The thought of using mobile marketing can be both exciting and intimidating at the same time, especially if you have little to no previous experience in doing so. Use this article to help you get a good background both on what it is and how to best use it.
Steer clear of texting abbreviations. When you shorten your messages using chat speak, you make yourself and your business seem less professional and credible. Take the time to spell everything out to make sure your messages are clearly understood, and that you come across in a professional and polite manner.
Stay away from caps lock, unless you are giving a call to action. Using caps lock at any other time during a message can come across as if you are yelling at someone, and no one likes to be yelled at. Stay polite and calm by only using caps lock if necessary.
Make your website easily navigable to mobile devices. While you may know your site works for larger computers and tablets, you need to be sure it will work for mobile phones as well. Test it using your own mobile device to see how it handles, and make any necessary changes.
Weigh your competition. Have a family member or friend sign up to a mobile subscription of a competitor. Doing this will give you an inside look as to how their program operates, and let you know what you can do that will outperform them. Doing this before you actually start your campaign will give you a strong edge.
Understand the regulations for mobile marketing. Mobile marketing campaigns are heavily regulated, just like anything that has to do with mobile phones. Look up your local and federal guidelines, and make sure you stay well within them. If you do not, you can face penalties that range anywhere from fines to jail time.
Know exactly what you want to offer your customers before you start out. Mobile marketing encompasses everything from simple text messaging to instant mobile coupons. Planning ahead on what you are going to offer them can make the actual implementation much easier than if you were indecisive in the long run.
Target your message to the people you are sending it too. If you send your customers too many messages that do not apply to them, they are very likely to cancel any text message or e-mail subscriptions. Do not send your customer “junk” mail through their cell phones if you want to keep them interested.
Try to set a budget and stick to it if you want to market effectively. Shooting past your budget can quickly cause your campaign to fall apart, if only because you may start to change how you handle things due to a fear of money. Work meticulously to stay within your budget for mobile marketing success.
Use proper grammar even though a lot of the mobile world doesn’t focus on it. Using abbreviations and net speak like “LMAO” is just not how you want to conduct business. Be the consummate professional here and always work on using good grammar instead of slang or acronyms in your content.
If you are designing a mobile message, get the most mileage out of your next tact by also including something similar in your basic internet marketing campaign. This will work to ensure that your best material is distributed to as many people within your market as possible. There is no reason to keep your efforts separated.
The best mobile marketers out there take things a progressive step at a time, continuing to climb the mobile ladder. Take this same approach. Begin with simple texts and calls, then expand your campaign to include things like video content and social networking. Use your resources as best as you can.
Use a platform that allows you to personalize your messages by way of tokens. Personalizing something is always a great touch. You can put your recipient’s name in every message making it a little more likely they will want to read it. Just keep in mind the 160 character limit when doing using tokens with email formatting.
Have a mobile application built for your brand, products or services. Just a few years ago the prices for mobile applications were astronomical, out of reach for for all but the biggest of brands. Today, the cost of entry is still pricey, but doable, and necessary for many. Getting your brand a location on the mobile screen can be the point of entry for a substantial amount of business.
Perform usability testing for your campaign. Enlist your friends, family and co-workers to help you by receiving messages and responding to them. Ask for feedback on ease of use and enjoyment. They should like what they see on the display and report that it was clear and easy to follow.
Check out the competition. Find out what mobile messaging is like from their perspective. Compare the quality of your messages to theirs and find out if you need to make changes in your strategy. Chances are, they are probably watching what you are doing with your marketing efforts as well.
Include a link to your website at the end of your message. You should develop a mobile version of your website that people can easily navigate from a cell phone or tablet. If you do not have a mobile website, most users will still be able to access your regular website on their phones.
Mobile marketing is a fun and exciting way to get your message out to your target audience. It is something that when done right, will be an excellent addition to your advertising arsenal. Start today, and use the great tips provided in this article.
