It’s so important to consult with experts when it comes to mobile marketing. While it is true that the average response rate to a campaign sits at around 30%, and that campaigns such as the Little Caesar’s free cheesy bread campaign can a return more than a 60% response rate, the fact still remains that mobile implementation is not sure thing if all of the factors are not considered.

Take, as an example, what a Jiffy Lube in Iowa did with mobile. The local automotive store elected to run a mobile text to subscribe campaign through local radio station. At the end of each radio ad, listeners were asked to text “Jiffy” to a short code in order to receive coupons for free oil changes and/or car accessories. The ad ran for two quarters and here were the results were as follows: 4500 people responded (about 175 per week) and 30 redeemed coupons.

When looking at the numbers, it looked like it was an unsuccessful campaign. With only redemptions over a 26 month period, the actual redemption rate was 0.7%. However, a good thing was that out of the 30 that did redeem the coupon, 50% ended up being new business. This is significantly better results than the normal 20% for other campaign methods.

When asked about the results of the campaign, Andrew Storjohann, general manager of the Jiffy Lube of Ames, pointed out that the low response rate could be due to the type of business they were in. “The people either didn’t value our coupons or forgot about them,” he said. “It told me either our coupons weren’t very good or…maybe it’s the fact that you only get your oil changed every two months or so.”

The coupons expired in 30 days. So, if a winner of a free oil change recently had the job done they wouldn’t be interested, Storjohann suggested. However, that theory doesn’t explain the no-shows by those who won coupons for discounts on other services and products.

Storjohann said he changed his mobile coupon plan this spring, hoping for better results. “I signed up for a sponsorship of the radio station,” he said. “They have texts that come in requesting certain programming. Whenever one of their customers texted anything to Clear Channel, they would automatically get back one of these coupons.”

The results were even more disappointing, he said. “We have a lot more coupons going out with even less of a redemption rate. At this point, I’m not signing back up. I think it’s a very convenient way to advertise and I would consider doing one like the first one again, but I want to figure out how to get more redemption out of it.”

…When considering to run your own campaigns make sure you take into consideration the reason why mobile is popular. It is quick and easy to use, it is personal, and it always with you. Redemption rates for coupons go down if these coupons are sent when people don’t want to redeem them. In the Jiffy Lube example, the campaign would have been much more effective if Jiffy Lube sent out the coupons to people who had received an oil change more than two months ago. This would have increased the likelihood of people saying to themselves, “Oh, I have been meaning to get that darn oil changed!” For restaurants, you want to send your coupons a little before lunch and dinner time, not at 5am in the morning.

Time sensitive mobile campaigns and location based campaigns are key to a mobile campaign’s success.