their mobile marketing messages to consumers. “We take attributes such as location targeting and device targeting and do analysis on that,” he says.
By customizing the types of ads the public receives, Lehmann believes he can make the mobile medium more efficient and encourage brands to spend more marketing dollars in this sector. “Some companies are still just dipping their toes in the water when it comes to mobile,” he says.
While Todacell’s objective is to put its customers’ marketing messages in front of mobile phone users, Lehmann says he believes mobile ads also can create new revenue streams for developers who include marketing in their apps. “It’s a great way to connect with customers and user base,” Lehmann says. “It’s intimate and allows for deeper engagement.”
As mobile advertising gets more personalized, however, some users of mobile devices may not want to be tracked that closely. Lehmann says his company’s platform only uses information that consumers choose to make publicly available, such as their location. Sharing information in this way, he says, can be a benefit to the consumer because it fine-tunes the types of mobile ads they see. Marketers could potentially send ads to consumers for sales and discounts that are local to them, for example.
Prior to joining Todacell as a consultant in 2010 and later elevated to CEO, Lehmann was vice president of web and mobile marketing at Universal Music Group/Island Def Jam. Lehmann says Todacell has a staff of five in New York and about 15 people worldwide. With the latest funding he plans to hire more talent for the technology development team in Israel and for sales in the New York and London offices.
Todacell is raising additional capital, and Lehmann says the company’s revenue also is on the rise. He plans to open a new Todacell office in Berlin and expand the company’s London office. The growth potential for this sector, he says, is just being realized. “You’re going to see a massive increase in mobile advertising; brands just haven’t done it much yet,” he says.
