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Vendors begin the process of determining the best route to consumers' minds and wallets as soon as a new delivery mechanism (e.g. newspapers, radio, television, & the Web) appears.

With mobile handsets and wireless networks at last turning into capable multimedia distribution mediums, marketers finally have their chance too, they hope, effectively sell us on their brands wherever we go.

They need to watch their step, however.

Consumers may more easily ignore an ad targeted at their cell phones than, say, a billboard with their eyes, or simply become irritated if the campaign is to intrusive. On the other hand, if an individual is receptive, the interactive nature of handsets could facilitate the insinuation of a brand into his consciousness.

A startup called Mobot enables this second approach with its visual search and recognition solution for camera phones. The company says campaigns created with its technology don't even target a handset directly at all.

Instead, Mobot lets consumers take a picture of an ad or a logo—in a magazine, on a poster, on product packaging, etc.—to set in motion a response from a marketer. So, for example, snap a picture and instantly be entered to win something or get product info, store locations, or trivia questions.

It's up to the marketer to determine how they respond to a picture.

JANE Magazine was the first to sign on as a Mobot media partner, linking readers via camera phones to 59 brands with its JANE Talks Back promotion in its September issue. Other magazines to try Mobot include ELLEgirl, VIBE, and VIBE VIXEN.

The Mobot-enabled JANE ads allowed readers to take a picture of an ad with their camera phone and send it to Mobot with a few keystrokes. Readers immediately received tailored offers, samples, or discounts from the brands they selected. (VIBE and VIBE VIXEN's mobot campaigns added the ability to buy products like DVDs online.)


How Mobot Works

These consumer-driven Mobot-enabled campaigns only connected readers to the brands they chose. JANE deemed the initial campaign, which took place with its September 2004 issue, a success. As a result, Publisher Eva Dillon brought Mobot back for more in December.

Dillon said at the time, "We're thrilled that the JANE Talks Back promotion was such a success. Our readers are attached at the hip to their mobile phones, and they really responded to having a fun, quick, and direct way to connect with advertisers about their favorite products."

Not Just Magazines
Mobot announced another application for its technology at CTIA Wireless 2005 in New Orleans last week.

With Mobot, consumers can now take a picture of a CD cover and within seconds receive a message on the phone that lets them click through and purchase a ringtone or music. The solution doesn't require any changes to the CD cover, URLs, short codes, or product codes to work.

Mobot CEO Russ Gocht asserted, "We connect users quickly and directly to content, eliminating the time-consuming experience of navigating endless menus on the mobile phone. Today we're demonstrating music and ring tones. Mobot will make additional announcements regarding other types of content acquisition in the coming months."

A Mobot representative implied to SmartPhoneToday these announcements could include connecting users to movie tickets by taking a picture of a movie poster, or even turning a coaster in a bar interactive; so patrons get a response (like a joke or a coupon) when a picture is taken. Or, perhaps, the user could snap a picture of a logo on a hat and get back sports scores.