Driving Leads Through Mobile Internet Technology: The importance of adding “mobile” to the marketing mix
Tuesday, September 15th, 2009This article was published in Franchising World Magazine in August 2009. http://www.franchise.org/Franchise-Industry-News-Detail.aspx?id=47280
In a world where technology has infiltrated the very fabric of our social culture, consumers have evolved to be human spam filters, adept at tuning out the constant messaging coming in from TV and banner ads, billboards, email newsletters and the like. With marketers now realizing that the age-old premise, “if you display it, they will see it,” may no longer be viable, the current buzz throughout board rooms, marketing forums and coffee houses is whether or not Mobile Internet Marketing is the next effective and practical progression in the marketing mix.
As companies question the effectiveness of traditional “outbound” marketing initiatives like broadcast and billboard advertisements, which push a message out far and wide, hoping that it resonates with a few individuals, they’re putting more emphasis on “inbound” marketing strategies that organically attract potential and already interested customers through search engines, blogs and social media. This has spurred companies to take a closer look at making their messaging more local. Business owners have moved from national level marketing, to regional, and local, by way of localizing online presence for every , and are now faced with Mobile Internet Marketing and wondering where it fits and what benefits it offers.
The shift from traditional marketing efforts to inbound, permission-based initiatives has also created the requirement that communication with potential customers become more personal. Addressing people by their first names and narrowing the message to focus specifically on what a potential customer has “signed up for” is replacing more impersonal, mass messages.
Mobile Internet Marketing offers the next wave of inbound, localized, personalized marketing by providing a more intimate, targeted, and increasingly proximity-aware method of reaching consumers.
And Mobile Internet Marketing is here now.
Are you ready for the burgeoning mobile world?
The mobile phone is unique in that it’s a convergent device that brings together voice, Internet and technology all in one place. Its very nature is that it’s always on, always with you, intimately aware of your favorite content and music, and always connected to your network of friends. Marketers will soon be able to leverage its location-based technology, as well.
According to Nielson Mobile, we’ve reached “critical mass” in the mobile world, with 40 million people in the United States categorized as ‘”active” mobile users. Even more, 144 million of the total 254 million mobile subscribers have data on their mobile phone, which allows them to use text messaging and access the Web.
This mobile phone penetration can be startling when you realize that in the U.S., there are more mobile devices than TVs and personal computers (PCs) combined.
