With the advanced technology, smartphone usage has grown significantly over the years. People invest a lot of time and money into getting the latest smartphone with innovative features. Consumers spend more time on mobile devices in a day as compared to desktops. According to DataReportal, there are over 5.20 billion unique mobile internet users worldwide. Moreover, between 2020 and 2021, the number of unique mobile users grew more than 90 million.
There are clearly more opportunities for marketers to reach audiences through mobile marketing. Although desktop computers are equally important, the rise of mobile usage should not be ignored. Statista reported that during the coronavirus outbreak, 70% of users said they used their mobile devices more. It is predicted that by 2025, 3 out of 4 users will be accessing the Internet using their smartphones. Mobile marketing is a great opportunity for marketers to reach a wide range of audiences who can contribute to business growth. In this article, we will explore mobile marketing strategy to help you get started with it.
What is mobile marketing?
Mobile marketing focuses on leveraging digital, social, and other channels to reach audiences on their smartphones. It uses various digital marketing techniques to optimize them for delivery through a mobile device or tablet. Through mobile marketing, businesses aim to capture the attention of a vast majority of audiences using mobile phones.
As mobile usage is surpassing desktops, marketers need to target audiences on these devices. It can help businesses reach potential customers and create a valuable experience for them.
What is a mobile marketing strategy?
Mobile marketing strategy is multi-channel, digital marketing strategy to reach audiences on their mobile phones or tablets. Which channels or types of content to use depend on the audiences you aim to target.
Let’s look at some mobile marketing strategies you can use.
In-app advertising
The app market is growing, and consumers are spending more time in apps. According to TechCrunch, consumers spend 85% of their time on smartphones in apps. Since users spend most of their time engaging with apps, marketers can use this to their advantage. In-app advertising is one of the ways marketers can reach these users.
Here are the in-app advertising formats marketers can leverage:
- Display advertising: banners which appear at the top of bottom of the mobile screen.
- Native advertising: promotions customized to look like the app they are in
- Video ads
- Interstitial ads: these ads appear in between app usage.
In-app advertisements are a great way to reach target audiences and capture their attention.
SMS marketing
SMS or text marketing, uses text messages to reach audiences with messaging related to the business. This messaging can include various promotional information about products or services. Some audiences may not like receiving text messages from unknown numbers.
Understanding the nuances and best practices of business text messaging is essential for companies aiming to effectively engage with their audience and drive successful campaigns.
Email marketing
HubSpot reports that 50% of all email opens are done through mobile devices. If you are leveraging email marketing strategy, then ensure that your emails are optimized for mobile devices. This makes it easier for users to access emails through their smartphones.
Location-based marketing
This is a strategy that uses a mobile device’s location to send alerts which update the users about a near-by business. These alerts can be sent through a text message.
Mobile search
According to Statista, 61% of Google searches are done through mobile devices. Mobile search refers to searching information on search engines with the use of a mobile device. As many people choose to use their mobile phones more than desktop, it's important to optimize your content for mobile search. If you are leveraging Google Ads, then optimize those ads for mobile search. This can help you reach these large groups of people who are looking for information through their smartphones or tablets.
How to Get Started with Mobile Marketing Strategy?
Identify your target users
Determine your target users first before planning your mobile marketing strategy. Out of all the visitors coming to your website, find out how many of them are using mobile devices to access your website. Explore more about the types of devices they use like tablets, iPhone, or Android. This can help you find out which devices you need to focus on. Optimize your strategy for those devices as it can enable you to reach and connect with your target users.
Research about your target user in-depth. If you want to create a personalized marketing strategy, then you need to understand your audiences. Find out their demographics, interests, buying behavior, challenges and more. These insights can help you carve out a strategy that resonates with your target customers.
Set your goals and objectives
Just like any other strategy, mobile marketing begins with identifying your goals and objectives. The first step is to figure out what you are trying to achieve with your mobile marketing strategy. For example, your goal may be to drive more traffic to your website. Keeping this objective in mind you can explore different marketing strategies like mobile ads. Similarly, if you want more people to drop by your store, you can use text messages which are location based.
The types of strategies you want to leverage depend on your goals. Hence, first determine your goals and objectives so that you can plan your mobile marketing strategy effectively. Moreover, while setting these goals keep in mind that they should be realistic and measurable. Once you have implemented your strategy, you need to be able to measure your progress. Vague goals can make it difficult for you to measure them. If you set unrealistic goals, those which are beyond your capacity to reach, can leave your team overwhelmed. Set goals according to the resources you must reach them.
Test your campaigns
Before implementing your mobile marketing strategy on a large scale, you can test it first. Select a group of your customers to test your mobile campaigns. Review how these customers respond to your campaigns. This can help you gather insightful feedback and create a strategy that is more personalized for your target customers. It can also help you create a valuable experience for your users.
Best Practices for Mobile Marketing Strategy
Have a responsive website
A responsive website has a design that changes based on the screen size of a particular device. With this design your content, images, layout, and text will be displayed well on the screen. Responsive design changes the text, layout, and images according to the screen so that it fits well to the screen. There will be proper spacing between various elements of the webpage. This can help create a great user experience for users accessing your website from various devices.
As seen from the statistics above, 61% users do their Google search from mobile devices. If your target customers access your website from a mobile device and are unable to access it, they will leave without taking any action. You may end up losing valuable customers who were interested in your business. Hence, focus on making your website responsive so that you can reach your target customers easily.
Leverage features for mobile devices
There are a ton of features available today for mobile devices that enhance user experience. As discussed above you can use location-based targeting that can help you capture users based on their location. Another feature is providing QR codes that easily lead users to the relevant landing page. To illustrate, amidst the pandemic many restaurants now provide QR codes which lead users to the food menu. The aim with this is to have a contactless experience. There are many other such features you can integrate into your mobile marketing campaigns.
Create content customized for small screens
Mobile screens are obviously smaller compared to desktops or tablets. Consumers do not have the patience to read marketing messaging on small screens. To keep their attention and get the message across, create a concise message. This message should be on point that delivers the information it is supposed to. Make the heading bold, use bullet points and add a relevant CTA. Avoid using big paragraphs so that users can engage better.
Use call-to-actions
A call-to-action or CTA button is an important part of your messaging. It encourages the users to take a desired action. Just like you incorporate CTAs on your website or landing page, it is also important in your mobile marketing campaigns. When adding CTA buttons ensure that they are big and vibrant to capture the user’s attention. It should be big enough for them to click on it easily. Sometimes if CTAs are small, it can be hard to click on them Hence, using an appropriate size is required so that users can click on it without any issues.
Optimize emails for mobile devices
More than 46% of emails are opened on smartphones. When implementing your email marketing strategy, you need to ensure that your emails are optimized for mobile devices. To create mobile-friendly emails, use email templates for mobile devices. This can ensure that the layout of your email is tailored to the screen size, without requiring the users to pinch the screen to make it legible. Use short and concise subject lines that interest the users to open your emails.
Images in the emails can sometimes be heavy and the users are unable to see it. Use alt texts that describe what your image is about. In case if users can’t see your image, they will know what it is about. In addition, use appropriate font and font sizes so that the text is legible to users. Ensure that you text the emails first before sending it, so that you know that the emails can be easily accessible through smartphones.
Build trust with users
When users share their personal information with you, it is your responsibility to use it carefully. Ensure that when users share details like email, phone number or credit card information, it is secure. Take precautions so that this information is not shared with any other unauthorized sources. Always ask for user’s permission before you send any type of marketing messages.
If the users want to stop receiving messages from you, make it easy for them to opt-out. For example, if you are sending emails include the unsubscribe button at the bottom so that users can opt-out. All these measures can help users trust your business and helps with building your reputation.
Mobile marketing has many opportunities for your business. It can help you reach audiences on their mobile devices. A carefully implemented mobile marketing strategy can enhance user experience and improve customer loyalty. Experiment with various types of strategies to find out which suit your audiences and business better. Gather insights that can help you make improvements and refine your ongoing strategy.
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