RCS, which garnered much attention at World Telemedia Marbella earlier this month has taken a big step forward as Out There Media (OTM), a global leader in mobile advertising and data monetisation, partners with Vodafone Group for its Rich Communication Services (RCS) offering.
The deal follows two highly successful campaigns with The Walt Disney Company Africa and McDonald’s, with OTM being the first company in the world to trial this technology with both these major brands.
HEAR WHAT MOBILESQUARED’s NICK LANE HAS TO SAY ON RCS IN THE VIDEO BELOW
Using the Vodafone network to facilitate the all new 2019 Lion King release and McDonald’s Rewards program RCS projects, the campaigns saw a 72% and 73% Read Rate (RR) respectively with a Conversion Rate of approximately 3%. Engagement Rates were 44% with the McDonald’s campaign and up to 82% with the Lion King campaign, without the need for subscribers to leave the native messaging app on their phone.
Kerstin Trikalitis, CEO, OTM, says: “Our proprietary technology platform, Mobucks™, produces a level of RCS experience not yet seen in the marketplace and a viable alternative to current over-the-top (OTT) apps. By joining forces with Vodafone, we have created a unique, end-to-end, cloud-based and fully-managed Rich Communications Services solution, taking full advantage of the channel’s ability to allow users to interact with brands without leaving their native messaging app.”
Liz McCord, Principal Product Manager, Vodafone Group, adds: “The Disney and McDonald’s campaigns run by Out There Media and Vodacom demonstrate the first large scale commercial RCS campaigns by big brands on the continent. The results were spectacular and prove the value of this new messaging channel for mobile customers and brands alike. RCS Business Messaging is the game-changer the industry has been waiting for.”
Nick Lane, Founder and Chief Industry Analyst, Mobilesquared, concludes: “This is a clear sign that major brands are taking RCS seriously and are starting to see the potential of the channel. Using an advertising model will allow the RCS ecosystem, and mobile operators in particular, to tap into the US$616 billion global advertising spend.”
