Mobile Marketing Tools for Better Marketing

Nearly two-thirds of the U.S. population has a smartphone, and over 90% of us have it within arm’s reach 24 hours a day. Having a smartphone means consumers have instant access to content. In fact, more people access content through a mobile device than a desktop computer, and when they do, they are 4x more engaged than those surfing the web through a browser.

Clearly, mobile marketing should be a top priority for businesses.

The number of users accessing email via mobile rose 22% last year — and is projected to grow another 23% in 2017. Because mobile is the number one way to access content, and because potential engagement is so high, it is critical for your customers to have a good experience on your mobile site. Latitude’s study on mobile retail reports that 61% of people have a better opinion of brands when they offer a good mobile experience. Taken altogether, mobile marketing may be your greatest opportunity for brand building, engagement, and sales conversion.

Whether you’re just getting started or have included mobile in your marketing strategy for some time now, there are some important areas of focus to target your mobile customers.

There are certain types of ads that work better for mobile marketing. According to Business Insider, display and video ads will be the fastest-growing mobile ad formats through 2018. Additionally, ads in mobile apps have double the conversion rate of ads on mobile websites. Remarketing — using cookies to position targeted ads in front of former visitors of your website — can be very effective, and local-mobile targeting can be effective as well. Created with mobile marketing analytics tools, these types of ads will likely have the largest impact on your overall business success.

Customers visit mobile websites that provide them with value. For example, mobile coupon sites generate real, actionable customer interest. The number of U.S. mobile coupon users rose from 12.3 million in 2010 to 53.2 million in 2014. By providing value through coupons, businesses are able to improve overall customer conversion rates.

Of course, even interested customers may falter if they aren’t given next steps. A call to action (CTA) should be easy and convenient on a mobile device. This means the CTA should be clear enough to stand out from the surrounding text, and large enough to be clearly visible on smaller mobile screens.

You can offer your customers a great experience by choosing the right mobile marketing tools. The best mobile marketing tools should have built-in data analytics so you can track what’s engaging your mobile site visitors. When looking for a mobile marketing solution that will work for you, there are some important factors to take into consideration:

• Usability
  Your marketers need something that can be operated without an in-depth understanding of information technology. Relevant mobile marketing campaigns and ads need the capability to be deployed in near-real time. Easy-to-use tools help marketers create campaigns quickly and stay relevant in an ever-changing field. This also helps to improve user adoption rates. Tools that provide ready-made SMS and MMS templates and a drag-and-drop interface make rapid mobile messaging deployment possible. Therefore, the user experience doesn’t require a significant amount of training.

• Integration
  A mobile solution that integrates with other channels will ensure customers have a seamless experience through mobile, email, social media, and website interactions.

• Flexibility
  As you grow your business, you’ll continually adapt your best practices to keep your customers engaged. What you’re doing now may not be what you do in the future, so investing in a mobile marketing tool that can adapt to your situation is important.

• Geolocation Capability
  Having geolocation technology is a must. Business Insider reports that the largest share of mobile revenue comes from search. Search is a strong format on mobile because of its convergence with local-mobile targeting. The partnership helps you deliver relevant messages to your customers in the right place, at the right time.

• Cost
  Take stock of your organisation’s needs, research what is available, and compare it to your established budget. You might find that you can get what you need without breaking the bank. Of course, given the advantages offered by mobile marketing tools, you might also find that spending a little bit more now leads to greater profits in the future.