Date: 2021/02/23
From Mobile First to Mobile Forced – What SA Marketers need to know…
South Africans became “mobile forced” during lockdown. As marketers, when planning our mobile marketing campaigns, we need to learn how to overcome the challenges, leverage the trends, and take advantage of the opportunities arising from this “mobile forced” environment, by enabling the right mobile technology available to us. Let’s unpack what the stats are telling us and showcase local solutions that became award winning campaigns.
South Africa has always been called a “mobile first” country. In other words, South Africans generally experience the Internet on a mobile phone “first” before they see it on a big screen on a desktop.
Since lockdown in March 2020, we have seen a new phenomenon emerge: South Africans have become “mobile forced” because being locked down in their homes, their mobile phones have become their lifeline, connecting them to their loved ones, and to what is happening in the world around them.
In turn, SA Brands and Marketers have also become “mobile forced” as it became the best, dare I say only, way to reach out and talk to their customers.
It is one thing to know that you must communicate with your customers via their mobile phones, yet the question remains as to how we best leverage the challenges, trends, and opportunities for mobile marketing in South Africa, while considering what we need to for the Protection of Information Act (POPIA).
Let’s unpack the answers to some of the most pertinent questions that arise around mobile marketing in South Africa today:
1. How can marketers overcome the challenge of airtime and data costs?
2. How to leverage the trend of instant messaging platforms like WhatsApp Business through Chatbots?
3. How to take advantage of the opportunity of Video by making it personal and engaging?
