Advertising on mobile phones is 30 times more effective in comparison with the internet

• T-Mobile has finished a three-month pilot program involving SMS/MMS advertising on mobile phones
• The most successful campaign was more than 100 times more successful than internet banners on average
• Based on this successful pilot project, T-Mobile is considering launching SMS/MMS advertising this fall

Prague, 23 June 2009 - A pilot program relating to advertising on mobile phones carried out in the Czech Republic by T-Mobile was completed in June 2009. This project confirmed the above-average effectiveness of this kind of communication with customers. A total of 22 advertisers including Coca-Cola, Nestlé, L'Oreal, Ford, Komerční banka and Eurolines participated in the pilot project. On the other hand, a total of 3,133 advertising recipients among T-Mobile customers were contacted. The average successfulness of individual SMS/MMS campaigns was approximately 27 times higher than in the case of internet banner campaigns. Even the results of the least successful campaign surpassed the response rate of 0.1%, which is common for Czech internet campaigns.

"Mobile phones have been used as a marketing tool rather rarely despite the fact that they are personal, interactive and always accompany their owners," says Michal Němec, Vice President Mobile Portal & Content Services. "Unlike television or print advertisements, ads delivered to mobile phones precisely address the target group (no lipstick for men, no football jerseys for women), bring a relevant message to the recipients and offer the recipients an opportunity to respond immediately. These are the main reasons why our pilot project confirmed the high successfulness of mobile phone advertising, as expected," says Michal Němec.

The goal of this pilot operation was to make it possible for the advertisers to test this new kind of communication, to evaluate its effectiveness in comparison with other communication channels, to compare the effects with respect to various products/services, as well as different forms of campaign implementation, and finally to collect reactions from the recipients. During the pilot operation, a total of 22 advertisers out 32 advertising campaigns and the average response rate was 2.72%.
In the case of the most successful campaign, the response rate was 11.78%. Even the least successful campaign had a response rate of 0.29%, well above the internet average.

"A successful mobile campaign requires a combination of suitable mechanics, clear communication and attractive implementation. For example, Coca-Cola joined the pilot project with the goal of increasing awareness and the number of registrations in relation to its internet loyalty program MyCokeZone.cz, which is well established in both the Czech and Slovak markets. This program focuses on the generation using the newest technology and experimenting in the virtual world. This pilot project has fulfilled our expectations while taking into consideration that our target group is at home in the mobile environment: awareness of the program (clicking through the page) 5.87%; registration 3.45% in relation to the people addressed," says Adriana Jahňáková of Coca-Cola.

Representatives of the two target groups participating in the mobile-advertising pilot project carried out by T-Mobile: 1,392 women aged 26-50 living in urban areas formed the first target group. The second target group comprised 1,741 young people under the age of 26. A total of 3,133 customers received free SMS or free minutes for their participation in the project.

Based on the above-average results of the pilot projects and based on the satisfaction of the advertisers, T-Mobile has been considering launching the SMS/MMS mobile advertisement in the 4Q of 2009.

T-Mobile Czech Republic, a member of the international telecommunications group Deutsche Telekom, has almost 6.2 million customers, the number-one operator in the Czech market. T-Mobile is an integrated operator: in addition to telecommunications services, it offers comprehensive ICT solutions not only for companies, but also for other organizations and individuals. It provides outstanding services in the high-speed network, which was proved repeatedly by benchmark testing performed by umlaut (former P3) with Best-in-Test seal.

T-Mobile Czech Republic places emphasis on taking a responsible approach to the environment and society. It adheres to fair business practices, helps beneficial applications and services to see the light of day, supports non-profit organizations, small businesses and individuals, and lends a helping hand whenever crisis situations arise. The company’s employees serve as volunteers in many places across the entire Czech Republic.

More information about the company is available at www.t-mobile.cz, www.t-press.cz (the portal for journalists) and www.t-mobile.cz/pomahame (information on the company’s CSR activities).

Contact details of the press unit: press@t-press.cz.