Consumers are constantly bombarded with decisions, distractions, and marketing messages across various channels of communication. The proliferation of mobile devices opened up new interactive ways for corporations to connect with consumers through mobile apps and marketing. However, some argue that mobile marketing allows corporations to target and potentially manipulate consumers in vulnerable situations outside of traditional advertising channels. As mobile marketing becomes an industry standard, corporations and agencies have focused on excelling at interactive mobile applications and customizing messaging to individual consumers, but the effectiveness of this approach depends on continued widespread adoption of smart phones.

1. Image by Blair Cook

2. Today consumers are constantly bombarded by numerous decisions , obstacles and situations . Image by Laura Crowell

3. Consumers have found themselves... CLUTTERED in the abyss of distractions. Image by Maxfeld Source: Consumers Bombared by Advertising, Adrants

4. In response to this consumers have built up protective filters that block certain marketing and media messages that do not fit the criteria for their personal fire wall – their brain .

5. Image By TheDreamSky

6. Increases in global technology has now increased the numerous ways we can communicate with each other Image by Sally Tudor

7. In addition, it has increased the channels corporations can communicate with us. Image: FatoOoma Qatar

8. In 2009 1.2 billion smart phones were sold. Image by tyndall80

9. This opened up a NEWER , QUICKER , TRENDIER , INTERACTIVE and SPONTANEOUS way of marketing through... m o b i L E Image by kris1morton

10. Marketing through mobile has allowed corporations to connect with consumers and promote their brand to in the palm of their hand . Image by Stegron

11. Consumers can gain value from their favourite goods or services beyond working hours of the day of the corporation . The power is literally in the consumers hands. Image by Yutaka Tsutano

12. The main method of communication between corporations and consumers is mobile applications that can be installed on smart phones such as the Blackberry , the iPhone and the Android . Image by samsungccr

13. These applications create a personal connection between the brand and the consumer updating them on recent promotions, new products or changes to their favourite items. Image by jcodudeortiz Source: Want a deeper connection? Apps is where its at, RGA

14. As your mobile phone is tailored to you these applications are as well. By providing you information with the nearest store locations based off your geological footprints, suggesting new songs for you to purchase from your recently played list and tracking your recent history corporations have found a new way in. Image by Room 1455 Source: Leaky mobile apps and their ability to track you, NewsGram

15. Easy to scan QR codes connect us to the websites and online stores of the brands we are most intrigued by Image by Scott Blake

16. QR-code scanning has rose 1200% from July to December 2010 – a percentage that keeps increasing Image by Jixar. Source: Who Is Scanning QR Codes? A Quick Update, MarketingProfs

17. Image by Robert Scoble Source: Age of the App, Globe and Mail

18. This way, marketers no longer target broad consumer segments; they can narrow down consumer preferences for a single consumer Image by a2gemma

19. But has this made consumers more v u l n e r a b l e ? Image by SAM A.M.

20. By marketing through mobile executives have the opportunity to target consumers anywhere between their homes, work and on the go - places where radio , internet and television often fail to penetrate . Image: Fuzzy TV by KMRP Source: Mobile ads three-to-five times more effective than online, Mobile Marketer

21. As this is a NEWER form of advertising to consumers, they have yet to build up mature protection filters to these m o b i L E campaigns and may become more easily susceptible to MARKETING and maybe even manipulation . Image by Kyle Saric

22. This has become such an apparent trend that corporate clients are now turning towards advertising agencies that excel at mobile interactive applications such as Toronto based GRIP Limited . Source: griplimited.com

23. It is no longer a competitive advantage for a brand to have a mobile platform – it is an industry standard Image by Manuela Martin

24. The problem is mobile marketing is only as effective as the phones consumers carry. If the trend in smart phones decline, so will the effectiveness of the application. This creates a DANGEROUS chain of dependence . Image by Kintzjordan

25. Image by TobTob

26. Credits All images are found under the Creative Commons on Flickr Image by littlegirlracer