For many brands the biggest struggle with marketing or advertising over the mobile web is knowing which approaches will be most effective for connecting with users over the new medium. It’s this concern and lack of experience that has caused a great deal of hesitation on the part of businesses when it comes to embracing mobile marketing and building a successful mobile marketing strategy.
And quite honestly, it’s a valid concern. But not one that should leave a brand in paralysis—unable to move forward in a fast-paced, here & now market. As mobile marketing rapidly shifts from the bleeding edge to the mainstream, many companies are at a critical juncture—stuck somewhere between Web 2.0 and making the leap onto the small screen. Sound familiar? Here are 5 tips to for getting started with mobile marketing, and getting your brand up to speed with the mobile world.
1. Audience is everything
In some way, catering to mobile users requires rethinking the conventional models. On this channel anyway, the quality of the audience seems paramount to its size. Whereas the CPM or spray-and-pray marketing approaches of the past have been effective in reaching a broader audience base, in many ways that strategy has become obsolete with the mobile web. With any strategy tailored to mobile device users, it is critical to bear in mind that they are seeking targeted and relevant information. With “smart” phones, users have come to expect “smart” marketing. Therefore an advertisement targeted at these specific “quality” users will enjoy more success than a broadly distributed, but unfocused ad.
2. It’s not the product, it’s the channel
One of the biggest keys to marketing over mobile devices is taking advantage of users openness to free and accessible content. Unlike with television, and most email or direct mail marketing campaigns, content that users access from mobile devices is generally “asked-for” or solicited. And with the advanced capabilities of the mobile web, brands can now greatly increase their appeal to consumers with individualized advertisements and offerings. Advertisers can now provide timely, relevant, and even location-based content across a channel where users are receptive to such branded content. Which brings us to another point… 
3. Branded utility
Although the main purpose of advertising is to sell products or services and stimulate brand-awareness, in many ways advertisements also have an obligation. Take, for example, TV ads; as Rory Sutherland from Ogilvy, the international Ad Agency, explains, these ads are “a form of entertainment with a brand attached.” In that sense, the function of the ad is, ostensibly anyway, to entertain viewers while subtly (or otherwise) ingraining a brand into the viewer’s memory. This, at least, is one aspect of marketing that has not changed significantly between the television and the mobile web.
Much like with television, mobile marketing campaigns have an obligation to users—to provide relevant and beneficial content and services via the mobile web. Sutherland encapsulates this concept very well in his statement that “in some ways, the activity itself, the product, is actually secondary to the user interface.” This means that a successful mobile marketing strategy will feature ads that fulfill a primary function, to provide users with a positive and beneficial experience, while promoting a brand. Sutherland claims that in the future of the mobile web, these forms of ads might even “become virtually indistinguishable from services.” This clear emphasis on what an ad provides for the user, should inform any mobile ad campaign.
Take for example, Dockers’ successful ad for Safari on the iPhone. Users engage with the ad by shaking the phone, which in turn makes “Dufon” break-dance. While this ad in particular might not provide a critical service to users, because it is fun and interactive, it truly engages users, while cleverly heightening brand awareness. In a similar vein, the Zipcar app serves a more practical function. This app helps users locate Zipcar stations, select and reserve a vehicle, and plan a route. Of course, one would assume that those who use the app are already faithful Zipcar commuters, but the branding of the utilitarian app still helps them connect with users whose business they might otherwise have lost, which makes this app another great mobile marketing success.
4. A Brave New Application
To expand on the previous subject, as marketers begin promoting brands through new mediums, and with new and different content and services, users may likewise find new and different ways of connecting with brands they may not have been aware of, or in ways they never thought possible before. As Sutherland summarizes, “suddenly, people discover new applications for what you offer” and this could open many new doors for brands to be successful—to find “completely new uses for your core business, based on offering new channels like mobile.”
5. Ads? Free content? Service?
Lastly and summarily, the key with mobile marketing is to always keep in mind that the content you’re presenting needs to engage with users based on who they are, where they are, and what services they are seeking. The primary function of a mobile marketing campaign should be to serve the end user in some way and to provide or promote a positive experience. Done well, this approach to advertising can result in outstanding ROI, and much greater brand awareness—which is why now, more than ever before, is the time to get your brand mobile.
Having the knowledge is only half the battle. If you are interested implementing a successful mobile marketing strategy, call us today to learn more about our custom mobile web solutions and app-expertise.
