Ping Marketing

How would you feel about being targeted by direct marketing as you walked around town? I don’t mean the people who want you to give money to charity or the ones offering you a half price pizza – something much more personal is on the horizon.

With the arrival of Ping Marketing, shoppers will be targeted with electronic money-off vouchers straight to their mobile’s as they wander the High Street. The concept is already a big hit in America and is set to be trialled in the UK by Californian company Placecast and O2.

The system works through the GPS satellite which allows mobile networks to track consumers via their mobile phones and alert them to special offers as they pass participating retailers. At the moment, Starbucks and L’Oreal are the two biggest companies to adopt the service in the UK.