PRESS RELEASE - ZIPGIVE, Philanthropy meets Mobile Technology – now just a few clicks can make a difference

Press Release: MOBILE GIVING FOUNDATION CANADA APPROVES ZIPSTRIPE CORP.  AS APPLICATION SERVICE PROVIDER FOR MOBILE CHARITABLE DONATIONS IN CANADA

Captain Morgan Mobile Contest

Rum brand Captain Morgan has added a mobile component to its existing Pose Off campaign.

“The simple objective of allowing mobile entry is to increase the number of total entries to the Captain Morgan Pose Off contest, thereby increasing the level of brand interactions at point of purchase by adults of legal drinking age,” said Alex Hall, chief operating officer at TigerSpike, New York.
“Mobile entry helps achieve a higher promotional response rate by allowing people to engage as soon as they read the call to action, while the motivation is still in their mind,” Mr. Hall said. “Assuming the communication message is relevant, mobile entry then allows consumer to act at the right time for them, from any location.
“In the case of a spirits promotion, it means that a call to action in bars, in retail outlets or in traditional media can be acted upon at times when online activity is not generally possible,” he said. “The main reason for using both MMS and email in this campaign was purely to extend reach and convenience for consumers. From Mobile Marketer at http://bit.ly/ArC5b

For more information contact Andrew at damico@zipstripe.com

Tylenol PM "Sleep Tracker" iPhone application

The Tylenol application is available as a free download in the App Store and is promoted with the tagline "See how beneficial a good night's sleep can be."

The Tylenol PM Sleep Tracker iPhone application lets users track their sleep hours and moods, see their sleep history over time, add notes and customize their icons and get tips to help them sleep better. Tylenol is promoting the application as part of its "Get Ready for Bed" campaign.

A click-to-download banner ad campaign that ran across iPhone sites and applications drove close to 3,000 downloads and increased Tylenol's ranking in the App Store from No. 120 to 14, which in turn drove additional organic viral spread of the application. "With tens of thousands of apps in the App Store, promotion is crucial to getting your app highly ranked, which is critical for discovery," said Tony Nethercutt, vice president of sales at AdMob. "Consumer discovery is difficult with 50,000 apps, so being ranked in the top 25 most popular apps in your category is critical to getting more downloads.

Tylenol PM Sleep Tracker ads across AdMob's network issued a call-to-action urging consumers to click through to the App Store to immediately download the application. While specific click-through rates weren't revealed, AdMob claims its clients see conversion rates between 5 to 20 percent, with the average being closer to 10 percent. From Mobile Marketer at http://bit.ly/MLFRs

For more information contact mike@zipstripe.com

What's Nearby app

What's Nearby  iPhone application, letting users find nearby entertainment options based on their GPS position.

The Metromix’s free social-planning application lets consumers locate restaurants, bars and clubs, events and music, as well as movie theaters and showtimes within walking distance or a short drive away from their current location. Already downloaded more than 100,000 times, What's Nearby also gives Metromix's 4 million monthly users, who are located across 37 United States markets, the ability to post reviews and photos to Metromix.com using their iPhone and share those submissions on Facebook using Facebook Connect.

Metromix’s national network of local entertainment Web sites target 21-to-34-year-olds and provide information on where to go and what to do.This group of adults is obviously very tied into social media trends and are most likely the ones interested in downloading our What’s Nearby iPhone application, since it allows them to share information across a variety of communication channels including our Web site and Facebook,” Mr. Smyth said. From Mobile Marketer at http://bit.ly/2E9mih

More information contact mike@zipstripe.com

Domino’s Pizza - Mobile commerce growing at astounding rate

Domino’s Pizza is driving traffic to its newly optimized mobile Web site with mobile advertising and seeing a surge in revenue from its mobile commerce platform.

While the pizza franchise continues to invest heavily in traditional media, it has seen significant growth from its mobile initiatives and plans to increase its investment in the mobile channel going forward. In addition to promoting its mobile site on Dominos.com and via email blasts, the company partners with mobile ad networks and with publishers directly to run banner ads across most of the top 10 mobile Web sites in the United States, including Pandora, ESPN and CNN.

“Mobile is a rapidly growing segment of our business, one that we expect to grow for years to come,” said Rob Weisberg, vice president of multimedia marketing at Domino’s Pizza, Ann Arbor, MI. “A major growth agent for our company over the last few years has been online ordering in the digital space. “A lot of what we get to see that’s occurring in our Asian markets and places like Iceland—mass consumer adoption of mobile commerce—it’s a crystal ball for what’s to come in the U.S. market.”

Mobile coupons have been increasingly relevant for consumers—and thus an increasingly effective tool for brands—during the current recession. Domino’s mobile coupons are tailored to consumers’ ordering history and are often time-sensitive. “We send out coupons via SMS that are relevant to you as an individual, an offer that’s strong and takes you to the site and all you have to do is hit confirm,” Mr. Weisberg said. “As far as our system-wide average, 85 percent of our business is delivery, and because of that, we know who you are, your name, address, phone number and what you’ve ordered in the past..

“By opting-in to receive these communications, you’re ensuring that you’ll receive the strongest deals Domino’s has to offer, mobile coupons that link directly back to our mobile ordering site,” he said. “In terms of ease and convenience of the transaction, mobile commerce can’t be beat.”

Domino’s believes that the importance of the mobile channel for its bottom line will only continue to grow.
“What gets us excited about the mobile space? You walk out of your home with your wallet, your keys and a third-screen—the three screens are TVs, computers and smartphones with a data plan,” Mr. Weisberg said.
“People are taking that third screen wherever they go, and mobile phones are one of the few things that aren’t shared, so we know exactly who we’re talking to via that mobile device,” he said. The hectic pace of modern life also makes mobile an indispensible channel for businesses. “Consumers are time starved, and as far as making meal decisions, 72 percent of consumers don’t know what they’re going to have for dinner at 4:30 p.m.,” Mr. Weisberg said. “Most people don’t plan that far ahead because of the time-starved nature of the world today, so our goal is to connect with consumers around that time of day, which is a major objective for quick-service restaurant companies like us. “The mobile screen is an opportunity to engage with them in a way that is relevant to them via SMS offers, mobile coupons,” he said. From Mobile Marketer at http://bit.ly/16Otap

For more information contact Andrew at damico@zipstripe.com

Hot Sauce SMS campaign sees 58 percent double opt-in

Baumer Foods' Crystal Hot Sauce ran a mobile campaign to build an opt-in mobile database of New Orleans Saints fans  for highly-targeted future marketing efforts - Crystal Hot Sauce used mobile as a means of creating an exciting brand image and building awareness among the 23-54 year old male sports-fan demographic

To accomplish this, Crystal Hot Sauce ran promotional spots as well as in-game telecast mentions on Cox Media’s CST network, during Saints’ games, prompting viewers to text to win a signed jersey and Crystal Hot Sauce gift pack. ”Crystal Hot Sauce and Baumer Foods are happy to be using mobile text advertising and the results speak for themselves,” said Tina Stubbs, marketing director at Crystal Hot Sauce, Metairie, LA. “We had an overwhelming response to our text sweepstakes and look forward to engaging with our customers, new and old, via this new marketing outlet.”

The results were astounding. On one Saturday alone, the campaign received in excess of 4,700 responses, and more than 54 percent of respondents double opted-in for future offers. To date this campaign has received more than 8,200 responses and achieved a double-opt-in rate of more than 58 percent.
 For more information contact Andrew at andrew@zipstripe.com

Chipotle Mexican Grill enters Mobile Commerce

Burrito giant Chipotle Mexican Grill has launched an ordering application letting iPhone and iPod touch users place customized orders at the location of their choice.

The quick-service-restaurant brand’s first foray into mobile, Chipotle’s iPhone application leverages the device’s GPS functionality to find the location closest to the user and enables mobile ordering. A key feature of the application lets customers pay for their food directly from their mobile device.

“We wanted to create a user experience that is similar to what we offer in our restaurants, but using the iPhone platform,” said Chris Arnold, spokesman for Chipotle Mexican Grill, Denver. “It allows time-starved customers another way to access Chipotle in a way that’s relevant to them.
“Our core customers skew young, educated and more affluent than a typical fast-food customer,” he said. “It’s probably a close match to iPhone users. “Having the app lets us deepen relationships with these customers by giving them a way to interact with us that is meaningful to them.”

For more information contact mike@zipstripe.com