Given the mobile penetration in the country, it is becoming imperative for corporates to include mobile in their customer engagement plans and hence create a platform. However, this is easier said than done as the process of choosing a right platform which will be robust and future proof is a virtual minefield of options and technologies. Corporates need to find answers for these relevant questions if they were to build the right, long lasting mobile customer engagement platform:

• Should I build or go for off the shelf solution?



This is an important question which corporates need to answer - obviously there are pros and cons for both. The answer would depend on

• How large is the database of mobile numbers?
• How frequently are you going to communicate?
• What is going to be the nature of your communication?



Also there are multiple technologies & applications like IVR, simple SMS push, WAP applications, mobile barcode coupons etc. and it may not be feasible for the corporates to invest in building all of these technologies. An off-the-shelf solution may not have all the flexibilities that the company may want. In many cases, the answer may lie in asking for customization of an existing solution or to look at a service provider who has the maximum breadth of solutions so that you can pick and choose applications for different needs.



• Should I manage the solution in-house or should it be outsourced managed?



This is a more vexing question than the earlier one, as this has implications on even departments like HR and Training, etc. In almost all cases, it makes better sense to outsource manage, given the current focus on costs and hence maintaining a lean organizational structure. The significant benefits of outsourcing include



• The costs of the solution get apportioned over multiple clients of the service provider
• The onus of keeping the solution up-to-date is on the service provider
• It becomes the responsibility of the service provider to continuously provide competent manpower to service the solution and maintain continuity


• Should the database be managed in-house or can this be outsourced managed?



The answer lies in the statutory and other industry guidelines that govern the different verticals like banking, telecom, retail etc. There are other mandatories like scrubbing the database against the DNC register of TRAI which need to be followed. However, there are service providers who adhere to stringent SLAs covering the confidentiality of the databases, fulfilling the DNC scrubbing before an SMS push, etc. thereby taking substantial load off the marketers' shoulders. The service provider also needs to be capable of providing detailed analysis after every marketing push including managing bounce backs, people who responded, etc.



• Can the platform help me push targeted communication?

The substantially high levels of irritation with marketing SMSs are basically emanating out of a mismatch between the content of the message and the profile and needs of the end customers who receive these messages. Some marketers also view the whole exercise as reaching out to a large database of prospects and measure their success by the number of customers they reached out to. The mobile platforms by themselves will not help corporates target messages to the right audiences. The database needs to be overlaid with an analytical platform to filter the database intelligently, and hence ensure that the customer receives what he / she likes. Hence, it is important to invest in the right analytical tool or service to deliver targeted communication.




These steps will at least ensure that the platform which the corporate chooses, helps it to engage with its end customers effectively. How the platform can be leveraged for achieving high marketing ROI is a topic by itself and has to wait for another time.