This post was originally written by Brandon Hollembeak, Product Manager – Advertising Products & Services
I’ve written before about the importance of having an overall mobile strategy, not just individual campaigns. However, through many conversations regarding how to actually execute that, I feel there’s a clarification that needs to be made to that post that might seem contradictory at first, but will help explain the best way to accomplish it.
Companies with the most successful mobile strategies are the ones that don’t necessarily have a mobile strategy.
They’re the ones that incorporate mobile into their full marketing strategy as another communication channel, just like email, print and other methods of reaching their target customers. The difference is paying attention to how your customers are using that channel. Just like what email subject lines and calls to action convert potential customers to actual customers, you need to investigate where your customers are using that channel and design your calls to action from there.
The Home Depot just provided a great example of studying their customers and realizing their mobile opportunity. This March, The Home Depot and ScanBuy announced a partnership where they launched QR Codes and Mobile Keywords near popular products and sections in their stores, print advertisements and even TV commercials! The Senior Director for Online Strategy for Homedepot.com said it best:
“We look forward to introducing ScanLife mobile barcodes into our overall marketing strategy,” said Tom Sweeney, Senior Director of Online Strategy for Homedepot.com. “ScanLife barcodes provide a number of benefits to our customers such as immediate access to our video, product and How-To content and the ability to purchase online from their smartphone. We know our customers are already using their mobile device to assist in the purchasing process, and now Home Depot is embracing this technology to more closely connect our stores and customers to our digital content.”
Finding where your customers are the most engaged and making sure they have an avenue to take immediate, interactive action is the most important component of your marketing strategy. Where phone numbers and email addresses have historically dominated, mobile keywords and QR codes are now providing more opportunity to interact with your customers and help them find exactly what they’re looking for, immediately.
Google just published a study on how people are using their smartphones most often, and I think the most critical items to note here are the stats of how people are using their phones while using other traditional media, such as while reading newspapers/magazines, watching TV, and even while using the Internet on other (desktop, etc.) devices.
71% of smartphone users search because of an ad they’ve seen either online or offline.
88% of those who look for local information on their smartphones take action within a day.
Capturing your mobile audience in your overall marketing strategy is the best way to have a mobile strategy.
Your mobile strategy itself is then made up of the how’s and what’s of going after your mobile audience.
How are you including mobile in your marketing strategy? Any best practices that worked for you?
