Smartphones and tablets with high-speed Internet are becoming more affordable by the day, which means more and more people are using them instead of their computers. You may think you can rely on your standard marketing techniques to draw in mobile customers, but think again. There are a number of astute things that you can do to to get the attention of people on the move.
Personalize your messages. Use the subscriber’s name and make sure the platform you use can inset the person’s inputted information into the message. Having personalized messages helps improve your relationship with your customers. You have only 160 characters and the person’s name is included, no matter the length. Try keeping your messages short when you personalize them.
Invest some time and effort into making your mobile marketing technique personal and customizable. If you are creating an application, make it unique and simple to use and consider providing customers with relevant customization options. If you are not creating a full blown application, at least make your mobile communications engaging and enjoyable.
You must remember that in order to receive something from your subscribers you have to give to them. Try offering some type of incentive. This can be special access to relevant information, special mobile content, or even some coupons to help increase their take rates and your subscribers’ participation.
Try to set a budget and stick to it if you want to market effectively. Shooting past your budget can quickly cause your campaign to fall apart, if only because you may start to change how you handle things due to a fear of money. Work meticulously to stay within your budget for mobile marketing success.
If you are sending out text messages or any other type of materials to customers via your mobile marketing campaign, make sure that you keep the file sizes as small as possible. Some people have serious bandwidth limitations and cannot receive or store large file sizes. Anything that is too big will just be ignored.
Your mobile marketing campaign should never replace an existing campaign; it should simply complement it. You should be using mobile marketing in order to keep your current customers and/or to cater to mobile users within your market niche. Just make sure to keep your other campaigns running.
Be very aware of the market conditions around you when involved in mobile marketing. If anything changes that you’re not absolutely prepared for, you can easily be left behind and lose a lot of business. The internet is constantly changing, especially the still-evolving mobile leg of it. Always stay prepared for change.
Playing to the status of your customers is a huge deal and a surefire way you can improve on your mobile marketing campaign. People wait out in line for days to get an high-end Phone in part for the same reason people wear a Gold Watch: It’s a status symbol. Offering status-boosting incentives is a great way to keep your customers on the hook.
Get permission before starting to add cell phone numbers to your database. Getting permission means you have found someone who is interested in your service or product. If you fail to get permission, you are sending messages that will likely never even be read. Sending messages without permission can also be a great way to ruin your reputation.
To encourage more people to sign up for something you’re offering, give away something free. For example, if you’re trying to get people to sign up for a ringtone service, offer them one ringtone at no charge if they text RINGTONE to your number. People love getting something for free, and having them text to get it makes it feel less like a transaction.
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.
If you are planning on sending out text messages, give your audience the option to opt-in and let people know how often you are going to text them before they sign up. If SMS messages are done improperly it can harm your business because of the close tie-in with the notification system of the mobile device. It can feel like it’s invading peoples’ privacy. Ensure that your texting service requires opting in, and make sure your customers know that you won’t send more than a certain number of texts each month. This honesty will go a long way to building trust in your brand.
Build exclusivity and status into your mobile marketing. Mobile devices themselves have become aspirational. Phones, tablets and even some mobile apps have become symbols of status. Follow suit with your mobile marketing by offering exclusive content to your mobile readers or downloads only available to those who have subscribed for mobile messaging.
Have maps and directions on your mobile website to make it more mobile friendly. A lot of people use apps to locate places. List your business with Google Maps and similar websites. Make it simple for people to find your location. Have maps that are clear, so when people do a search it is easier to find. Include a link that allows the customer to find your location through Google Maps.
Don’t forget email when you are building your mobile marketing strategy. Modern smart phones have rich email clients or the ability to open web-based email clients like Gmail or Yahoo. If you are targeting mobile users with your email campaign, be sure to optimize you email creative to make sure it is effective on a smaller screen.
You shouldn’t underestimate the amount of potential that mobile marketing has. Using methods specifically designed to attract those using a mobile device should get you a great response. Keep this advice in mind as you make the move into mobile marketing. When mobile marketing is done right, the results can truly be impressive.
