Implementing Click-to-Call in a Digital Campaign

While SMS may still be the most common form of mobile marketing, here are ways on how to integrate click-to-call creatively to enhance user experience.

Recently, I met a technology provider who reminded me that despite the rising popularity of smartphones such as the iPhone, Blackberry, and Android handsets, the most common marketing function that is applicable to almost all handsets in the mobile universe is short message service (SMS).

That reminder jolted me to reflect on what the mobile phone was originally designed for – allowing the handset’s owner to communicate by voice to the intended party without being encumbered by the physical restrictions of a plain old telephone service (POTS).

Not surprisingly, that simple function has been used by advertisers to reach its target audience through inbound direct marketing calls.

As mobile phones get pervasive worldwide, the means to reach the target audience by voice is no longer limited by physical and geographical restrictions. This allowed early digital advertisers to incorporate the voice function in SMS marketing and advertisers’ mobile sites. By adding a link on the SMS message and Google AdSense text advertisements on the mobile site, the handset owner can “click-to-call” the advertiser, with the hope of converting the voice call into revenue.

Despite the promise of “click-to-call” technology and its early use in directory services the results proved to be insufficient to sustain the service in the long run. I would argue that the dismal results of click-to-call in the early days of mobile marketing were due largely to the negative perception from owners receiving advertisements on what they considered to be a personal device. Indeed, the widespread “mobile spam” in the last decade turned many owners away from advertising messages on their handsets, which inevitably affected mobile marketing tools such as click-to-call.

So, is there a valid click-to-call proposition?

The answer depends on whether the advertiser leverages on new voice technologies that were absent when click-to-call was launched in the last decade. For instance, the premise of click-to-call is to allow the handset owner to initiate a call to the advertiser by “clicking” on a link in the SMS or mobile website. If a call was initiated (following the click) by the handset owner led to a busy tone (from the advertiser), it is not surprising to end the call at that point and move on (e.g. search for similar services from alternative advertisers). In this instance, the click-to-call failed because of poor user experience.

To circumvent this problem, I would suggest that the advertiser incorporate services similar to call-back services when one roams outside of their home country. This means that the mobile user’s click-to-call does not immediately initiate a voice call to the advertiser. That “click” launches a script that informs the mobile to expect an incoming call from the advertiser within a specific period of time (e.g. 10 minutes or any time period defined by the advertiser). Following this, the script triggers a voice-over-internet protocol (VOIP) session to connect with the advertiser. Assuming that the VOIP session connects with the advertiser, the VOIP session will inform the advertiser (by voice) with the owner’s details such as the mobile number (i.e. MSISDN) time of the “click-to-call” and expect to be connected with the mobile user. The VOIP session then initiates a call to the mobile user. Assuming that the mobile user responds, the VOIP session will bridge the two parties to form a voice connection between the user who clicked to call and the advertiser that placed the link. This is one example of how today’s voice technologies can be creatively used to improve the click-to-call experience for both parties, thereby reinforcing the relevance of this mobile marketing tool.

Another creative example is to use speech recognition technology. Consider a fast food restaurant with a mobile website or application that displays its menu with pricing. An ordering link would trigger a click-to-call script that connects the fast food restaurant’s automated ordering system to the mobile user (similar to the abovementioned “bridge” example). The fast-food ordering system would then incorporate voice recognition technologies (some of which are free and open-source) to engage in a “voice ordering process” with the mobile user. In this instance, the mobile user confirms the order completely by voice and is not placed on hold by the restaurants’ call centre. Moreover, the voice recognition technology can request the mobile user to ‘say’ credit card details during the ordering process so as to complete the mobile commerce (m-commerce) transaction. In this instance, the mobile user’s click-to-call action can be matched with an unambiguous revenue recognition following the confirmation of the m-commerce transaction, thereby quantifying the return on investment (ROI) for click-to-call.

Clearly, there is merit in using click-to-call in today’s complex mobile marketing environment. The key is to integrate the tool creatively to reinforce positive user experience by using today’s voice technologies. I have no doubt that click-to-call will continue to be used by many digital advertisers in the future .

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