7 Ways to Use Mobile Marketing to Grow Your Business

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mobile marketing tips

In today’s fast-paced society, it seems like the one thing that we can be sure of is that cell phones and tablets are not going away. In fact, by the end of 2013 mobile devices are expected to outnumber people!  What does this mean for your business?

…tablet users generated 2.4 times more traffic than the average smartphone…

Whether they’re on a bus, in a restaurant, or just walking down the street, people are constantly ingesting information – everything from social media to product reviews and much, much more. And with the growth of tablet usage this on-the-go type of content consumption is not diminishing anytime soon. Did you know that tablet users generated 2.4 times more traffic than the average smartphone?

Knowing that, it makes sense that businesses should strive to make their brand stand out in the mobile world. If you’re wondering how to harness the power of mobile to move your business forward, take a look at these ideas to help you survive in the mobile market.

SMS marketing
Utilizing SMS messaging makes it easy for people to interact with your business. Chances are high that most of your potential mobile customers are spending a decent amount of time texting already, so engaging them on a platform they’re familiar with will immediately make them more comfortable. Sites like Swipely.com and EZ TExting can help you build your SMS marketing strategy easily and quickly.

Customer Support by Text
When it comes to customer service, many people dread picking up the phone and trying to accomplish anything. Online offerings are often no better, making users jump through hoops checking FAQs and creating accounts to submit support “tickets.” But what if a customer could just text your company, and you or any of your employees could respond from an iPad or computer? Companies like TextUs.biz let you do just that, and cut down on time spent behind a counter or in an office on the phone.

Contests
Giveaways will always be a valid marketing tool, and incorporating this idea into your mobile marketing simply makes it easier than ever. At a recent convention I attended, a computer accessory company had fans tweet pictures of themselves wearing the company’s products for a chance to win pairs of headphones. In doing so, the company was able to continually post pictures of winners and contest reminders, keeping them in the forefront of their fans’ minds.

Podcasts
Podcasts have been around for a long time, and they are still an excellent way to get information out to people. While video is great, a purely audio podcast allows your users greater freedom when choosing when and how to listen on their mobile device. From their phone they are able to listen to it in their car on the way to and from work, while they’re running or at the gym, or even while they’re browsing the web.

QR Codes
QR codes were hyped as the “next big thing,” but sadly they’ve been misused and overused to the point where they’re little more than a joke to most people. That’s a shame, because QR codes can still be used in ways that save time and hassle. A few quick tips: Make sure your QR codes are positioned in logical places where people can actually get to them, and also make sure that your codes are linking to relevant information or providing a service, like entering users into giveaways, etc. If your QR code lets users do in 45 seconds what they could accomplish on Google in 15 seconds, all you’re doing is wasting time and garnering ill will.

Mobile-Ready Website
A popular trend for “mobile-ready” versions of sites is to strip down the site to just the basic information. However, in many cases a stripped-down version of your regular website is probably not going to win you the adoration of your mobile visitors. You need to make sure your mobile-version of your site offers the same type of experience as your full site in a way that makes sense to the device they are using.

The typical consumer today is far more tech savvy than they were even a few short years ago, and if your mobile platform can’t cut it, there are plenty of online businesses ready to take their money. On top of that, the fact that so many businesses are already offering excellent mobile sites means that you need to be at the top of your game just to keep up.

You may want to consider creating multiple landing pages designed for mobile devices that focus on providing the information that people are most likely looking for on their phone or tablet, like store hours, specials, featured products, etc.

Self-Test Your Mobile Offerings
Chances are, if you’ve had a mobile page or app designed, you’ve at least glanced at it to make sure everything seems to be in order. Unfortunately, the slightest hiccup in any part of the process can cause your users to give up in frustration and take their business elsewhere.

To prevent this, make sure that you take some time to completely explore your mobile offerings and make sure that everything is in proper working order. Even better, ask some of your family and friends to do specific actions like “Try to order X product” or “See how long it takes you to find the specials.” This can give you a much clearer idea of how effective your mobile marketing is.

 

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