The Rise of Mobile Marketing: 14 Strategies for Business Owners

If it’s unclear how critical mobile devices are in daily life, look around. With heads bent over phones and conversations streaming across imperceptible wireless earbuds, consumers rely on their smartphones and tablets for everything from finding a great restaurant to catching up with Grandma. If you’re a business owner debating whether or not to dive into mobile marketing, let these statistics help you take the leap: almost 97% of people between the ages of 16 and 64 own a smartphone, and they spend over 4.5 hours on it every day. Mobile marketing is on the rise — here are 14 strategies to help you meet your customers where they are.

1. Start with a mobile-friendly website

A mobile-friendly website means it's optimized for devices. All text and graphics fit neatly on a smartphone or tablet screen without losing quality, and the design is responsive. Not only does this mean that consumers can interact with your business no matter where they are, but it also improves search engine rankings. It lays the foundation for successful mobile marketing efforts.

A mobile-friendly website is a great first step to take while you look into other strategies. Even if you take no additional steps, this one step alone will improve your customers’ user experience and help you get started with mobile marketing without breaking the bank.

2. Invest in text

Text messages sent to consumers have a higher open rate than marketing emails (98% compared to just under 20%). Short Message Service (SMS) and Multimedia Message Service (MMS) are great ways to send time-sensitive promotions and updates but can also be used to send personalized messages and offers to customers. 

3. Develop an app

This one gets a bit more technical and may require some digital help, but developing a mobile app can give a bump to sagging sales and weak conversions. It's a convenient, branded environment that allows customers to interact with products and check out services. Typical features such as push notifications and in-app promotions are great ways to catch customers' attention. If you lack the technical skills or are on a budget and cannot afford to hire a developer just yet, a no code app builder can help you with this step.

4. Utilize geofencing

Another useful app feature is geofencing. Geofencing casts a net in a specified area (for example, a five-block or five-mile radius) that alerts customers when they enter it. This location-based marketing sends a message when customers enter the fence, offering special deals or promotions. This solution is excellent for businesses that don’t have significant native foot traffic.

5. Enable mobile payment solutions

Mobile payment solutions are fast, easy, and secure. These convenient mobile wallets enable contactless payments that can increase a consumer's impulse purchases and enhance their overall experience. 

6. Don’t ignore the socials

The statistics are astonishing. Almost 100% of smartphone users access social media on their devices.  In fact, social media platforms are accessed predominantly via mobile devices.  If you are on a limited budget, spending most of your dollars on campaigns tailored to mobile social media users can increase engagement and conversions. This means adding vertical videos, creating swipeable content, branching out into growing platforms (TikTok, anyone?),  and including clear call-to-action (CTA) messaging.

7. Keep campaigns zippy

As much time as people spend on their mobile devices, very few are inclined to linger on one particular site. With attention spans shrinking, mobile campaigns must quickly get to the point. This means short, zippy texts that get to the point and videos that utilize jump cuts to keep customer attention.

8. Add QR codes

Want to bring more customers from the physical world into the digital one? Just add QR codes. This type of "phygital" marketing strategy bridges the gap between consumers who are used to a more hands-on approach but may be open to completing a sale or learning more online. A scannable QR code takes customers to your website, app, or special offers.

9. Optimize for voice search

Smart devices easily translate a verbal question into results (think asking a smartphone to find a business or requesting a playlist from Alexa). Recommendations are based on optimized search results. This means that descriptions and text match queries or requests that mimic human speech. Include long-tail keywords into website descriptions and add an FAQ site for distinct categories and offerings.

10. Get (sort of) real

Augmented reality (AR) is one way to create an immersive customer experience. Consider home goods stores that allow customers to upload a picture of their space and place products into it. This is incredibly convenient on a mobile device, where a customer can snap a quick picture or take a short video to immediately understand how a product might work for them.

11. Cultivate influencer partnerships

Millennials, in particular, are inclined to believe in trusted personalities online (influencers). If you are marketing to millennials, cultivating influencer partnerships can drive trust in your business and customer action. Which influencers you approach depends on your business goals. Some influencer markets, such as beauty and fashion, are more saturated than others, so take time to identify your target audience before getting into influencer partnerships. 

12. Run the numbers

Regardless of the marketing strategy, it's essential to use data analytics to see how your mobile marketing strategies perform. This helps you better understand consumer behavior and personalize your marketing messages. You can set specific measurements for clicks and conversions, but sending out surveys to get direct consumer feedback is possible.

13. Make targeted changes

So what do you do with the feedback you get? You personalize your offerings. Personalization of content makes it more engaging for your target customer. You might divide your marketing messages into different categories based on age, gender, or other factors that relate to your various products and services. This segmentation can improve and refine your message so that more clicks become conversions. 

14. Don’t stand still

The rise of mobile marketing represents a fundamental and permanent change in how your business interacts with customers. These mobile strategies tap into endless possibilities and can increase your customer base.  They outline a roadmap for you to stay ahead of the curve as mobile marketing continues to evolve. 

Regardless of which you choose to implement, you must keep moving forward. Your customers are mobile, and your mobile marketing should be just as agile.

Featured Image by Gilles Lambert on Unsplash