Affiliated Organization

proceedings_helsinki_mob_rt

Abstract

This study examines the phenomenon of consumers’ willingness to give permission to receive Short Message Service (SMS) advertisements. The purpose of this research is threefold: to better understand the phenomenon of consumers’ willingness to give permission to receive text message (SMS) advertisements, to provide empirical data that supports our understanding, and to develop and test a basic model of consumers’ willingness to give permission to receive SMS advertisements. The study utilised a multi-method research approach with both qualitative and quantitative data – via focus group and scenario-based survey. The results show that even if the relevance of the advertisement is high it does not on its own make consumers give permission; it need to be combined with the control over opt-in conditions to assure consumers and gain permission. Regarding brand familiarity, this appears to have little impact on consumers’ willingness to give permission to receive SMS advertisements. The opt-in conditions valued the most are: the possibility to withdraw at any time, personal data disclosure only with consent, and mobile phone operators as a primary advertising filter. The paper rounds off with conclusions, implications for marketing practice and directions for future research into permission in SMS advertising.

Volume

6

Issue

41

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