Mobile Marketing Tools and Means - Photo credit: marketingmag.com.au, Edition by Amber255 via Bitlanders.com
I love talking about marketing as it's my direct job, at least was until I moved to the stuff specialist. But still, our company works in the Real Estate field, so it is very closely related to marketing. Without marketing, our business would stop very quickly. And I feel confident when I am talking about marketing because life and my work taught me much about it. Today, I want to talk about mobile marketing again.
The potential of today's mobile internet market is high, as it is another medium in which information can reach the consumer. It is possible to use the company's mobile advertising extensively to enhance its reputation by offering goods and services, increasing brand awareness and performance of the company. Advertising on mobile website portals or in text messages is one of the key tools for mobile marketing that can attract a large number of clients with minimal time and financial resources.
Consumers use a mobile phone for a variety of shopping activities. These include shopping listings, searches for products and prices, queries for traders, comparison of different products, shopping and writing reviews after items' purchase. Not all consumers are included in these mobile retailers. In this case, mobile marketing tools can be great.
Let's discuss the main tools and means of mobile marketing.
Mobile Marketing Tools and Tips - Video credit: Geoff Zimpfer via YouTube.com
Mobile Advertising
Mobile advertising has several advantages that companies can use successfully. First of all, mobile advertising can reach an audience that likes innovations and is able to pay. This audience is often difficult to reach through traditional media and communication channels. Another important point - in this marketing channel there is still not much advertising, which makes it easier for businesses to stand out and become more visible.
Mobile advertising has great potential to become the most consumer-oriented marketing tool because, unlike other promotional tools (TV, radio, print, e-mail), it gives all consumers the personalized, customized to a specific place, time, and to each user's needs information.
Mobile advertising is flexible, very dynamic and targeted. Its target users can receive any kind of information, to buy and sell goods and services, to manage banking operations, and many other useful features.
Mobile advertising - Photo credit: pixabay.com
The companies get interested in mobile advertising also because of the click-through rate (CTR). It is often 5 to 30 times bigger on mobile devices than on the regular Internet. This is because there is just a small amount of advertising so far. Most often, this advertising channel is chosen by manufacturers of fast-food products, the retail sector, banks, etc.
Today's consumers know a lot, so they only accept the adverts that are needed for them. A modern user, due to the rapid pace of life, often does not have enough time to check unnecessary and irrelevant information flows, and therefore seeks clear and concise information.
Mobile Advertising Benefits:
- Mobile advertising is the most personalized form of advertising that allows businesses to choose the target audience;
- The mobile phone is always on, and the internet is always reachable: at home, at work, in a restaurant or in a car, and therefore advertising reaches users promptly, regardless of location and time;
- There is a possibility to contact directly. If the information sent is of interest - the user can contact the company immediately;
- Although the location feature is not yet used by all customers, it is already possible to find the user's place and target the relevant advertisement. When looking for information on services, it is very easy to give customers with the coordinates of the nearest point of the dealer's place, etc.
Obviously, mobile advertising has many advantages, but not all businesses are still determined to advertise in mobile space..
Mobile Advertising Problems - Photo credit: martechtoday.com
Mobile Advertising Problems:
What problems do advertisers face in the field of mobile advertising? The main problems:
- No funds. All marketing sources agree on one question: Want to be known? Be visible. Most will agree that brand awareness helps sales. But, it is really not necessary to assign all possible budget for this area.
- It is difficult to evaluate the results. Currently, the mobile Internet has almost the same capabilities and advertising systems as in the regular Internet - it's free to measure how many times a mobile advertisement was seen, how much clicks were on an advertising banner, what was the click-through rate, and so on. Of course, not all Internet options can be applied to mobile phones, but it is moving successfully in this direction.
- It's too expensive. This can be argued if the advertisement was not effective. To make a good campaign, it's not enough to make a banner. It is important to think about what to portray in the banner, where it will be, what kind of service or attraction the company can offer to the client to click it. Another important aspect: depending on the results you want, you can choose whether you want to advertise for impressions, time, or pay only for clicks.
- It's not clear where and how to advertise. The mobile advertising network was created with the idea to run ads on most web pages; there is no need to talk to each one separately, to go into different banners specifications, and at the same time, to get a lot of different statistics. Via one network or one contact, you can place ads immediately on all mobile operator portals.
- Not sure what the tactics to use. This is somehow a new field, so it's natural that marketing professionals still do not know all the potential of mobile advertising opportunities.
Power of Mobile Advertising - Video credit: ClickOnItMobile via Youtube.com
Mobile Direct Marketing
Direct marketing is the direct contact of the company with each client to foster long-term relationships. With the emergence of one to one marketing, companies all over the world more often use direct marketing to reach each client and create personal relationships with them.
Mobile Direct Marketing - Photo credit: pixabay.com
In the past, the most important direct marketing tools were post and telephony, but the technologies have introduced new tools that can be used effectively with clients. Sometimes it is very difficult to distinguish where mobile direct marketing is, and where sales promotion is.
Using mobile direct marketing and other tools for marketing communication through mobile phones is recommended to send messages, offers or other information only with the client's permission. This allows businesses to contact only those customers who give consent, and do not annoy with spam other customers. Such permission should be obtained clear, and it must also be possible to stop it. Messages must be personalized and addressed to the client, based on personal information about them.
Mobile Commerce
Mobile commerce has emerged as a result of the big growth of mobile phones use. Due to time and space-sensitive mobile devices and tools, mobile marketing can change the model of traditional marketing.
The traditional retail model is based on the fact that consumers need to enter the trading environment for shopping, it means the shop. So the place, in this case, is the most important competitive advantage. Mobile trade has turned this model upside down. Traders can easily access the user's environment via mobile phones.
Mobile commerce is defined as the transfer of e-commerce capabilities directly to the user's hands, with the help of mobile communication, when the consumer is given an opportunity to buy goods or services here and now.
And with the use of consumer identity information, access time, business companies can offer their customers the best information and services.
Mobile Commerce - Photo credit: mobi24h.net
Talking about mobile commerce, it is becoming more and more attractive for many reasons. People now carry their phones daily, and they are almost always turned on. It is acknowledged that the adaptation of mobile devices can also allow traders to trade more efficiently, increase efficiency and cut the prices.
Mobile apps
I already wrote about mobile apps. Every year, people download an increased number of mobile apps, as the number of users with smartphones is also increasing rapidly. For businesses, mobile apps are a new and fast-growing channel for information, advertising, and sales. It is user-friendly because the mobile phone is always nearby. It is also beneficial for business because the mobile phone is a continuously connected communication, billing tool.
Using mobile apps, the phone can become a functional and unique store, the flyer of ads, discounts, or news' feed in the user's pocket.
As the website has become a part of the business, mobile apps will soon not be a luxury, but a necessity, as consumers will need it. The use of gadgets is growing rapidly - users are already using them more often than mobile Internet browsers.
Mobile apps - Photo credit: play.google.com
Creating a mobile app can improve company marketing and reach faster the desired results that would help the company to successfully develop its activities, sell products or services, improve your reputation, and enhance brand awareness. In addition, mobile apps can help automate certain processes, which in turn helps reduce labor costs and speeding up work processes.
More about mobile apps read in my blog: Is it worth to create a mobile application for business?
Mobile Website
Not all businesses, especially small ones, need to build their own smartphone gadget, but it's imperative to customize the business site for mobile phone browsers. As mentioned earlier, the number of users browsing the web through mobile devices is growing at a very fast pace. Therefore, if the company seeks to stay attractive to its customers, it has to pay attention to changing customer's needs and adapt its business' direction to them.
The mobile version of the website is a regular WEB site that is technologically adapted to mobile phones so that the content of the information, even on the slower mobile Internet, would be loaded up quickly and comfortably displayed by the size of the mobile phone screen.
Mobile Website - Photo credit: neilpatel.com/blog/
It is the same convenient to search online using smartphones and mobile website as using a computer since the user has almost similar capabilities. A mobile website can undoubtedly increase the attendance of the company's website, as it becomes accessible and convenient to browse not only by the computer but also by phone - while traveling, in nature or driving car.
Creating and maintaining a mobile site version is very important. In this way, users are given the opportunity to search, compare, and use it as a transaction execution channel.
Not only does the mobile site offer a convenient navigation experience, but it also gives the user greater confidence. And this, in turn, improves the company's image. In addition, the mobile website expands the reach and communication of consumers.
Elements for effective websites - Photo credits: Amber255 via Bitlanders.com
QR codes
The popularity of QR codes is growing every day.
It's a simple, but a very effective tool for mobile marketing. QR code is a two-dimensional barcode identifying some kind of encrypted information by scanning it with smartphone or computer.
QR code (abbreviated from Quick Response Code) is the trademark for a type of matrix barcode (or two-dimensional barcode) first designed in 1994 for the automotive industry in Japan. A barcode is a machine-readable optical label that contains information about the item to which it is attached.
Credit: en.wikipedia.org
QR codes were created on 1994 by Denso Wave. The QR codes can encode various information: company's website address, e-mail address, product images, coupons, etc. In addition, codes can be placed on various media such as magazines, newspapers, posters, packages, labels, receipts, etc. After scanning the code into a mobile device, the advertiser immediately provides the user with encrypted information.
QR codes have many advantages over other barcodes: they are large in capacity, small in size, and can store more information. A greater amount of stored information also offers greater opportunities. The new type codes allow you to not only recognize products but also can store all information about them: the time of production, location, description, a link to the manufacturer's website, even a small photo.
QR codes can store text information, contact information, web page links, initiate e-mail writing, SMS message or making a call, providing location information, etc.
The QR code is open to businesses and can be used without a license.
The use of QR code - Photo credit: Amber255 via Bitlanders.com
On The Final Note
Mobile marketing creates new marketing opportunities among manufacturers, distributors, retailers and customers anywhere, anytime. In essence, mobile commerce is a service-based e-business with many mobile business opportunities.
Initially, a cell phone may look like an awkward place to shop, but the advantage is that we can easily buy via mobile phone no matter what the time it is or where we are. Properly used mobile shopping is a new easy, practical and economical way to shop.
So, in general, we can say that to effectively use mobile marketing it is necessary to carefully design the strategy of mobile marketing: to set clear goals, to decide on the integration of marketing tools with other areas of the company. Any company, setting goals and special marketing strategies, should first assess whether it really has the necessary resources (human, financial) and can effectively carry out mobile marketing activities.
Mobile Marketing Tools and Means - Photo credit: mpk732.wordpress.com
In addition, to define a marketing strategy that can successfully influence the effectiveness of a company's operations, marketing specialists must understand the features of both the various tools and communication channels, track technological innovations, check information and the technologies they have.
Depending on how you want to reach your customers and strategic goals, businesses can use a variety of mobile marketing tools and means: mobile advertising, mobile direct marketing, customer relationship management systems, mobile commerce, mobile apps, mobile sites, QR codes.
Take care of your business!
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You can check my other blogs about mobile marketing :
1. Is it worth to create a mobile application for business?
2. Things to know before creating a business mobile application
3. Impact of Mobile Marketing Solutions To Business Success: The Concept and Use
4. Importance of Mobile Marketing Strategy
Come back to find more...
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