One of the first things you will want to track in an SMS or MMS campaign is the size of your list and its growth. This statistic is simply represented by the total number of recipients to whom you can send text messages. This number should be constantly updated based on new opt-ins and opt-outs, and you should track this number over time so that you can see the growth in the list.
You should also compare the rate of opt-ins and opt-outs against the average growth rate of the list over time (see Figures 3.6 and 3.7). In many cases, if you are sending too many messages or your messages are not as valuable as subscribers hope, your opt-out rate will increase with every message. Conversely, if you are doing a good job of offline promotion, you should see a steady growth or even spikes in your opt-ins. This is particularly important if you are tracking the success of mobile coupons, because it enables you to compare the total ROI of a campaign, taking into account the actual in-store redemption rate of the coupon, as it compares to the loss in total subscribers.
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Here's another example of the reporting available with the Unica reporting site.
In some ways, tracking the impact of an SMS or MMS campaign is much like tracking an email campaign. In addition to tracking your list growth, you want to track the following information whenever possible:
• Messages sent
• Messages received
• Links clicked (if applicable)
• Conversion from links (if applicable)
Encouraging recipients to click on an HTML link in your text message makes it much more trackable. To track the initial Web response, it is good to send the responses to a unique mobile landing page that can be accessed only from the text message campaign. All subsequent onsite activities should be tracked, including downloads, purchases, enrollments, sign-ups, and subscriptions.
Unfortunately, you generally cant track the open rate of text message campaigns because there is no way to embed JavaScript or HTML that will execute when the message is opened. Without tracking the open rate, you are left tracking the number of messages that are successfully delivered, and then the actual responses.
Unlike text (SMS) messages, the open rate of picture (MMS) messages can be tracked. Whenever the MMS is opened, it references the HTML image. In MMS messages, generally only the HTML part of the message can be used to measure opens because many phones still do not decode HTML in the text part of a MMS.
GPS tracking can be integrated with SMS, and market research firms can use this to gain a deeper understanding of not only how people interact with their mobile device, but also how people interact with others in their real-life activities. The process, called reality mining, can be particularly useful for market research companies that want to understand how the use of the mobile phone relates to location and situation. For instance, what causes people to text-message? Or what causes people to use a mobile application instead of searching the Web?
As GPS technology is more readily integrated into more mobile phones, tracking people via GPS becomes simple enough and cheap enough that it could conceivably be integrated into some marketing campaigns. With this type of tracking, the GPS in the phone is queried on a regular interval and then automatically sends an SMS to a tracking system that analyzes the data. This can be done through a remote request or as part of a downloaded application.
This geographic data collected for each person who is being tracked can later be analyzed to determine things such as the route people took, stores visited, or the duration of their stay in any one location. If you want to integrate GPS tracking into your marketing campaign, you must notify whoever is being tracked and get two forms of opt-in permission. Because this method of tracking is so invasive, it is a good idea to send the people being tracked periodic messages, reminding them they are being tracked and allowing them to opt out of future tracking.
Systems such as this can also facilitate navigation around an airport, a tourist attraction, or a city. Other types of companies are using this type of tracking to help people keep track of loved ones or locate missing phones.
GPS tracking is probably too invasive for most marketing campaigns, but it could be integrated in creative ways to incorporate the phone with real-life activities such as races or scavenger hunts. To make the tracking more palatable, consider sending people who agree to be tracked coupons or incentives on a regular basis, to ensure that they are adequately rewarded for providing that amount of personal data.
The term reality mining is a play off the phrase data mining, which is the practice of compiling customer information from a variety of different sources and perspectives to create a summarized vision of your customers' wants and needs. Reality mining takes it a step further, tying in real-life actions instead of online behavior and purchase decisions. It is relatively new in terms of market research. The most notable study so far was conducted at MIT for the 2004-2005 school year and provided contiguous information about the interaction of 100 students. Sadly, the results of this study have not been made widely available, but we can expect more studies like this one to be performed in the future.
To date, reality mining is primarily used for broad market research projects, but in the future, this kind of intensely personal tracking might be integrated into mobile marketing campaigns. Any type of marketing campaign that requires this much access to personal information must ensure that data is highly secure and that participants are well rewarded for their information.
