Marketing is one of the most
important things you can do as a business owner. Without a marketing strategy
and targeted advertising, many businesses simply do not make it. In today's
world, businesses big or small are finding more and more challenges when it
comes to traditional marketing strategies. Running an ad in a local publication
or paying for a spot in the yellow pages, just doesn't produce the same results
they once achieved and are very expensive.
With the birth of the Internet and
number of internet-ready cellphones expanding globally, the effects on
marketing are tremendous and are taking the marketing challenges to a new
level. International businesses large or small
are facing the same challenges.
The technical requirements
associated with setting up a website, understanding social media, creating
campaigns that will promote brand and convert traffic into buyers, are all part
of the requirements necessary to market a business in today's world. The
problem is many business owners need to focus on running the business and do
not have the time, can't manage, nor have all the skillset required to create
and manage an effective marketing program.
One new marketing method that will
have a tremendous impact on businesses globally has to do with mobile text marketing.
Mobile text marketing targets cell phone users in a very unique way. Similar to
the time when e-mail marketing was brand new, mobile text marketing has a much
higher response rate. With response rates at 90% plus, business owners need pay
attention and incorporate this strategy into the overall marketing strategy.
There are a lot of reasons for the
high response rate in mobile text marketing. * When a user receives a text
message they almost never ignore it due to the alert features on cell phones.
* Most businesses have not yet
utilized this strategy so; the opportunity is here right now to be on the
cutting edge of this new marketing concept.
* Users do not ignore the messages
when received.
* Messages are short and to the
point.
* Newer cell phones display the
message right on the front of the screen.
* Users almost always have their
cell phone on them.
* Cell phones do not require
internet access to receive a text..
* Almost every cell phone made today
has text messaging built in.
The most important factor is that
cell phone users out number internet users worldwide. With the rapid increase
in internet-capable phones, there will also be a proportional increase in a
business' ability to market to a cell phone user.
For those who don't know, here is
how mobile text marketing works in general. Let's say you want to run a
campaign to offer a discount for a product, service, or an event. As a business
owner, you would target your existing customer base first. You would offer a
coupon or discount, when a user sends a text message from their cell phone to your
advertised campaign word. To receive a discount today, text
"specialoffer" to 41242
What happens is the customer wants
to receive a discount, so they text the word to the number. Then they immediately
receive a response back with a promo code or message authorizing a discount. They
are also informed they will receive future discount offers and can opt out
anytime. Your customers are ok with this since they are already patrons of your
business. If you didn't have a mobile marketing strategy, and in order to let
your customers know you're having a sale, you would need to run an ad in the
newspaper, pay for ads on TV, run an ad on the radio, send mail outs or some
other means to let them know. This is expensive and takes time to plan and the
customers response time may not coincide with time advertised was received.
But, as a smart business owner, you
simply send out a text message to your existing customers and because you know
they will read it, your sales are a success. You managed to increase business
with the least amount of effort and greatest response.
With traditional marketing, the
customer would need to read their junk mail, newspaper ads, or be in front of
the TV at the exact time your ad ran. But with a cell phone in hand, your
customer receives your promotion. You didn't need to pay for expensive ad
materials or hope the customer was in the right place at the right time.
Consumers do not receive junk mail
from you and you won't kill a tree to run an ad in the local paper.
There is also another advantage over
traditional advertising. I call it the on demand factor. This makes it a must
strategy for restaurant owners or businesses that operate in a daily
entertainment industry.
Here is an example of the on demand
marketing factor. You do this two hours before lunch to a hundred people on
your list. The result:
You also filled the seats and
maximized your business without over promoting. On demand marketing lends
itself to maximum flexibility in timing and number variations. I wonder what
happened to the other restaurants in the area that didn't have a mobile
marketing strategy.
To this point we have only targeted
existing customers. You can build your customer base in a more powerful way. All
of the traditional marketing methods still work and can augment your mobile marketing
strategy. It is important to not be tied to other marketing channels for all
your marketing needs.
The biggest factor is that the
consumers of a particular media channel belong to that media company. But as a
mobile text marketer, you can place your mobile text campaign word on printed
ads, radio ads, and TV ads. When the consumer opts in to your mobile marketing
list, you can then market to them over and over without paying the original
media company another dime.
Building a list is one of the most
important business strategies you can have. A mobile marketing list is the most
effective.
Mobile text marketing may not work
for every business. There are a few businesses where this strategy is very
exciting. Here is a list of some businesses that could benefit:
1. Restaurants
2. Salons & Spas
3. Bars & Night Clubs
4. Florist
5. Theaters
6. Vacation Rentals
7. Events and Nightly Entertainment
8. Department Stores
10. Most business that advertises a
lot.
Well if your business is a big
brand, you can lease your own short code for $500 to $1000 a month. A short
code is the number the campaign word is texted to. You will also need to pay
web programmer money to develop a campaign management system to receive and
respond to opt-ins. Option two; you can contact a mobile marketing consultant
such as Rapid Action Marketing or Mobile Helpers and they will help tailor a
marketing strategy to the size of your company and manage your campaigns for
you. Plus they help build your list and leaving you to run the business. There
are also many mobile text marketing platforms available. Most are tailored
towards the big boys of marketing and priced accordingly. For the mid-size
business, I recommend option two as the text marketing firm can get your mobile
marketing campaign started right. But, for the smaller business a
self-management option maybe the only option.
They will help tailor a marketing
strategy to the size of your company and manage your campaigns for you. Plus
they help build your list and leaving you to run the business. There are also
many mobile text marketing platforms available. Most are tailored towards the
big boys of marketing and priced accordingly. There are two in particular that
I have found that offer all the features in the expensive services but at a
price starting around $15 a month and as much as $1000 plus per month.For the
mid-size business, I recommend option two as the text marketing firm can get
your mobile marketing campaign started right. But, for the smaller business a
self-management option maybe the only option. See Author Bio for recommended
services...
