatics, Ingo Lippert