Top Benefits And Tips For Mobile Marketing
Some industries absolutely must use mobile marketing to survive, but using it well can be difficult. There is so much to learn both on the marketing side and the technical side. Read on to learn how you can easily and effectively integrate mobile marketing into your business plan.
Older cellphones cannot properly display the same sites as newer smartphones or tablets, so your links need to lead to different sites for different phones. If you use a flash player on your website, only provide the cellular link.
Do not send too many offers on mobile platforms. Stick to the essential ones. With this you know that your customers will not tire from your messages and look for to see all you have to offer.
It is important to have your own dedicated short code. The price tag is higher, but this will help to protect your brand. Doing this will also protect you legally.
Every successful mobile campaign should have a home base. Your mobile presence should be about driving people to the home base, or keeping in touch with people who already visit your home base. Do not ever base everything completely on a mobile marketing campaign.
Remember who you are talking to if you are going to make phone calls, they are people whose lives you are interrupting. Realize that is an issue and act accordingly.
Mobile Web
Check to verify that your mobile web site works on every popular mobile web browser in use. It’s important that your messages work no matter what type of phone your customer is using. It’s going to be a lot easier for you to use a simplified message, rather than trying to make a custom message work across all platforms. Mobile marketing and the KISS principle work well together.
Be sure to test mobile websites and ads on multiple mobile devices. Some mobile devices use special browsers, and others have limitations based on their screen size or resolution. Your website and content might look different on each device. Your mobile marketing campaign should be tested on all popular devices, to be sure that it looks right on each one.
Creating a mobile app with lots of helpful information for your target market is a great mobile marketing strategy. Any apps that give users helpful hints or useful information are wildly popular. You can use your app as a lead-generation tool for other products, or sell the app directly for profit.
Mobile Marketing
Understanding how mobile marketing works is very important if you want to use it to help your business reach as many people as possible. The points in this article have hopefully given you a better understanding of how mobile marketing can work for your business. Use the pointers presented here as a starting point.
Article Source: http://larne-business-marketing-advertising.co.uk/mobile-service/top-benefits-and-tips-for-mobile-marketing/
The State of Mobile Content Marketing [INFOGRAPHIC]
With all the technology that is now available, content is being consumed in many different ways and on many different devices. While desktops and tablets are big players in the game, mobile devices seem to have a big influence on click through rates and browsing. In 2013, mobile content marketing will generate a large return on investment if done properly.
We gathered research from our corporate blogging platform client, Compendium, and email marketing software client, ExactTarget, to show the impact of mobile marketing over the past couple of years and what is yet to come. When all the data was put together, there were some startling findings:
- Open rates on mobile devices have increased by 300% from October 2010 to October 2012.
- Mobile email creates twice as many conversions as social activities or search.
- Mobile may not mean “on the go.” 51% of US mobile users browse, search, and purchase on mobile devices at home.
- Web visits on a mobile or tablet device are highest on Thursday at 15.7%.
- SMS marketing messaging is becoming more popular, with 31.2% of agencies using this tactic to increase click through.
What is the state of mobile content marketing? Get in the game, or lose the opportunity for click throughs, conversions, and engagement.
Mobile & Loyalty Programs [INFOGRAPHIC]
This infographic from Chadwick Martin Bailey illustrates the potential of loyalty programs coupled with mobile wallets.
![loyalty and mobile 5148cf5434603 Mobile & Loyalty Programs [INFOGRAPHIC]](http://thumbnails.visually.netdna-cdn.com/loyalty-and-mobile_5148cf5434603.png "Mobile & Loyalty Programs [INFOGRAPHIC]")
Article Source: http://trends.e-strategyblog.com/2013/03/20/mobile-loyalty-programs-infographic/9607
Mobile Marketing Budgets to Balloon in 2013
Budgets for mobile marketing will get bigger next year, according to a new study run by Strongmail and presented by eMarketer.
The study in question suggests that 70% of marketers will ramp up their mobile budgets in 2013.
“A lot of brands have spent far too much money on mobile applications,” Scott Forshay, a mobile and emerging technology strategist for emarketing company Acquity Group, tells Mashable.
The time for greater emphasis and financial backing on mobile marketing has finally come.
This year, mobile ad spending in the U.S. is expected to reach $2.6 billion. That includes spending on display, search and messaging-based formats. And another estimate shows mobile advertising on smartphones will be a $5.04 billion industry by 2015.
“Of that $2.6 billion spent, $2.5 [billion] of that was probably wasted,” Forshay admits. “Probably the biggest error brands have made as they venture into mobile is that they think mobile is the same thing they’re doing for the website, just down to a 4-inch form.”
“Mobile users are not tethered to a desktop. They need timely information to drive them into stores with positive purchase intent,” he says, adding that marketing on mobile devices “will need to be timely, personal and contextually relevant (people expect their phone to be customized to who they are), in order to work.”
Article Source: http://www.mobilemarketingwatch.com/mobile-marketing-budgets-to-balloon-in-2013-24180/
Why is SMS Not Playing a Bigger Role in Brands’ Marketing Efforts?
When it comes to mobile marketing, SMS is a trusted old friend – it has been around longer than other mobile marketing techniques, has a broad reach and, for a well-executed campaign, the results can be impressive. So why do many marketers still overlook SMS?
Part of the problem is image – SMS is often closely associated with feature phones and, therefore, bypassed when brands start thinking about smartphones. There are other issues such as difficulties getting short codes and the need to work with carriers, but with open rates of nearly 100 percent, some big marketers such as Dunkin’ Donuts and McDonald’s are beginning to take notice.
“SMS is an overlooked channel,” said Julie Roth Novack, senior vice president of mobile solutions at Vibes. “It went out of favor a year or two ago with the growth in smartphones.
“In people’s minds, SMS is connected with feature phones but the fact of the matter is SMS is the No. 1 app on smartphones,” she said. “There is this idea that because you are going after smartphone users, you don’t need SMS.
“We have really seen a shift in the past six months, with our retail partners saying that SMS is a critical part of their strategy.”
Short codes a challenge
SMS service providers agree that it has not reached its potential as a marketing technique, often because marketers get so excited about the richer experiences they can deliver via apps and the mobile Web.
There are other challenges, too, such as that marketers need to have a better understanding of how SMS can fit into a broad mobile strategy. Additionally, a certain level of expertise is required to set up an SMS program to insure that the permissions are structured properly and to understand how to work with the wireless carriers.
Perhaps of the biggest challenges are the short codes used in SMS campaigns. Typically, a mobile phone user is asked to text a keyword to a short code initiate a dialogue of some kind with a marketer.
“One of the largest hurdles for brands wanting to leverage SMS marketing is understanding and dealing with the short code process,” said Jared Reitzin, CEO of mobileStorm, Los Angeles. “Since SMS relies on the use of shared or dedicated short codes, brands have to wade through the confusion, ambiguity and complication of short code setup, provisioning, regulation and best practices.
“Until these processes are simplified and made much more affordable, brands will continue to skip SMS as a viable marketing channel,” he said. “Broader use of SMS marketing will come when the barrier of entry is lowered substantially in terms of acquiring and using short codes, in addition to regulatory scrutiny for not only large organizations, but small businesses as well.”
SMS success
In addition to these challenges, marketers often do not know how to market via SMS because of the limited character count and lack of rich media. However, increasingly marketers are understanding that SMS, with its immediacy, broad reach and high open rates, can be an important way to drive users to richer app and mobile Web experiences.
“Through its inherent limitations with character-count and lack of rich media, SMS is better used as a contact point to drive engagement to other relevant channels, rather than being used exclusively to drive a specific action,” Mr. Reitzin said. “The primary benefits of SMS are the immediacy, the nearly ubiquitous reach, and the nearly 100 percent open rate.
“Using these attributes to drive traffic to more engaging channels like the mobile Web or mobile apps is where it’s true power lies,” he said. “Until marketers understand this formula, its full potential will never be fully realized.
The examples of SMS’ success are numerous and growing.
For example, Dunkin Donuts recently sent 7,500 mobile coupons via SMS that offered a latte for $.99, per Mr. Reiztin. The brand supported the SMS call-to-action through local radio mentions and WAP targeting on local-interest sites.
The promotion increased in-store traffic 21 percent and a full 17 percent of participants forwarded or showed the message to a friend for the all-important viral effect.
“The potential for SMS growth has still not reached its apex,” said Jeff Hasen, chief marketing officer of Hipcricket, Kirkland, WA.
“Companies need to have an understanding of their customers’ desires and needs from a marketing perspective,” he said. “SMS isn’t for every brand and that baseline user knowledge is the first step to a successful mobile campaign.
“SMS campaigns are an excellent way to engage with consumers, offering a call-to-action that they can’t pass up. Marketers that can go the next step by making their SMS campaigns relevant and local will see a greater response and return on investment.”
Article Source: http://www.mobilemarketer.com/cms/news/messaging/13218.html
In a Relationship: College Students and Their Smartphones [INFOGRAPHIC]
College students aren’t just concerned with getting good grades and finding the best parties. More than ever, they’re using their smartphones to navigate life on campus.
On the bus, waiting in line, in bed, on the treadmill and even while driving, college students can’t seem to put their phones down. Fifty-two percent say they often check their phones before getting out of bed in the morning, according to one study. Nearly half do so while in bed at night before they fall asleep.
Thirty-five percent say they sometimes use their phones while driving but stopped at a red light, and nearly 20% say they sometimes use them while the wheels are even moving. But it’s not all addiction and danger. Forty-five percent of college students say smartphones frequently help with school assignments, and 46% say they’re often helpful for work-related tasks.
The Internet education portal OnlineColleges pulled this data and more from sources including the Pew Internet & American Life Project, University of Colorado and Nielsen to produce the infographic below.
Among other notable findings: More colleges students use iPhones than any other device, email has nearly caught text messaging as the most popular use for smartphones among college students and nearly half of students use their phones to check the weather.
Check out the full infographic below for more information and let us know in the comments — do you think smartphones are doing more to distract or help college students?
Article Source: http://mashable.com/2012/06/30/smartphones-college-students-infographic/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Mashable+%28Mashable%29
Restaurant Industry Is Leading the Pack in Mobile Adoption [INFOGRAPHIC]
The restaurant and food industry is embracing the mobile movement more than other business sectors, according to a new infographic.
DudaMobile, a service that makes websites mobile ready, found that restaurants and food services from pizzerias and bakeries to food trucks take 28% of the total percentage of small to medium-sized businesses that have a mobile-friendly site.
This category is far more advanced than other industries looking to reach out to smartphone users, including professional services such as locksmiths and attorneys (16%), health and wellness including spas and salons (10%), travel and tourism such as hotels (8%) and automobile/transportation (6%). Retailer was number six on the list (5%) for small to medium-sized businesses.
DudaMobile also noted that nearly 20% of visits to a mobile-optimized website result in an immediate call to the business.
The infographic also noted that 70% of smartphone owners use their device while shopping. In addition, about 51% of business travelers use mobile devices to find out information while on the go.
For a full look at which industries are embracing mobile, check out the infographic below.
Article Source: http://mashable.com/2012/06/14/mobile-adoption/
5 Mobile Marketing Questions Every Business Owner Needs Answered
Everywhere you look, people are on their smartphones — but many aren’t talking. They’re browsing, texting and using apps, which makes them a tempting target for marketers.
According to communication technologies agency the International Communication Union, there are now 5.9 billion users of smartphones and other mobile devices, representing 87 percent of the world’s population. The ICU also reports that 1.5 billion people are using the mobile web.
That’s a huge business opportunity. But where do you start? Here is some insight on five mobile marketing questions every business owner wants answered.
1. Should I build a mobile website or a mobile app?
Most businesses will want to build or optimize their websites for mobile rather than build an application. Think of the fundamental reasons your customers would visit your website, especially if they’re on the go. Make sure that on a phone or tablet screen your site’s navigation is easy to use, there’s no need for unnecessary zooming or scrolling, and the main things your audience wants are easy to locate.
One of my favorite examples of a great mobile website is PapaJohns.com. There are three big buttons — order a pizza for delivery, order a pizza for pick-up and find a location. If you want something else, go to the website on a computer, not a phone.
2. When does a smartphone app make sense?
Apps don’t replace your mobile website. They supplement your audience’s experience. Some businesses — especially media outlets or those with a high volume of original content, such as blog posts or videos — may be able to develop a useful service via an app.
New York’s Mermaid Oyster Bar includes its menu, locations, hours and a reservation link on its mobile-optimized website, along with a button to install its Oysterpedia application. The app is a companion encyclopedia of all things oyster, including photos and descriptions of the many varieties. It lets users bookmark their favorite oysters and share information with their social networks.
The app is subtle. It doesn’t directly ask people to visit the brick-and-mortar location, but it certainly establishes the restaurant as an authority. And where would you prefer to dine on oysters? Where the authority prepares them, of course.
3. What is responsive design and should I invest in it?
Responsive design is a relatively new approach to web design and development that essentially bakes in mobile optimization to your website rather than your having to create multiple site designs. Think of it as having one website rather than three — one for the desktop browser, one for a tablet and one for a phone.
Some content management systems and blog themes are emerging that incorporate responsive design. Also, many developers are building new websites with responsive design techniques in mind. So, responsive design can be had for minimal investment if you’re using WordPress or a similar open-source content management system.
4. What are QR Codes and how can I use them?
QR, or quick response, codes are basically bar codes that serve as a link to send a phone’s browser to a web address. Users scan the code with a QR code reader they have downloaded to their phones.
You can use QR codes to deliver coupons, get customers to register for your email newsletter, or even send them to “Like” you on Facebook. But be sure to make the QR process simple and efficient. The web address you send people to should be optimized for mobile, and you should include instructions on using the code for newbies.
Just over 6 percent of U.S. mobile users had scanned a QR code as of mid-2011, according to digital analytics service comScore, Inc. So, the market penetration is small. But the adoption of QR use has grown exponentially since the bar codes hit the U.S. market in the mid-2000s.
5. How close are we to mobile commerce?
Depending on your definition, we’re already mobile-commerce ready with existing technology. Not only do mobile hardware accessories such as Square provide credit card readers that plug into your mobile devices, but platforms including Flint Mobile also remove the hardware requirement by using your phone’s camera to scan the credit card number.
But other products such as Google Wallet, which incorporate Near Field Communications — a far more secure radio communication from a device like your phone to another device such as a cash register — are still in limited testing phases. The carrier, device and operating system companies have yet to agree on industry standards for security and privacy protection. So you’re not likely to see people waving cell phones in front of your credit card readers in the near future. Still, keep an eye on Google Wallet and other mobile commerce developments.
We have answered some of the basic questions, but there’s a lot more to know about mobile marketing before you dive in. Helpful online resources include Google’s HowToGoMo.com and the site mobithinking.com, which includes many statistics and insights.
Article Source: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/223711
Making Sense of Mobile Marketing
The versatility of mobile as a marketing tool is one of its biggest assets. Arguably, also, one of its biggest problems – for a new brand coming to the mobile channel new, there’s so much you can do that the problem is knowing what you should do.
Think about the modern day mobile phone for a moment and, in particular, the differences between a smartphone and a PC. On the down side, the phone has a smaller screen, so whatever you do in marketing terms to a PC audience, you can’t simply assume you can do the same stuff on a mobile.
Then think about all the advantages the mobile phone holds over the PC. The first and most obvious one is that we all tend to take our phones with us wherever we go. If we see something out on the street with a call to action, such as a shortcode (a five-digit number often seen on outdoor posters) or a QR code, we can use the mobile to react instantly to that piece of marketing
Then think about the phone’s camera. Naturally, this enables the user to take still or moving images but, allied to an augmented reality app, it can serve up a totally different view of the world, one which can tell the user what’s going on around them at that moment, simply by holding up the phone in front of them.
And because the modern smartphone knows not only where you are, but which way you are pointing, you only have to turn around with the phone in front of you to see what’s going on in the other or opposite direction.
So if you’re in the business of selling houses, for example, you could create an augmented reality app which lets the user see which houses are for sale around them, simply by holding the phone in front of them. It’s something the online estate agent Findaproperty.com has already done.
Now put yourself in the shoes of a marketing director for a big brand which has got its online act together, is active on Facebook and Twitter, but has not yet got to grips with this mobile thing.
Where do you start to make sense of the marketing opportunities it presents? And how do you avoid being blinded by the technology and producing something you think is very clever, but which offers little value to your customers?
Well I think a good place to start is with those customers. Ask them what services you could serve up to their mobile phone that would be of some value or utility to them. For a retailer, it could be an app or a mobile site that enables customers to buy from you whenever they have a couple of minutes to kill. Many retailers, in fact, have gone down this route.
It could be a way of locating your nearest retail outlet, branch, cash machine or post box, and finding out about any special offers that you are running at that moment – it could simply be a way of keeping up to date about the latest news from the brand.
In the early days of mobile marketing, following the launch of the iPhone in 2007, and the Apple App Store the following year – actually, mobile geeks will know the early days were actually around the year 2000, but 2007 is when it really started to gain some momentum – most brands’ answer to the question: “What should we be doing on mobile?” was: “We should be doing an iPhone app.”
Today, thankfully, things have moved on. While an app may indeed be the answer for many brands, offering, as it does, the opportunity for a deep, rich engagement with their customers, most are taking a bit more time to examine the question in greater detail.
This, indeed, is why the mobile marketing business is experiencing such rapid growth; marketers and budget holders are realising there is so much more to the world of mobile marketing than apps.
Many are taking a more rounded, holistic approach that embraces apps, but also, mobile-optimised sites, mobile advertising, mobile coupons and tickets, location-based services, and customer relationship management programs based around mobile messaging to customers who have given their permission for the brand to send messages to their mobile phone. At the last count, Marks & Spencer had more than 1 million customers opted in to its mobile database.
Those brands that got in early are now reaping the rewards, having learned what works and what doesn’t, while most mobile marketing activity was well away from the public glare. Those joining the party late are at least joining the party, driven by the results their peers have experienced on mobile, and are now shouting about.
Marks & Spencer has been shouting louder than most. Last year, it revealed it had taken an order for more than £5,000 for kitchen units via its mobile-optimised site. More recently, in May 2012, it reported that its revenues from mobile had increased by 300% over the past 12 months.
In May last year, Domino’s Pizza revealed that it had taken £10m in orders though its mobile properties, including apps and a mobile-optimised site. Then in October, it announced that it had taken £130,000 in orders through mobile devices in a single day.
These are figures that are hard to ignore, and they are helping marketers overcome one of the biggest challenges they face with any new channel – securing the budget to try it out.
As more success stories emerge, and more funds are released, so more brands are embracing mobile, recognising its unique power as a one-to-one communication channel, with the important proviso that before it is used for any direct communication, such as a text message sent to a customer, for example, it is vital that the customer’s permission is sought and obtained.
At Mobile Marketing Live on 1-2 October at the Business Design Centre in London, we will be exploring the challenges and opportunities presented by the mobile channel in more detail. Leading brands such as the Guardian, Barclaycard, Debenhams and Domino’s will discuss their experiences using mobile marketing. If you’re trying to move from what you could do on mobile, to what you should do on mobile, it’s a great place to start.
Article Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media-network/media-network-blog/2012/jun/06/mobile-marketing-retail?newsfeed=true
How to Attract Local Customers Using Mobile
Are you using mobile to reach customers in a specific location?
Location-based advertising is nothing new, but mobile has brought it to an entirely different level and the numbers tell the story: BIA/Kelsey predicts explosive growth for mobile local advertising over the next four years, from $784 million in 2011 to $5.01 billion in 2016!
So if it’s local customers you’re after, check out these recommendations for reaching them with mobile:
1. Build a mobile site.
At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I’m going to list this as the first step, with the key benefit being discoverability. A customer looking for a shoe repair shop in his area is most likely going to plug those keywords and a city name into Google. Make sure your business can be found and deliver an experience that is optimized for mobile.
If you need help getting started, check out How to Build a Mobile Website.
2. Optimize for search engines.
As with your desktop site, search engine optimization (SEO) is a mobile must-have. However, mobile is different – searches tend to be task-oriented and location-specific. Cindy Krum from Mobile Moxie suggests the following in an article from Bluetrain Mobile:
- Set up proper device detection and redirection to your mobile site.
- Optimize meta data (title tags, alt tags, etc.).
- Spend some time on local SEO, meaning get your business information listed in local search tools like Google Places and Yelp.
3. Invest in paid search.
Last year, Google released a study showing that 89% of paid search clicks are incremental to those from organic search, meaning that they would be lost if a paid search campaign were stopped.
Don’t neglect this powerful tool for driving local mobile traffic. Google offers a number of mobile-specific ad formats, some of which are tailor-made for local searches (“Location Extensions” or “Ads with Offers,” for example).
4. Run a mobile display campaign.
Mobile display affords marketers almost limitless targeting capabilities. Aiming for the businessperson contemplating lunch in her area? Run a campaign targeted to business publications, from 11am – 2pm, targeted to a specific city or zip code. Just don’t refine too much or you won’t have an audience!
Check out iMedia Connection’s guide to mobile display advertising, then start by running a campaign with a self-service ad network like mMedia or Jumptap.
5. Combine geofencing and SMS.
We’ve sung the praises of SMS here before. When combined with geofencing, which is the practice of creating virtual fences around locations like stores or offices, the result is very powerful. A user could enter a geofence around your store and receive an exclusive SMS coupon!
It is especially important to develop a geofencing campaign that is relevant to individual customers, doesn’t message too often and respects privacy. Consider Placecast and iLoop for such an initiative.
Mobile presents marketers with new ways to reach local customers more effectively than ever before. Today, pick one of the tactics above, contact a vendor or your agency and get started today!
Article Source: http://60secondmarketer.com/blog/2012/06/06/how-to-attract-local-customers-using-mobile/
