Consider this: according to Google, 57% of users use their mobiles to search every day. Don't ignore this: Mobile marketing is not the future, it is the NOW.
If your small business is not findable on every single device, you may be missing out on a big share of the market.
Twitter was blowing up recently with news of Chromecast saying finally Apple TV has a competitor. Chromecast is a gadget unveiled by Google that enables users to connect their mobile devices to the biggest screen in their home without ever touching the remote control. Another sign that mobile has arrived.
In Q4 2012, mobile traffic to local businesses increased by almost 27%. That's huge. And according to a local search study conducted by comScore for 15miles/Neustar Localeze, published in March 2013, mobile and tablet searches increased by approximately 20% from March 2012 to December 2012.
While these numbers are impressive and a lot of businesses are moving fast to leverage mobile marketing, many areas are non-competitive; creating a buzz in these areas will give your small business a first-mover advantage. As a small business owner, you can learn how to use mobile marketing successfully and attract tons of targeted consumers ready to take action:
One area is mobile-targeted advertising. Research shows that while 12% of media consumption is spent on a mobile device, only 3% of US advertising is targeted to mobile users. Experts see this changing in 2013 with more than half of the U.S. adult population owning either a smart phone or tablet.
Get a Mobile-Friendly Website
Your regular desktop-friendly website won't work well on small devices like a smartphone or a tablet so spend the time and money to make sure your website design and functionality is mobile-friendly.
Then you need to choose the right mobile ad network. There are 3 types of ad networks available:
- Blind Networks : These networks are typically considered the largest in terms of publishers, advertisers and impressions. However, they don't allow advertisers to choose the websites on which their ads will be displayed.
- Premium Blind Networks: These offer blind or semi-blind targeting. They may also offer options to buy both search and display ads and/or specific spots on sites of your choice.
- Premium Networks: These are the big shots of mobile advertising. They partner with big brand advertisers who are willing to pay top dollar to get prime locations on premium networks.
Use Location-Targeting for Better Results
When creating mobile ads, you need to combine display ads, search ads and location targeting to drive targeted traffic to your website. and then, to your brick-and-mortar store if you have one. According to Business Insider, location-targeted display ads show an impressive click through rate of 3% to 4%.
Google Adwords is a great place to start for the small business advertiser. It allows you to target users within a certain radius of your location so make sure you use this feature wisely.
Another area that should be of great interest is what we call intent advertising. In addition to demographics and location, you can now zero in on purchase intent within the last 24-hours - and then target those consumers with you product ad.
Making the most of small business mobile marketing will increase website traffic as well as offline sales. The UK market for mobile advertising is all set to grow by 90% this year.
You don't want to be left behind--do you?