IKEA is running the mobile campaign within Spin’s mobile site. Although the mobile initiative is not commerce-enabled, IKEA is relying on mobile to drive user engagement and brand awareness.

“The mobile site was easy to get to if you knew the location and a banner ad certainly does that,” said Marci Troutman, CEO of SiteMinis, Atlanta.

“Once on the site it was a bit tough to actually use and navigate on an iPhone,” she said. “Also uploading photos required you to have Facebook access to actually use and certainly I did not understand how you could win something,” she said.

“When I clicked on the Unused space it linked to an information page about kitchens and size and allowed me to share that page, but the overall understanding of how to use the site was not easily understood through a mobile phone.”

Ms. Troutman is not affiliated with IKEA. She commented based on her expertise on the subject.

IKEA did not respond to press inquiries.

Mobile engagement
The IKEA mobile ad encourages consumers to share how they have improved life at home.

When consumers tap on the ad they are redirected to a mobile landing page where they can start building a better life in any room of their home.

From there, consumers are invited to swipe through the screen to add personality to the virtual home featured on the screen.

The IKEA ad aims to give consumers ideas to make their home more lively.

For example, the mobile campaign informs consumers that they can add personality to the living room with pillows.

Other ideas inform consumers they can conserve water with a low-flow faucet, sleep better with blackout curtains or save space with a shower rack.

Moreover, consumers can learn more about the Life Improvement Project and reach out to the company via the campaign.

Past efforts
IKEA is no stranger to mobile.

Last year, the company piloted a mobile shopping application in several countries, including Canada, as a way to enhance the customer experience by enabling users to check stock availability, create shopping lists and access a store map (see story).

Most recently, IKEA let consumers redecorate their homes via an augmented reality mobile application.

The catalog app is part of a broader marketing initiative from the company to cater to tech-savvy consumers.  In addition to the catalog app, IKEA is piloting a shopping app in three markets that lets consumers browse products, check stock availability and pick up items in-store (see story).

“Perhaps the ‘let’s get started’ link might go to a landing page that explains a bit more about the experience you are about to partake and how to use that experience to easily help you convert to a purchase or share through social,” Ms. Troutman said.

Final Take
Rimma Kats is associate editor on Mobile Commerce Daily, New York