Mobile Marketing Trends and Outlook

As the year 2013 draws nearer, we can take a look back at 2012 and see some startling data on the most popular trends in mobile marketing.

Here’s a fact that will likely boggle your mind. Did you know that 25% of all internet users in the US are mobile only? It’s true. Now for a more important question: do you really want to miss out on all those potential leads and customers? We didn’t think so.

While the mobile marketing budget for most businesses remained relatively small in 2012, marketers are confident that spending will increase over the next year.

In fact, some huge corporations are making big plans for their mobile marketing strategy in 2013.

For example, Mondelez International has announced that they plan on investing 10 percent of their entire global marketing budget in mobile this coming year. In case you’re not familiar with the name, Mondelez International includes all of the snack and food brands formerly owned by Kraft Foods Inc, such as Nabisco and other billion dollar brands.

Clearly, mobile marketing is something that deserves our attention. If billion dollar corporations believe in it, so should you. If you want your business to grow and succeed in 2013 then it’s time to learn more about what mobile marketing can do to increase your sales, leads and bottom line.

Smartphones

Smartphones are half of the mobile equation, with tablets making up most of the other half. Lots of people and business owners assume that mobile marketing isn’t viable because they think of smartphones as being limited to use “on the go.”

But don’t be so quick to assume things. The fact is that smartphones are almost always within an arm’s reach, whether the user is on the go or at home, school or wherever else they may spend their time.

According to Mobile Marketing Strategies Summit, 91% of all US citizens have their mobile device within their reach twenty four hours a day, seven days a week.

Getting excited about mobile marketing yet?

Any marketing medium that is always that close to the user should be considered a huge opportunity for innovative minds. Studies have reported that most smartphone users have their devices nearby when doing everything from shopping to showering!

Unlike tablets, smartphones are constant companions that go with users just about everywhere. If you’re not convinced yet, consider this: 71% of smartphone users who watch an engaging advertisement will immediately do a mobile search as a result.

While we’re on that subject, let’s not forget to mention that 70% of all mobile searches result in some type of action within just one hour. On the other hand, 70% of online searches result in some type of action being taken within one month.

That’s a pretty significant difference, don’t you agree?

Smartphones are clearly the route to more instant gratification than online seems to offer. While smartphone users tend to be more focused on completing tasks, they do often consume tidbits of mobile content as well.

Some of the most popular types are included in the list below:

1. Accessing local information

2. Searching for information

3. Using social media sites

4. Reading news and entertainment

5. Finding local services

Tablets

Tablets are the other hot mobile device responsible for the emergence and popularity of mobile marketing. While high smartphone use is fairly consistent in most age groups and income levels, the largest demographic group is made up of men and women between the ages of 18-29 who have college degrees.

Tablets, on the other hand, tend to be used more by older and wealthier individuals. They also tend to be used more for leisure than smartphones and are considered “couch” and “pillow” devices for this reason.

For example, smartphones are used most when people are waiting on something during the day. Tablets are used most often after work or while watching TV.

While smartphone users do their fair share of snacking on mobile content, tablets dominate this area and are leading the way in terms of mobile marketing consumption.

Studies report that tablet users are mainly looking to be entertained by their devices. The most popular activity for tablets is reading news and entertainment, and watching videos is third on the list after searching for information.

Another important factor to consider is that many tablet users also watch TV when using their device. This means that their attention is often being divided between two different screens. Mobile users are moving back and forth between devices with more and more ease, demanding a marketing approach that understands how to effectively use these different devices in combination with the rest.

QR Codes

In case you’re not already familiar, QR codes are similar to the barcodes you will find on the products sold by any retailer.

Barcodes are used by stores to track inventory and to price products when they are purchased.

The main difference between bar codes and QR codes is the amount of information each is able to hold.

For example, bar codes are linear and only one-dimensional. They are only able to hold a maximum of 20 numbers, while QR codes are two-dimensional and can hold literally thousands of alphanumeric digits.

The difference in storage capabilities makes QR codes an attractive option for small businesses and they only take a few moments to create using a QR code generator.

Mobile users install a QR code reader app on their device in order to read your QR codes. But what do you use a QR code for? Almost anything, it turns out.

There are really few limits for what you can use QR codes to share with mobile users. Basic ideas include sharing a video or landing page, but you can even use QR codes to share entire eBooks.

There are even apps like Likify which make it easy to create QR codes that link your mobile device to a Like button for your Facebook page.

Apps like this make it a single-click task to merge your online communities with your Facebook presence that couldn’t be much simpler.

QR codes can be used on business cards, brochures, event name tags, product packaging, restaurant menus, event tickets, receipts and much more.

You may have even seen a local restaurant that has a Google Maps sign hanging inside or on a window that features a QR code in the bottom corner which links to their reviews on Yelp and Google Places. This is becoming more and more popular with the rise of mobile device usage.

If you consider yourself experimental and do not shy away from more edgy applications of newer technologies, you could even use QR codes for things like:

Directions to your business

Coupons and special offers

Free mp3 downloads

Customer feedback forms

Installation instructions

In fact, studies have shown that QR codes often disappoint consumers because they don’t deliver the desired types of content.

For example, most QR codes led consumers to content that included product information in the year 2011. However, that same year it was reported that consumers were most interested in scanning QR codes for content such as free promotions, coupons and special offers.

This is worth taking note of since mobile coupons are redeemed ten times more than traditional coupons.
However, using QR codes for this type of content can be effective as well. Just ask Shape Magazine. They held a sweepstakes for their 30th anniversary issue and received 400,000 mobile entries from QR codes alone.

Their advice? Be clear about what the consumer needs to do and also what they will get for doing it. Make sure your incentive is worth something of value and make the process as easy as possible so you don’t scare off anyone who is technically challenged.

Local Search

Smartphone users take action after doing local searches from their devices. 52% of users made a phone call to a business or service immediately after doing a local search from their smartphone.

Half of them looked up a business on a map after searching, and 50% also ended up visiting a business. 48% went on to visit the business’s website.

In terms of conversions, 26% made an in-store purchase and 21% made a purchase online.

Of those users, 15% read or wrote a review and 13% recommended a business or service as a result.

Believe it or not, mobile paid search brings in a higher ROI than desktop search. This explains why marketers plan on spending the most on mobile paid search over the next three years, with mobile display spending having tripled by the year 2014.

Mobile Apps

There isn’t really a need to choose between the mobile web or an app for your business, as they are complimentary to one another and you will need both to maximize your mobile success.

There are some significant benefits to using apps, as well as some equally as significant downsides.

The pros include an encapsulated user experience, increased levels of user engagement and allowing for more time spent in your branded environment.

On the other hand, they can require multiple versions in order to be used across different platforms, require app store approvals and ongoing updates, as well as underperform in user retention.
However, at the end of the day the fact remains that consumers are in fact spending more time with apps than they are with the mobile web, which means apps are not something you should dismiss or overlook.

Mobile Friendly Websites

The importance of having a mobile friendly version of your business site is of the utmost importance in today’s smartphone and tablet dominated world.

While smartphones use continues to rise, there are still millions of people using feature phones as their primary mobile device. These obviously don’t display websites in the same way or as well as smartphones, but you need to make sure that your site displays correctly on all types of devices.

Why is this so important? Studies show that 61% of customers who visit a mobile unfriendly site will likely go to a competitor’s site instead.

Hopefully this has provided a snapshot of some very important reasons to invest in and experiment with mobile marketing for your own business. The possibilities are endless and the projected outlook for mobile is very positive.