How Telcos Can Get Ahead In Advertising

by Buana Sari Digital Marketer

Telecom giants across the world are looking at digital advertising, mobile advertising in particular, as the biggest revenue growth opportunity. Digital advertising is the fastest growing segment in the global advertising market. Ad spending in the digital ad market is expected to reach USD 616.00 Billion by end of this year, and therefore it is a formidable revenue engine for the telecom players. Also, in the digital advertising market, sixty-nine percent of total ad spending will be generated through mobile by the year 2027 (Source : Statista).

Research data says that digital advertising is generously contributing to the global growth of the telecom industry bringing prosperity and innovation. The telecom industry's pursuit of digital advertising is not a new phenomenon. Early telco-led mobile advertising initiatives date back prior to the mid-2007 when the landmark launch of iPhone happened. The journey started with pre-iPhone text-message based advertising, moved through display advertising to a more sophisticated customer data-driven approach.

During the pandemic, telcos’ shift to digital advertising has become even more conspicuous. Travel restrictions, working from home (WFH) arrangements, and limitations on gatherings, etc. led telcos to use mobile communication to replace face-to-face customer interactions and traditional channels of advertising. The telecoms’ shift to mobile advertising has been accommodating the rapid shift in telco customer behavior in the unprecedented conditions.

Core communications and connectivity services of telcos are maturing and being disrupted. Telecom brands are now heavily investing in building next-gen 5G mobile networks. They are placing bets on new high margin revenue opportunities with moLotus real mobile advertising technology. It is offering potentially the highest margins and 100X ROI at low cost of investment.

A few telcos are still the conduits for Google and Facebook, among others, to generate digital advertising revenues. However, many telcos are yet to participate and take advantage of the growing mobile advertising opportunities. Here are the best ways in which telcos can take help of mobile advertising platforms and get ahead in advertising:

1. Develop More Reach, Serving New Segments

As telecom customers are rapidly using mobile devices in their lives, the ability to gauge behavior based on their mobile usage becomes all the more easy and vital. Telcos now have access to a greater volume of customer data at their disposal, such as age, address, gender, data plan used, device details, etc. They can use such data for customer segmentation, thereby creating exceptional buyer experiences and continued spend in return.

Customization is becoming a fundamental part of telecom advertising strategy. Mobile advertising has emerged as the best tool enabling telcos to implement customization. Reaching the right customer segments via mobile advertising tools like moLotus, Google Ads, Facebook Ads, AdRoll, etc. have added up to the telecom revenues.

moLotus accurately targets the buyer personas that fit telecom business appropriately. It gives telcos the ability to target customers based on demography, interest, location, language, etc. to ultimately generate more revenue. With demographic and language-based demographic segmentation, operators can channelize their advertising efforts in specific locations across the globe.

Telecom brands can target specific customers they perceive are likely to buy their product and services and enhance their revenues in the process. Customer data such as age and interests is extensively used to customize campaigns according to customer requirements.

2. Monetize Subscriber Data

Telco revenue trends have shifted with mobile advertising becoming the key ingredient of the telco marketing mix. It has transformed the way in which telecom players are using their massive database.

It is no longer a secret that all telecom players possess a huge pool of customer data, often calculated to be more than any industry. The data points include location, buying patterns, internet usage, behavioral patterns, roaming usage, travel patterns, and much more.

Different telcos are using this goldmine of data differently. Big telcos are harnessing this large array of data to obtain deep insights, enhance customer engagement, improve customer experience, boost sales, fine-tune advertising strategies and optimize campaign performances. Data scientists have remarked that a lot more can be done by telcos with this huge chunk of data. They say, “data monetization pays off if done right.”

Data monetization has gained momentum recently with big telcos investing more in mobile advertising tools like moLotus. The new technology makes proper use of telecom subscriber databases to design and deliver hyper-personalized, interactive, automated multimedia campaigns. The ad campaigns reach the mobile inbox of the customer directly without requiring any mobile application or investing in data plans.

moLotus mobile video ads are unique in themselves reaching all mobile devices irrespective of the phone type. The data assets are best used to transform them into meaningful insights which can be further put to plethora of uses, adding to telco revenues and decision-making. Telcos can compile the data into crisp and comprehensive formats and use it for advertising, process transformation and strategizing.

Powerful Big data analytics features of marketing automation platforms like moLotus, Hubspot, Marketo, Facebook, Google, etc. make data analysis even easier and simpler.

3. Uplift ARPU Quickly

ARPU maximization is emerging as the new battlefield between telcos across the globe. This trend is growing globally, with telecom operators competing with each other. They have been spending a great deal of effort and energy in trying to boost ARPU through a wide range of marketing activities with little or no success. With new digital advertising strategies in place, telcos can easily carry out ARPU-boosting actions.

In recent months there has been a rapid uplift of telecom ARPU from 2% to 4%. The phenomena can be attributed to adoption of moLotus mobile video customer interaction platform by telco majors like Indosat Ooredoo Hutchinson, Airtel, Celcom, Vodafone, Telkomsel, Digi, etc. Experts expect the trend to continue in the near future with more and more telcos embracing moLotus.

Presently, telcos execute their existing ad campaigns and offers via moLotus. The platform offers high impact mobile videos with multiple easy interaction options like SMS, USSD, Call, Web Link Click, etc. that result in quick response and high conversion rates. This reflects in higher ARPU and maximum customer potential.

4. Get Valuable Data Insights

Data analytics are indispensable for telcos to gain valuable data insights quickly out of their data assets, eventually leading to increased revenues and profits. Also, the insights help them to face the cutthroat competition and better predict the customer behavior, catering to evolving needs.

Data analytics analyzes customer response to different pricing strategies and buying history, developing precious data insights. It helps to know customer's responses to telecom products and services. Performing a detailed analysis of the earning data, customer feedback, buying history, and location info enables telcos to conduct personalized and customized offerings.

Studies reveal that mobile advertising has recently grown popular to surpass the traditional means of marketing communication. The data analytics offered by mobile advertising tools like moLotus, Google Analytics, Hotjar, Facebook Analytics, etc. serve telecom providers to recognize product usage patterns, efficient service plan formulation, hyper-personalized customer communication, better customer interaction, comprehensive reporting and superior revenue generation.

5. Achieve Go-to-market Success

A go-to-market strategy comprises several marketing techniques to ensure a product enters the market with the best possible chance of success. It is imperative for telecom brands launching a new product or refreshing an existing one to first research and identify the target market that will be most interested in buying it. Whatever the purpose, a telco’s go-to-market strategy can make or break a product launch.

Target market identification requires telcos to know about customer buying habits, pain points, demographics, psychographics, etc. Telcos need to define the product value proposition, pricing strategy, promotional strategy and set metrics for monitoring performance.

Mobile advertising tools like moLotus ensure go-to-market success for telcos by offering a unique “3 months go-to-market” strategy. Telecom brands are increasingly using moLotus 3 months go-to-market strategy for virtually any kind of product launch, whether it is a brand-new product, a new iteration of an old one, or just a rebranding of a product that has already been available in the market.

Telecom success hinged on the moLotus offered go-to-market strategy thoroughly understands target market, helps in articulating product value proposition, transfers extensive knowledge, promotes products deeply and brings revenues in just 3 months.

6. Lower Advertising Cost

For decades telecom businesses have been bogged down by escalating advertising costs with overheads soaring high. Mounting costs have squeezed ad revenues and profit margins. Digital advertising brought in a ray of hope for telcos. Mobile operators can reduce the increasing ad costs by around 15 to 30 percent via breakthrough technologies like moLotus.

moLotus is a spam-free, efficient and economical one-stop solution for telcos looking for cost-effective digital advertising platforms. Telcos can create efficient mobile ad campaigns at a low budget. The advertising technology has accelerated the cost-cutting initiatives of telcos by automating marketing processes.

Telcos using digital channels like Facebook and Google are gradually losing their interest in them due to higher costs, lower return on ad spend (ROAS), and lesser advertising ROI.

7. Retain More Loyal Customers

Research on consumer behavior from the telecom industry reveals that existing customers are having higher revenue generation potential and are more likely to spend on products and services than the new ones. Also, they easily become brand advocates for telcos recommending brands to their acquaintances. Telecom Strategists suggest telcos to increase customer retention by at least 5 percent. This move is further expected to result in revenue escalation between 25 to 95 percent.

Telcos resorting to right mobile advertising tools are reducing the churn rate by incentivizing their loyal customer base with special offers, discounts coupons, vouchers. In return they can request loyal customers to write reviews, or share feedback.

moLotus automates and delivers loyalty and reward campaigns meant for special occasions like festivals, anniversaries, birthdays, etc. with personalized options for greetings, names, and unique call-to-actions for individual customers. The loyalty cards, coupons, videos, etc. are enhanced by rich media.

Conclusion

With the mobile advertising revolution gaining momentum, more and more telcos are building a strong brand presence. They are creating unique acquisition, lead generation, exposure, awareness, loyalty, retention, cross-selling, upselling, sales and other campaigns adding to superior conversions, insights and advertising ROI. They are beginning to profit more from digital advertising opportunities that innovative tools like moLotus throws. The investment in mobile advertising tools continues to fuel revenue growth in the global telecom market.