Affiliates offer an effective way to supplement your Mobile Strategy

By Charlotte on 30 January 12 | Tags: Guides,Opinion

If 2011 was the ‘year of mobile’ then 2012 is likely be billed as the ‘year of M-Commerce’ – good news if you are an advertiser or affiliate looking to capitalise on the growth of the mobile channel and to exploit the wealth of opportunities that mobile and affiliate marketing presents.

Over the past year, Mobile Commerce has been rapidly gathering pace particularly within the affiliate sphere. Recent figures from Affiliate Window show that in December 2010, just over 2% of all network traffic came from mobile devices. Fast-forward a year and this has increased to over 7% - a percentage figure widely expected to increase over the course of 2012. The advance in localisation technologies and the use of Quick Response codes has amplified this growth and is helping bridge the gap between online and offline.

Being perfectly placed to take advantage of how people are interacting and engaging with mobile devices on the move, affiliates have adopted M-Commerce strategies quicker than most. Pioneering localisation technologies and recognising those consumers who are looking for the best offers and cheapest prices, affiliates are cleverly using location based targeting to promote offers that can be redeemed in store. Quidco and Voucher Cloud, both featuring in the recent The Sunday Times Top 500 apps list, are at the forefront of this, combining incentivised check-ins with in-store cash back or discounts. Affiliates are not only driving footfall but also sales for their merchants – Quidco research has shown that multi-channel customers spend on average more online and in-store than just single channel customers.

At Equi=Media we recognise the importance of Mobile as a core media channel and are working closely with our clients to develop their mobile strategies and to increase their mobile presence. For those advertisers who haven’t yet developed a fully functioning optimised mobile site, taking advantage of affiliate marketing and incentivised location-based targeting to drive customers in-store rather than through a mobile site is a quick-win. Incentivised traffic is dominating the growth of mobile and the nature of it follows the trend of how consumers are using mobile – hunting for offers and cheapest prices. 

Posted by: Charlotte

Charlotte is a Media Manager at Equi=Media, responsible for planning and buying effective cross-media campaigns on behalf of clients. In her spare time she loves to travel and plays netball most weekends, she is also an avid Gloucester rugby fan!