Best Ways to Stay Ahead in Mobile Marketing

The first major adjustment businesses had to cater to was switching towards the online world. To the traditional marketers, that was a shock to the system. Yet there is so much more complexity when it comes to the digital forms out there.

In this respect, mobile has to sit atop the tree. To drive conversions and revenue skywards, catering to smartphone users must become a priority.

According to Hootsuite, 94% of Australians use a mobile device with 80% accessing a smartphone. To put this into perspective, mobile users (19.43 million) fall just shy of Internet users (21.18 million) domestically.

Any enterprise that is not catering their marketing efforts to mobile platforms are being left behind. The question is – what is the best way to engage with these users?

Be App Savvy

Rarely will mobile device users just scan on an Internet web browser to engage online. Apps dominate the landscape in this respect because they provide a more rounded experience where users can interact faster with in-built programs.

If installed properly, they are efficient moneymaking machines and a one-stop-shop for consumers. Depending on what your niche is, from home ware appliances to financial consultancies or car services, apps provide a personalised platform for customers.

These programs enable the company to issue push notifications and save account details where others get lost or forgotten. Improving customer satisfaction will only improve your bottom line.

Bing’s Paid Search Campaigning

Tech giant Intel are an ideal case study when it comes to mobile paid search campaigns. Rather than jumping through the hoops that come with Google Adwords, they instead focused their time and energy with Bing.

This search engine was the ideal platform to run their ‘Meet the Processors’ brand campaign. Utilising a third party through search agency Covario, they drove traffic to their own website with a mixture of exact and broad matching keywords.

This tactic would garner more hits and save them approximately 40% on other search engine outlets. Intel bypassed the need to develop their aesthetics and drastically transform their smartphone strategy. Instead, they stuck to a key principle from the SEO playbook and ran with it to great success.

Be Headline Versatile

There is only a finite amount of attention one person has while scrolling through their smartphone. If that was not enough of a scenario to consider, then there is the small matter of real estate i.e. how much space you have to work with.

Put simply, small hand-held mobile devices don’t have the scope for elongated blogs, images and tabs. Some will attempt to confine this content onto one screen, but it will be to their detriment.

This is where H2 and H3 headlines are ideal. They are versatile enough when switching between platforms while remaining consistent with the remainder of the text.

As a note of caution, try and bypass H4 or smaller headlines where possible. The fluctuation in headline size only adds confusion – something that mobile platforms do not respond well to.

Get Hyperlocal

Should you take away one thing from mobile marketing methods, it should be hyperlocal. This is a means of focusing in on your target audience through geo-specific means and mapping out where you are.

To ensure that your mobile campaign is hyperlocal, stick to the following formula:

• Have your site published on review sites and local directories such as Yelp and Google My Business
• Discover which location-based keywords best match your demographic and include them in your content
• Market yourself in local publications, either through advertisements or content
• Get connected to blogs in your region

Many of the best operating mobile marketing campaigns don’t attempt to be all things to all people. Depending on what niche it is, building brand awareness in a community space helps to grow a reputation and eventually, their sales.

Speak With Customers 1-on-1

It is easy to forget how different and diverse the mobile market is out there. Whether it be Apple users, Blackberry holders or Samsung subscribers, there will be a myriad of consumers who have a different experience and forced behaviour on their smartphone.

This difference in iOS vs. Android makes it imperative that you engage with customers on a one-on-one basis. Forward them onto a customer service agent or issue a phone number that allows them to talk direct to the source. Leaving a disparity between your iOS and Android customers will only confuse the issue.

Optimal Images Only

All mobile domains must be optimised to the best of their capabilities. Sites that fall down in this respect will be left behind on search engine performance. When it comes to file sizes, they must fit this puzzle to avoid slow loading times.

Thankfully for WordPress users, they have a WP Smush plugin readily available. This handy tool enable you to compress larger file images by detecting any that are too extravagant.

Cutting down the file size might be a trade off with the quality of a high-resolution picture. This is the catch 22 that must be taken into account. However, if that image is a piece of content that slows down loading times, it is not worth holding onto. Presentation matters but mobile marketing prioritises immediacy.

Make Use of QR Codes

Mobile use is all about immediacy and efficiency. QR codes enable individuals to consume information quickly by scanning a barcode before seeing a link or promotion uploaded onto their device.

The domain where this is most applicable is pricing comparisons. Users can examine an item, scan it for price and make a judgment on the spot. It bypasses many of the hassles that come with customer service and reduces this overhead.

Should your business be promoting an event, a discount or simply on the hunt for more traffic and social media hits, then incorporate QR codes as part of your mobile marketing strategy.

Run Health & Compatibility Diagnostics

So you have installed all the new features, implemented a strong social media campaign and have your site running on mobile platforms. Yet for some reason, the results don’t seem to be strong and there is a string of negative feedback.

Why is this the case? Is there an oversight that is not being seen to or is just the customers complaining for the sake of it?

Chances are, your domain is not mobile friendly enough. There will be content that is too big to slow down loading times and the presentation is not in sync with what you have produced on a desktop.

It only makes sense then to send your page through a proper diagnostic check and discover where the problem areas are. Google’s own Mobile-Friendly Test is the ideal platform to give a basic diagnosis or a report that goes into further detail.

As well as offering a basic example of what your page looks like on a mobile device, it will inform about loading time and compatibility across device types from Android to iOS. There is no need to fly blind and just expect that all your content will be equally applicable.

Consider Voice Search Keywords

One of the great joys of having a smartphone is the ability to ask it direct for information. Either you are too busy to type in the data yourself or you prefer to let the device do the work for you. Once more, mobile is all about speed and time efficiency.

Therefore it is best to have your marketing campaigns designed for those shoppers who are asking their smartphones about your niche.

For example, a café in Bondi should cater their content to be at the forefront of this enquiry: “Siri, find me coffee in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs.”

Utilise Google Adwords to see how you can incorporate conversational language into your keyword strategy.

Engage With SMS Marketing

Text marketing can be intrusive. There is no way around this fact. However, for many users the text message is a simple form of communication which can be read, interpreted and discarded with ease. Unlike cold calls of the past, there is a limited amount of personal intrusion at play.

According to Textedly’s own research, a staggering 98% of marketing messages sent via text were opened. That is a strike rate unheard of through other forms of media or communication.

This is where the hard sell can be left for a later date. Simply letting locals know about an event or a friendly reminder towards a customer for an upcoming deal is satisfactory. Use the SMS marketing campaign sparingly, but know that it has tangible cut-through.

Send out a Survey

Do not be too humble to ask the information you are desperately searching for. Plenty of consumers will be ready, willing and able to provide the necessary feedback should the questionnaire be well formulated and presented in a timely fashion.

Find a template that suits your style from any of the following software applications:

• Survey Monkey
• SoGoSurvey
• QuestionPro
• SurveyGizmo
• Key Survey

Don’t Cut and Run

Much of these strategies are relatively straight forward, yet even the simplest tactic will require some time to reap dividends. It would be easy to engage with a mobile marketing campaign only to see it ponder along for a couple of weeks and give up.

Do not fall into that trap. Those that take their time to engage in a diligent approach will come out on top. Mobile marketing requires a combination of the following:

• Creativity
• Data research
• Imagination
• Application
• Customer awareness

Just reaching that point is a feat unto itself, then comes the execution of the mobile marketing strategy. This should not be daunting when you consider the sheer amount of users out there on their smartphones. The landscape has forever changed and it will be those enterprises that embrace the change that will thrive.

Read ➡ Facebook Business Page: From Boring to Extraordinary