Nationwide Network Services has teamed with MTV Network and Motorola Inc. to create a nationwide paging initiative aimed at teenagers and young adults.
The promotion follows the likes of a program created nearly a year ago by MobileComm, Motorola and Pepsi Co. called the Mountain Dew Extreme Network. The program allowed teenagers to purchase pagers through the mail and receive six months of free airtime. Customers were paged with promotions and advertisements from retailers. It was the largest wireless marketing initiative aimed at young people.
Nationwide, which specializes in using paging technology to develop retail sales programs, said it has taken the concept further by making the program long term and using national retail outlets. It signed a five-year licensing agreement with MTV to establish the MTV Paging Network through which sponsors will page the owners of the pagers with special promotions and information. MTV has an audience of about 63 million viewers, the majority of whom are teenagers and young adults ranging from 12 to 34 years old. Motorola and MTV are jointly designing pagers with the MTV logo, ergonomic designs and colors that appeal to the teenage and young adult market, said Nationwide.
“Ask MobileComm today how many customers they still have on their network-not many,” said Tony Gordon, vice president of Nationwide. “After six months, the kids were stuck with a Renegade pager and expensive airtime. We were careful not to come up with a billboard on the [pager’s] housing. We have a subtle design on the housing. The pager can stand on its own … pagers are the forefront of this promotion. Today kids take what Motorola designs and doctor it up themselves. They change the cover and clips and do different things themselves to change it. We went out to kids and said, `We’re going to build it for you.’ “
After conducting market research with MTV viewers, Nationwide said 47 percent of the young people it surveyed already own a pager. Half said they would throw their pager away and get the MTV pager, said Gordon. Strong interest in the MTV pager also came from those who have never owned a pager, he said.
The MTV pagers, which also facilitate normal messaging, will be available in major retail outlets by September when the program in unveiled at MTV’s Video Music Awards ceremony, the company said.
Customers will be able to purchase the unit for around $70. Service will cost $8 per month, said Nationwide. An entire line of pager accessories including MTV collectors clips will be sold along with the product. The company said it is currently negotiating contracts with nationwide paging carriers.
When customers purchase the MTV pager, they fill out a form indicating their age, sex, interests and level of participation they want in various marketing promotions. The marketing categories include MTV programming information, promotions from clothing, music and other retail companies and social and educational information.
Owners of the pagers will be electronically contacted about once a week by a network sponsor and given a response 800 number to call. A record store, for example, could page owners in a specific age group to inform them about local concerts, new CDs and other activities in the music industry, said Nationwide. MTV will be able to provide updates on its programs and promotions as well. Nationwide said it is in negotiations with sponsors.
“We will be sensitive not to become a nuisance,” said Gordon. Pages will not be sent during school hours or during the middle of the night and time zones will be taken into consideration. Minors will need parental consent when filling out forms.
The entire paging industry has begun to take notice of the teenage and young adult market. Pager designers like NEC America Inc. and Standard Telecom America Inc. have designed products solely aimed at this fast growing segment. NEC’s MessageMaker numeric pagers allow users to produce messages using graphic symbols. Standard Telecom’s Nixxo Pop numeric pager is also an FM radio that comes with pre-sets and optional headphones.
However, not many companies have taken the concept of direct marketing and mixed it with paging.
“Retailers continually seek new and innovative ways to provide information to customers,” said Gordon. “Paging technology is an ideal method since it is interactive, voluntary and extremely targeted.”
