Mobilized Marketing: How to Drive Sales, Engagement, and Loyalty Through Mobile Devices

Chapter 25

Belle Tire Rolls with Mobile

One of the most noteworthy programs in 2010 integrated mobile with traditional media. Belle Tire, 88 years old and the nation’s eighth-largest tire retailer with 84 stores in Michigan and Ohio, added a mobile call to action to its television and radio buys and other marketing programs with the Detroit Red Wings, Detroit Pistons, and Michigan State Spartans.

Here’s how it worked:

Belle Tire first offered a free set of tires in a text-to-win promotion where consumers texted-in the word Tire to Belle Tire’s short code. All who entered received a $20-off mobile coupon. Participants were then invited to join the Belle Tire Advantage Club—and 55 percent opted in to the club. In a follow-up campaign, 77 percent of participants subsequently joined the mobile Advantage Club. Belle Tire and Hipcricket conducted multivariant analysis to determine which ad executions and channels were most effective and produced the best return on investment.

“By adding a mobile element, we were able to track which ads were the most successful, which helps us to better plan our budgets for future campaigns,” says Don Barnes, marketing manager at Belle Tire. “In addition, we’ve gained a database of customers who we’re now able to communicate with on an ongoing basis—this hyperlocal mobile engagement is very valuable. We like to reward our loyal customers, and mobile has been a great venue to help us do it—more so than e-mail and other types of campaigns we’ve tried.” ...