Consumer perceptions of mobile phone marketing: Recent evidence from Australia

Abstract

Over the past decade developments in telecommunication technology have created opportunities for new and interactive electronic marketing channels, such as the mobile phone. In particular, the ubiquitous and personal nature of this device suggests strong potential for its use as an advertising and direct marketing platform. Despite this, several issues surround the use of this device for marketing purposes, and as such, consumer acceptance of mobile phones as an electronic marketing medium remains relatively low. This study explores Australian consumers’ perceptions of mobile phone marketing, defined here as an electronic marketing innovation. Through the application of Rogers’s (1995) innovation attribute theory, this research makes an important contribution to understanding how consumer perceptions of the attributes associated with this innovation affect their acceptance of mobile phone marketing campaigns. Here, three attributes were examined: relative advantage, compatibility and complexity. Statistical analysis using a multiple hierarchical regression model revealed that consumers’ perceptions of compatibility and relative advantage were significantly associated with their perceptions of mobile phone marketing. The identification of compatibility as the key driver of acceptance supports previous research which identified permission, privacy, control, and the delivery of the message as key drivers of mobile phone marketing acceptance. Interestingly consumers’ perceptions of the complexity associated with mobile phones had a positive rather than negative relationship with their acceptance of this marketing medium.