It’s an advertiser’s dream to find a way to reach a wide audience of current and potential customers, cheaply and in a way that actively engages them with the brand. Mobile marketing strategies allow you to do all this and more. With mobile marketing, businesses can access customers wherever they are.
It’s no secret that most smartphone users keep their devices within easy reach at all times, and strong mobile strategies like text messaging, mobile check-ins, mobile-friendly coupons, and apps will allow you to promote your brand and build a loyal customer base. It just makes sense: reach your customers where they are already looking.
No matter how big or small the company is, anyone can take advantage of the opportunities offered by this channel. The first step is to develop a plan to adopt mobile marketing strategies for your business. These tips can help you lead the way.
Your website design looks great when accessed on a PC, now is the time to make sure you have it optimized for mobile devices. Users will abandon a website that doesn’t load on a tablet or is difficult to read and use on a smartphone.
Simply put, today’s customers expect to be served. If you make your digital presence difficult, consumers will turn to a business that makes it perfect, so if you don’t have a mobile-responsive website, you’ll be behind the competition.
Since tablet devices have the highest add-to-cart ratios of all device types, investing in a mobile-ready website is a smart choice.
Most mobile device users use apps every day and 89% of mobile media time is spent on apps. Now is the time to get ahead of this trend and create a custom app for your business. With an app, you can send push notifications, offer a loyalty rewards program, and introduce new products or services.
It is the ideal way to develop a solid and economical marketing program. With geofence push notifications, you can market directly to customers who are looking for you.
Loyalty programs will keep your customers coming back. Old-fashioned punch cards are dated and easily lost. When you can give your customers a digital alternative, you give customers a way to keep your brand close.
Best of all, though, a well-designed app encourages your customers to engage with your brand and the content you offer. Some app designers specialize in custom apps for small businesses, so look for their expertise.
If you’re not into the idea of tinkering with technology, a number of development companies use app builders that allow them to produce apps that are geared toward helping small businesses strengthen their mobile presence.
If you already accept credit cards, the next step is to accept mobile payments. Mobile wallets and payment services are affordable and simplify transactions for your customers. They are also becoming increasingly popular as a means of payment.
Accepting payments online won’t be much different than what you’re used to now. Accepting payments in person will require a bit of additional hardware: an NFC reader. Customers will need to hold their devices over this reader to verify payment. Like card readers, NFC scanners are available at no additional cost from many payment processors. In fact, if your hardware has been upgraded to a chip-compatible version, you may already have all the technology you need.
If you haven’t used a payment processor before, or need to switch, remember to compare mobile payment processors to find the one that best suits your needs. Processors may offer different fee structures, devices, security, and customer support, so consider which service suits your style and type of business.
Instagram and Facebook aren’t just for vacation photos. Social media platforms are great for growing your audience and exposing your brand to new customers. Use the “soft sell” approach: create engaging content, share expert advice, and include images that showcase the benefits of your services.
Before you start posting, remember to create a new account or page for your business. You can use your personal account to promote yourself to everyone you know, but your professional image must be separate from your personal life.
Social media is an inexpensive way to connect with new and established customers and build goodwill for your brand, but for a small business, trying to keep up with all the social media available can be difficult. Find out where your customers spend the most time and focus your efforts on those social sites. Keep your information up to date on all networks, but don’t worry about regularly posting on a network that isn’t relevant to your customers.
Most of the world has embraced text messaging, so now is a great time for small businesses to give it a try. Create opt-in text campaigns that allow customers to receive alerts and rewards via text message. Text marketing is a great way to send urgent news or special promotions and encourage customers to take specific actions to earn rewards. Mobile users are also more likely to open a text message quickly compared to emails.
Just like with email, remember to get the go-ahead first from the person you’re texting. Spam, in all its forms, is a bad thing. If you have their permission, don’t send too many offers. Once a week, twice if it is a lot, is a good rhythm. There are special programs for managing text message campaigns (like email campaigns), so familiarize yourself with a few of them before you dive in.
Order tracking, phone and email support, are all critical aspects of customer service and things you probably already have. Now they just need to be available to your mobile customers. Make sure customer service information appears on your mobile website accurately. Consider adding text or chat support as well, if you can.
Consider these numbers: 40% of all mobile searches are for a local business, and 88% of users searching for a local business will contact them within 24 hours. That’s why it pays to sign up for mobile directories, like Yelp and Google+ Local. Check that your entries are accurate and make sure to include all the details of your business, including name, address, phone number, website link and hours of operation.
The more information you provide, the easier it will be for people searching for you to find your business instead of your competition. The registration process for any directory is usually straightforward and shouldn’t take more than 20 minutes.
Everyone loves a good deal, and coupons have become a familiar part of the marketing landscape. Coupons generate interest, stimulate customers to act and encourage loyalty.
The day of the paper coupon, however, has passed. Consumers redeem mobile offers ten times more frequently than paper coupons. Remembering to take the piece of paper to the store is complicated, the mobile device, however, is always with us.
Sending digital coupons can take several forms: you can create an email campaign with a scan-able barcode or send a text message as mentioned above. Above all, the most effective way is to send the offer through a branded application.
If you’re still not sure how mobile marketing fits into your business, consider the following:
Small businesses thrive when they provide personalized service and interact directly with customers. Mobile marketing is the 2022 version of this close relationship. When small business owners use mobile devices to engage with customers, they strengthen that personal connection and build their brand.
Most marketing experts agree that any campaign must have a significant mobile focus. Gone are the days of print advertising alone, consumers today expect businesses to reach out, educate, inform and entertain. Modern buyers were born into the digital age and they expect you to reach out to them.
The good news is that any company can follow this trend. Mobile marketing doesn’t require a lot of technical knowledge or a big budget to implement. In fact, setting up a campaign that takes advantage of our tips can be done in less than a week on a budget of $100 or less.
If you’re not ready to take that leap, start with optimizing your mobile website and work your way up the list from there. Once you start to see the difference, you’ll be encouraged to put more effort into your mobile marketing campaigns.
