In today’s fast-paced, technology driven world, it’s no doubt that digital marketing is crucial to growing and maintaining your small business. However, you aren’t just limited to a computer to get your message out there. Everyone has a cell phone nowadays and most people have smart phones. Smart phones allow users to do so much behind their screens, whether that be using gaming apps, texting, watching tv shows and videos, etc. That’s why this platform offers so many unique opportunities to increase sales for your business! It may seem like only giant companies have access to successful mobile marketing tools, but so do you! You have the opportunity to reach a larger amount of people in new and interesting ways. What could be better for marketing?
There are a few things you’ll need to determine before you begin mobile marketing. The first is your budget. Don’t worry, some of your options are free or inexpensive! It all just depends on how much your willing and able to spend. The next step is to figure out who your target customer is. People who you reach through cell phones may be different than those who frequently use computers. Your current metrics should be telling you where your customers are coming from, so separate the mobile customers and tailor a marketing strategy to their interests and needs if necessary. Once you’ve completed these two steps, you’re ready to start your mobile marketing campaign. Here how!
1. SMS Text Marketing
The best thing about sending SMS texts is that can be sent to any kind of cell phone, smart phone or not, so you’ll be reaching a larger client base. You can also send a variety of messages from alerts that your monthly newsletter is available, reminders of “last day” website sales, special deals, and so much more! No matter what you send, there are a few standard rules to follow when sending SMS marketing texts.
- Get permission to send them! If you don’t, your marketing will be considered spamming or even illegal! How do you get permission? If you’re using a text marketing service, customers can opt into subscribing to your texts by sending a keyword to your short code. However, if you’re manually uploading a list or adding subscribers one at a time, you definitely need documentation of written consent.
- Only send texts about 2-4 times a month and make sure clients are aware of how often they will receive messages when they subscribe. Sending more than 4 messages may annoy your customers, rather than interest them. Also make sure you’re sending texts during business hours to avoid disturbing customers at inconvenient times.
- Let customers opt out of receiving texts at any time. Often this is done by texting STOP to your short code.
- Make sure your customers know that standard message and data rates may apply depending on their phone plan. This information should be included in texts. A good text marketing service will already include this.
2. Social Media
Did you know that 78% of U.S Americans have a social media profile? That’s a lot of people you could be reaching! Virtually all social media is mobile-friendly and some are only available as applications on mobile phones. Take Instagram for example. This extremely popular photo sharing social media application is mobile-only. It’s a great place to connect with your customers on a personal level. Although the type of photos you could post are unlimited, Instagram is a great place to market the people behind the business. Let users feel like they know your staff and business with organic or “behind the scenes” pictures of your things happening at your workplace. Of course, it’s also a great place to share reminders about and photos of special events, alerts to deals or offers, quotes that resonate with what you stand for, and anything else that is in brand. Don’t forget, Instagram is known to be frequented by millennials.
3. Creating An App
If you have a concept that will drive sales or offer a unique service to your customer base, creating your own app is a great idea. The ideas for what your app can do are endless. Games, media apps, and reward systems are just a few of your possibilities. Our mobile app is a great example of how you really can do virtually anything with your app. You can file a claim, contact our agency, file an accident report, store insurance ID cards, keep a home inventory, and more with our app! You can download it on iTunes or GooglePlay today.
4. Create Short Videos
We live in a world where visual content is everything, whether it be photo or video. Smart phones and tablets make videos extremely easy to share and view at the correct size automatically. YouTube is where the majority of video content is uploaded, although videos are extremely prevalent on other social media platforms. You can easily create fun and creative or informative videos for your viewers that will reach customers on the computer and through mobile devices! You can even embed links into the video to lead people right to your website or other social media.
In today’s day and age, it’s so important that as small business owners, we stay updated with all the new ways to reach and help our customers. That’s an imperative part of keeping your business relevant and successful. Hopefully, these tips will help you break out into the mobile marketing world or improve your current strategy. We want only the best for your small business and hope that you can take advantage of your mobile platform!