Navigating the world of mobile marketing can be confusing, even for the seasoned marketing pro. With a landscape that changes rapidly, plus cost fluctuations and ever-evolving technology, it can be tough to know which strategies and methods will work.
Smartphone conversion rates are up 64 percent over desktop conversion rates, according to a report from Formstack published by SocPub. It's important to get this segment of your overall marketing strategy correct. While every business' mobile marketing strategy will be different, there are four common pitfalls all professionals should avoid:
1. Targeting Carelessly
Though the ability to target potential customers based on things like location and interest provides marketers with valuable insight, it's important to not simply target specific demographics for their own sake. Accurate targeting is incredibly important, as marketers who target too wide of an audience could find their message lost in the shuffle. Those who home in too specifically on an audience could miss growth opportunities. Appropriately research and target to experience the best return on investment for your mobile marketing.
2. Forgetting About the Local Element
It's often said that all politics are local, but the same principles apply to businesses and sales. Whether you're marketing a local restaurant chain with three locations in the same county or a regional health food store spread across multiple states, optimize your mobile marketing strategy for local consumers with geotargeting technology. Doing so will deliver the most relevant content to potential customers.
3. Providing Inconsistent Messaging
Though consumers may find your message on a mobile device, that doesn't mean their interactions with your business will be limited to that single device. A mobile search on a smartphone could be how they found your business, and they may remember they want to research later that night on their tablet or desktop.
For this reason, it's important that your mobile content and desktop content are consistent. This is a fairly common mistake, as a report from Adobe noted that while almost 30 percent of all marketers ran campaigns across multiple channels in 2015, only 14 percent had a plan for campaigns that offer consistent messaging across all channels. Audit your messaging strategy to ensure consistency for every piece of content distributed to your audience.
4. Failing to Regularly Review Your Strategy
Crafting a mobile marketing strategy that's effective, cost-conscious and tailored to your specific business needs is difficult. You may be tempted to continuously execute the same strategy once you've found something that works. However, this isn't advisable, as your business needs and target market may change over time. Audit your mobile marketing efforts semi-annually to see what's still working and where changes should be made to turn a good mobile strategy into a great one.
Unfortunately for marketers, there's no real magic bullet when it comes to crafting a mobile marketing strategy. However, there are things you should avoid if you're looking to grow your business, including failing to keep your message consistent and not reviewing your strategy regularly. Avoid these and adopt a data-driven strategy, and you'll watch your business flourish.
