Not too long ago, when someone heard the term “Mobile Marketing”, the first thing that usually came to mind was “Text Message Marketing” as advertising through mobile phones could only go as far as sending text messages to consumers.
But what is Mobile Marketing, really? It is a direct marketing technique used to reach potential customers and promote your brand through their mobile devices. As technology advances and the number of Mobile Phone users increases every year, marketers are finding new ways to reach their audience more effectively. Fast forward to more modern times, the Mobile Marketing industry game has come a long way from just text messages.
Let’s take a look at some mobile marketing strategies that are commonly used today.
SMS
SMS, also known as “Short Message Service”, is when a business acquires a customer’s mobile number for the purpose of sending them promotional offers through text massaging, whether it is done traditionally such as through One-Way SMS or through modern methods like SMS Chatbots.
This type of channel is great for promotional messages that need to grab attention through short, snappy and straight-to-the-point copy due to the character limit and lack of visual content that usually comes with text messaging.
Effective SMS ads show us that it’s not all about the quantity of your message but the quality of content.
App-based
In-app Advertising is an effective monetization strategy that allows to display ads on well-known mobile apps or, another alternative, creating an app for your business.
It often involves working with app developers who make money by agreeing to serve ads within their mobile app, leading to an increase in mobile usage as well as global advertising media consumption.
Advertising services like Google Admob help create mobile ads that pop-up in third-party apps.
QR Codes
QR Codes or Quick Response Codes are more than just the thing that you scan to check out the menu at restaurants before ordering during the pandemic.
Two-dimensional barcodes can also be helpful with leading customers to a brand’s website, page or any online marketing material.
In a world that demands any process to be quick and instant, this strategy allows access to more information about any product or service as efficiently and with little effort as possible to the user’s device.
Location-based
These are Ads that show on mobile devices when a potential customer is within close proximity to a brand’s offline store.
The pandemic has affected many brick-and-mortar businesses that rely on customers visiting their stores physically. This has shifted their focus towards modern marketing techniques that help physical stores become more discoverable via digital channels online.
Google Mobile-search Ads
Google is making it loud and clear: go mobile or go home.
With the rapid growth in smartphone use and adoption, the multinational technology giant has made it known that mobile advertising is no longer an option for businesses, but rather something that is essential.
Google mobile ads appear when potential customers use their mobile device to search something anywhere they are, enabling businesses to increase their brand visibility and reach potential customers. It also features add-ons such as click-to-call and maps.
In-Game
In-Game Ads appear in mobile games. It is a monetization strategy that many game developers utilize to boost their game’s revenues, improve the gamer’s retention and increase engagement.
It can be displayed in different forms such as banner pop-ups, full-page image or video ads that show between loading screens
How can you implement Mobile Marketing for your brand?
There are tons of different ways to go about Mobile Marketing as no two brands nor strategies are the same. Make sure to take some time with researching and finding the best marketing strategy for your own brand.
That being said, here are some tips to keep in mind if you’re looking to try Mobile Marketing yourself:
- Keep it straightforward and brief as it is shown on a smaller screen
- Include your potential customers’ preferences. Which mobile apps do they use frequently? Are they tech-savvy?
- Optimize your mobile ads to your customers’ locations to match their queries.
- One size doesn’t fit all- explore different mobile marketing strategies that might fit your brand.
- Last but not least, benchmark your mobile marketing performance.
Mobile Marketing remains to be one of the fastest-growing channels we have today. Years (or maybe less!) from now, we will probably look back at some of these strategies and think, “Well, that’s so yesterday!”
Make sure to keep an eye out on the latest marketing news so that you never miss out on the latest industry updates!