JOIN OUR MAILING LIST
News


2008-11-12
Why mobile users preferred Obama: Study


By Giselle Abramovich

November 12, 2008

Americans who use their mobile phones to surf the Internet were more likely to support Barack Obama over John McCain, according to a survey by Zogby and JumpTap.

The survey was conducted Oct. 7-24 via an ad banner campaign running across the Jump Tap mobile ad network of sites including Fox Mobile Entertainment and major newspapers within the Verve Wireless network such as the Miami Herald and Sacramento Bee.

“All marketers can learn a big lesson when examining the Obama campaign,” said Paran Johar, chief marketing officer of JumpTap, New York. “The world and consumers of all ages have changed.

“They consume media and engage in a whole new way,” he said. “More people have cell phones than computers, but the biggest public surprise of all is that mobile has become a primary means of communication to engage people of all ages and demographics, not just the youth as previously predicted."

The campaign created the Obama mobile WAP site, iPhone application, sent ongoing updates via text messages and ran mobile banner ads.

Even President-elect Obama's use of social media tools like Twitter and Facebook had large engagement via their mobile.

Mr. Obama created a vast social network and gave them the tools to easily and effectively engage and mobile was the most successful channel.

The poll continued tapping the pulse of mobile voters pre- and post-election. More than 68 percent of viewers who responded to the “vote” ad banners completed the 10-question survey.

Of 3,462 likely voters who took the survey, 71 percent supported Mr. Obama, 25 percent chose Sen. McCain and the other 4 percent were unsure or would choose another candidate.

“Now that the election results are in, pundits everywhere will analyze the campaign strategies and successes,” Mr. Johar said. “Much commentary has already been given to the huge sums of money spent on advertising.

“The key finding that will uniquely surface is Obama’s global teaching to Madison Avenue and brands everywhere – mobile is the most effective and cost efficient medium for reaching and engaging audiences of all ages and demographics,” he said.

Mobile phone users said Mr. Obama was better for the economy (70 percent), best to manage the War in Iraq (65 percent) and most likely to improve their quality of life (70 percent).

More than one-half of the respondents (52 percent) were ages 30-49.

“Leading up to the election there were so many polls it became difficult to decipher one from another, but the JumpTap/Zogby mobile survey warrants close attention,” Mr. Johar said.

“Much was written about the inability to tap a cell phone population through all of the polls,” he said. “This survey was unique in that it tapped that channel – but not through SMS or phone calls, but through mobile advertising.”

The survey demonstrated that when ads are relevant to the audience, they are willing to interact with them. 68 percent of those who clicked on the banner ad completed the entire survey of 10-plus questions.

“Considering that for a lot of participants this meant noticing the ad in the first place and then clicking through page after page, it demonstrates a clear willingness of people to spend time interacting with mobile marketing campaigns that they feel are relevant,” Mr. Johar said.

Associate Editor Giselle Abramovich covers ad networks, advertising, content, email, media, messaging, legal/privacy, search, social networks, television and video. Reach her at giselle @mobilemarketer.com.


Back Back to top
 
 
Close