Technology is a great enabler. For me as a marketer, it’s fascinating how technology is changing the way we look at marketing, more so for mobile marketing. Mobile usage continues to grow across the globe. By 2017, mobile devices will make up 87 percent of the total sales of Internet-enabled technology. Right now, in 2015, more and more companies are beginning to realize the potential mobile marketing has to grow their business over the Internet.
Take Seattle-based coffee giant Starbucks, for example. In 2014, they experimented with a mobile ordering service app to see if it would draw in more coffee purchasers. Designed with their customers’ busy schedules in mind, the app gives them the option to skip long lines and get their caffeine fix as soon as they walk in. The results were positive. Last week, Starbucks announced they would offer mobile ordering across 17 states in the U.S.
If you look at Intel, the corporation that invented the series of processors, found in most personal computers today. Intel experimented with a B2B mobile (paid) search to support their “Meet the Processors” brand campaign. In their search, they used both exact and broad-match keyword terms to attract more people to their mobile website.
From the results of their experiment, Intel found that doing a mobile search through Bing was 40 percent more efficient than doing a regular online search through Google. In addition, they also ran PPC (Pay-per-click) campaigns on generic websites like CNN and CBS and experienced lower bounce rates as compared to regular advertising.
Marketers have been looking for new ways to personalize content in the mobile platform. Personalization and rich-content are the key factors. Consider InMobi’s example. InMobi recently announced its animated green monkey app called ‘Miip’. Miip sits in your phone, observes your browsing behavior and suggests which products to buy based on your sales tastes and preferences. I call it Siri’s little brother.
Mobile marketing is the next big thing because it is a more personal (i.e. customer-centric) platform than traditional marketing. Marketers want to earn the love of their users. Here are some ideas you can consider to ensure that your company’s marketing efforts are moving in the mobile direction.
1. Think Small: 70 percent of consumers delete emails immediately that don’t render well on a mobile device. Every time you create new content, write an email, work on graphics or craft a campaign, ask yourself: How will my marketing message appear on a 4-inch smartphone?
2. Time and location matter: 40 percent of mobile searches have local intent. Mobile advertising helps you send relevant and targeted marketing messages only to those who have opted-in to receive them. If your message is relevant and is reaching the right audience, you’ll have a high response rate.
3. Be Authentic: Customers are more likely to engage with brands they can relate to. And, thanks to advertisement technology’s emerging ability to personalize campaigns, marketing via smartphone offers a more individualized experience for the customer.
4. Does Google like your site?: This April, Google clearly said it.They will promote sites that work well on smaller screens. How can you check if your site is mobile friendly? It’s easy! Simply run it through Google’s test page.
5. Track real-time performance: Mobile marketing gives you the competitive edge to check the response of your campaigns anytime, anywhere. You can accordingly tweak your content as per the ROI measured and attract better quality leads.
As Sir Dominic Burch, head of social media for the UK supermarket chain- Asda (part of the Wal-Mart group) says, “If it doesn’t work on mobile, go home.”
Start with a hit and trial method. See what works for your business. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Interesting article, technology really has come a long way.
Great article with interesting facts.