The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) has unveiled its ‘MXS’ initiative. MXS, which stands for ‘Mobile’s X% Solution’ challenges marketers and agencies to look more closely at how they are allocating ad dollars in their marketing mix in light of the increasingly mobile-centric consumer media landscape.
MXS bypasses the equation used by some that share of time should equal share of budget and instead looks at an ROI analysis of mobile, based on actual market cost, and current mobile effectiveness impact, as well as US smartphone penetration and phone usage data (reach and frequency), based on analysis conducted by Marketing Evolution, which specializes in marketing ROI measurement. This analysis was then merged with data from cross-media studies of other media against specifically defined campaign goals by product category. This process, the MMA says, means that it allows for an algebraic analysis of mobile’s role in an overall marketing mix.
The study concludes that the optimised level of spend on mobile advertising for US marketers in 2012 should be 7 per cent on average, versus the current budget allocation of less than 1 per cent. Further, the analysis indicates that over the next four years, mobile’s share of the media mix is calculated to increase to at least 10 per cent on average, based on increased adoption of smartphones alone.
“Media consumption habits are shifting towards mobile and it is our responsibility, as global marketers, to engage with consumers in the most meaningful way,” says B. Bonin Bough, Vice President of global media and consumer engagement at Kraft Foods. “At Kraft Foods, we’re committed to making a difference in mobile innovation, so I’m very pleased that the MMA is leading the industry with this valuable data.”
More detailed data suggests that the range marketers should spend on mobile varies based on the marketing goal and industry category. For example with high involvement brands and/or lower purchase funnel objectives, marketers should consider a higher-than-average 9 per cent allocation, with an increased projection to 13 per cent over the next few years, based on smartphone growth. 
However, the MMA adds, as with all new media, improvements in targeting, creative excellence, better ad units, tighter industry standards, innovation in technology and other factors will all contribute to increased spend and the further development of mobile beyond these levels.
“The mobile industry has been plagued from what I call a “cold start syndrome,” says MMA Global CEO, Greg Stuart. “Finally, we are able to give marketers a level of empirical data that takes out the guesswork and offers a baseline for further discussions on what a rebalanced marketing mix should look like to achieve a stronger ROI on every dollar they spend. The next step in this process will be to validate these findings with the recently announced MMA SMoX.me program, where we will conduct cross media research with key leading marketers globally to provide additional critical ROI data for them and the industry.”
You can download an MXS whitepaper here.
