Written by: Sophorn Chhay
The growth of the mobile technology niche has been astounding. Companies are falling all over themselves to deliver everyone in our increasingly on-the-go society devices that help them connect whenever they want from wherever they may be. How can we, as companies, take advantage of the global network and reach our customer base in new and exciting ways? If you want to boost your business’s profile – not to mention your bottom line – you need to get creative. Better yet, you need to go mobile. Here are 7 ways you can take your mobile marketing efforts to the next level in 2016:
Deliver the Right Design
Mobile is much more than just smartphones now. You have tablets of all shapes and sizes plus wearable technology, and every screen has its own set of dimensions, clarity, color tint, etc. Creating an effective mobile marketing campaign demands graphics and responsive design, which ensures your content will adapt to fit the requirements of whatever device on which it will be read. Also consider:
- Your landing page. This is the first thing people see when they arrive at your website, and there are certain elements that should be included.
- Banner ads. You want to generate revenue, but you don’t want to irritate mobile users who can’t click out of a floating graphic.
Set Up Your SMS Messaging
Texting: it’s not just for teens anymore. SMS messaging has an incredibly high open rate. Some sources say as many as 99 percent of texts are opened within just a few minutes – a much higher open rate than email, by the way – which means your flash sale notice or product launch update or subscription confirmation will not only actually reach your customer but reach them faster.
Offer Mobile Coupons and Digital Discounts
Paper coupons clipped out of the Sunday paper are only useful if the consumer gets the paper, finds the coupon, cuts it out, and remembers to bring it to the store. Those types of coupons also leave out entire industries that offer more creative discounts far beyond the world of bargain bin ramen. Encourage consumers to subscribe to your SMS list (see above) and you can send them customized coupons for click-and-save sales or a last minute buy-one-get-one happy hour deal to help boost that evening’s till.
Think Beyond the Written Word
Blogs will always be important, but how we frame the information we want to convey is changing. In addition to the text, content marketing now includes infographics, pictures, and, perhaps most importantly, video. Video ads on social media that activate as the user scrolls by are incredibly eye-catching, and when you have mere seconds to capture the attention of potential consumers, a picture can sometimes be worth a thousand clicks.
Get an App
Some companies can get away with just advertising on other people’s apps, but if you want to control your content stream and capture the attention of consumers in a truly comprehensive way, you need your own mobile app. It can be simple and streamlined with only a few functions or a complex app that integrates a variety of functionalities and users across your internal network. Whether you’re helping existing consumers manage and spend loyalty reward points or organizing your inventory management and ordering systems, an app repackages things in an intuitive and easy-to-use way – and you control every inch of it.
Get to Know Local SEO
SEO, or search engine optimization, has been important for a long time, but the way we use SEO is changing. Strategically scattering relevant keywords throughout your content is still important, but now there’s increased emphasis on geographically based keywords such as zip codes, city names, the names of shopping centers, and so on. Think about it: when you search for a doctor, do you simply enter “good dermatologist” or “good dermatologist near Las Vegas”? People crave convenience, and find what they need close to home is important to them. It works well for businesses, too; Google found that 50 percent of consumers initiating a local search using their smartphone went on to visit a local store found via that search within one day.
Merge Your Offline and Online Campaigns
The line between online and offline worlds is definitely blurred. Maximize your reach and create an exponentially effective marketing campaign by adding mobile elements to your print collateral, such as a QR code on an end-cap display or product packaging that directs shoppers to online price comparisons, celebrity endorsements, or reviews. You can also reference sales at brick-and-mortar stores on your website, or allow the goods purchased via an online blowout to be returned in-store. It’s one world – treat it as such!
When formulating your marketing plan for the upcoming year, don’t forget about the biggest mobile trends from 2015. Build on what works and customize it to fit the needs, goals, and mission statement of your own company, and you’ll find yourself connecting – and converting – like never before.
Author Biography: Sophorn Chhay
Sophorn is an inbound marketer specializing in attracting targeted visitors and generating sales qualified leads. Through Trumpia’s mass text messaging automation solution he helps businesses and organizations communicate effectively with their customers or members. Watch Trumpia’s 5-Minute Demo on how to execute an effective mobile marketing strategy.
