Mobile Marketing Tips for Small Business. Part 1

There's no denying the growth in the use of mobile devices.  Mobile's growth isn't just big news for big business; there are new marketing opportunities for small businesses too.  As exciting as the new frontier of mobile marketing tools and technologies are, the uncharted territory can leave many business owners and marketers lost and uncertain.  New marketing journeys are less overwhelming when you know how to navigate, so here are some mobile marketing tips to help you get on the best road for a rewarding trip.

There's no better place to start your mobile marketing journey than from your current location -- if you know where that is!  First things first: get clear on where your mobile status stands.  Get your hands on a smart phone and type in your website address in the address bar.  How does your site look?  It is your site on a mobile device user-friendly? Does it work as well as it does on a computer browser?  Does it need improvement?  Would a mobile-specific website be a better option for you? Look at your site on different devices (iPhone, Android, etc.) and note the experience.  Think about it from the perspective of your current or potential customer -- are their needs being met?  Know your mobile site options -- there are mobile-functional sites, mobile-optimized sites and mobile-specific sites.  Next, go to Google from a mobile device and type in some descriptive key phrases that describe your business.  How are your search results from mobile search?  Starting any marketing journey from a place of knowledge (essentially, knowing where you are) will help determine smart next steps to help you get to where you want to go.

You are clear on your current mobile situation (site status, visibility, experience). Now how do you proceed?  The answer is simple -- it lies in providing value to your customers. Mobile marketing goes far beyond a mobile site.  The site simply serves as the nucleus to mobile marketing.  Step away from your computer (this is mobile marketing after all!) and think about ways mobile can be valuable (as in offering service and support) to your prospective and current customers.  Focus on the three most important things that your customers need when they are engaging with you on a mobile device. For example, if you are a restaurant, three valuable things could be:

Easy to find contact information,Location/directions, andA menu.  Or, if you are an established restaurant with a really strong mobile presence, then you may be ready to go the next level.  Your mobile marketing "where to go" may include capturing mobile numbers from customers to:

Offer exclusive mobile offers to customers,Reward loyal customers with specials, andMake it easier for loyal customers to spread the word.Put on your creative marketing hat and think about what ways mobile can help boost relationships in ways that are valuable to the people you serve, appropriate your industry.

Once you know where you want to go, get self-critical and ask if your current mobile site makes these "where you want to go" points easy to access?  By assessing and determining where you want to go, your optimization path will emerge.

Example: Tax problem resolution company TaxResolution.com has an extensive website full of information to help people with tax problems.  They saw how this big site looked on a small mobile screen and realized that this breadth of information was overwhelming from a mobile perspective.  They wanted to better help people read their site (that was one of their "where do you want to go" goals).  To optimize, they built a mobile-specific site that has their most commonly viewed pages and an easy to access phone number.

The true meaning of marketing is maximizing exchanges, new customers, referrals, upselling/reselling existing customers. Mobile marketing, like all marketing, is not a destination, it is an ongoing journey, so get in the habit of using the:

Assess - Optimize - New

marketing model to make the journey more navigable.  Mobile marketing is a new tool in the web marketing toolbox.  Remember that it is not the tools, but how you use the tools that will increase brand, build, and boost business. There are many aspects that go into making your mobile marketing campaign a success. Starting with a strategy is a healthy first step. 

Now that we have a mobile marketing foundation to work from, we can look more at new creative ways to do mobile marketing, which I will share in my next article.

Lorrie Thomas Ross, MA is The Marketing Therapist and CEO at Web Marketing Therapy, a marketing firm that diagnoses, prescribes and guides healthy marketing solutions for small businesses. Her team of Wild Web Women (and men!) diagnose, prescribe and guide healthy marketing solutions to help make small businesses big with the web. She is the author of the 36-Hour Course to Online Marketing for McGraw Hill.

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