There are many definitions that can be applied to the term “mobile marketing.” How it is interpreted and integrated into your business plan can be significantly different from how other companies may choose to apply it. The simplest and most common definition is a method of promoting a business through mobile devices, such as cell phones. Read on, and discover a few of the ways that you might put mobile marketing to work for your own business.
Be prompt with your messages. This goes along perfectly with being relevant. You can send out an email about something happening, but it doesn’t always translate when you need to send a text message. Don’t be too early or too late with your messages. For example, you can announce a sale minutes before the store opens, versus days.
Send offers or communications sparingly as part of your mobile marketing campaign. Customers sign up to receive valuable and relevant information or offers but do not respond well to overwhelming volumes of messages. Many people today are bombarded by e-mails and text messages, so make sure your communications stand out as providing value without being annoying.
Remember, phones are personal! Mobile goes beyond cell phones and internet. Subscribers are connected by texting, voice, mobile internet, and smartphone apps. There are things being added to the mobile environment to meet everyone’s various needs, and you need to do the same. Your mobile campaigns need to be easily accessible, personal, and relevant!
Make sure your mobile ads are compatible against all platforms, cellular devices and more. Your business must stay accessible to as many mobile users as possible. By ensuring compatibility on all platforms, you maximize your exposure and your business’ ability to reach more customers via the devices they use the most.
Stay away from caps lock, unless you are giving a call to action. Using caps lock at any other time during a message can come across as if you are yelling at someone, and no one likes to be yelled at. Stay polite and calm by only using caps lock if necessary.
Have a goal. Do not start a mobile marketing campaign until you know exactly why you want to have one. You may want to have extra revenue or draw in more readers, but whatever the reason, you need to track the information you receive to find out if your program is really successful.
Keep your text messages, social network posts and e-mails brief and concise. If the message is too long, people tend to dismiss it immediately. The message shout be short, urgent and contain a call of action. It should not be a quarter page ad, but instead a short message aimed to alert consumers of discounts or promotions.
No matter what type of features you’re thinking of adding to your mobile marketing campaign, you need to remember that it’s all about the execution here. Mobile users are growing at a faster rate than PC users ever have, so everyone’s attempting to go mobile. Stand out by focusing on quality execution rather than just expansion.
When creating a QR code for printed advertisements, use a URL shortener to keep the QR code as simple as possible. Simple QR codes are easier to scan. If your potential customer has to attempt to scan a QR code multiple times they might give up, costing you a customer.
Make sure that a mobile marketing campaign is effective before starting a new one. When measuring the success of a campaign, be patient. In mobile marketing, longevity can mean more than sales. Use the formula to produce a long-term successful marketing add when working on your next campaign.
When you are setting up your marketing adds for cell phones, they must be cross-platform compatible. Every one has a different phone, and you don’t want to end up cutting off some people from seeing your advertisement just because of the phone that they have. Your customers will not switch phones, though they may switch from your product to one that they see all the time on their phone.
Be sure to send text messages. People usually have a ringer that will go off whenever they receive a text. They also tend to check it right away. Just make sure to send small files such as photos of a new product that you have available, thus allowing the customer the option of receiving texts or not.
One of the key factors to successful mobile marketing advertising and messaging is to keep your messages and ads short, to the point, and urgent. The devices are possibly smaller, so you have less room to work with in composing your ad. So make them short and clear so that you can get your message across quickly and fully understood.
QR codes are the wave of the future when it comes to advertising. QR or quick response codes use an image that is scanned into a mobile device and hold a bit of information. Use QR codes to link mobile exclusive discount coupons or product information for your business.
Balance your mobile marketing within an integrated media strategy. Mobile marketing alone will not take your brand to the next level. Neither will direct mail or internet marketing alone. You need to develop a multi-channel strategy that works in harmony with each other to really tell the story of your brand. If you feel your mobile marketing strategy is acting on its own, now is the time to bring it into your larger marketing strategy.
Mobile marketing is one of the newest and most exciting ways to promote a business, even if the definition is sometimes unclear and never set in stone. There is no accepted common definition when it comes to mobile marketing; although, the most basic way is through a mobile device, such as a cell phone. Apply the knowledge you’ve gained here to use mobile marketing to further your business.