A new year is a time for change, and there's nothing more important than taking a look at the way your company is marketing to its customers and clients. With so many people using smartphones and tablets to handle their daily business, it should come as no surprise that mobile strategy is going to be more important than ever in 2014. For many businesses, there's still a lot of progress to be made in this area - it's still new territory, for the most part.
Increasing your mobile presence may seem as if it'd be a confusing or expensive thing to do, but it doesn't have to be if you make the right choices along the way.
Here are 3 ways to take mobile marketing to a new level in 2014:
Design a Mobile App
"The smart and easy way to create your mobile presence; quickly deploy a mobile application to iPhone, Blackberry, Android, Symbian, and Windows Mobile," according to the app developer Los Angeles based ISBX, and there's a lot of truth to this. These days, everyone wants to use applications to get the most out of their devices and save time throughout the day, and if your company doesn't have one, you're already a step behind all the others that do.
Designing mobile apps can be expensive if you're not careful, but presenting a developer with your budget is usually the best way to keep costs down. It's always smart to have an initial meeting with whomever it is that you might be working with in order to explain exactly what you're looking for in an app, as common ground will help to ensure things go smoothly.
Make Your Website Mobile-Friendly
Believe it or not, there are still countless websites scattered throughout the Internet that look absolutely horrible on smartphones and tablets. Since people typically use these devices to browse the web while on the go, sitting back and allowing this to happen is just not an option for businesses in 2014. You've got to implement web design that will not only look great on a PC or laptop but also translate to mobile devices.
Fortunately, many web-design platforms feature built-in coding that helps to make even the most complex websites look good on mobile devices, so this isn't something that should be a problem if you've created your site this way. If you worked or are working with a private developer, however, be sure to make clear that you'd like your website to be designed so that it is mobile-friendly.
Consider SMS Marketing
For a lot of people, texting takes precedence over actually talking on the phone these days. Be it a busy society, a penchant for new technology or otherwise, the simple method of communication has become central to daily life, which is why SMS marketing can be so effective. If you can get clients or customers to sign up for mobile alerts via text, you'll already have their attention in ways that most other companies won't.
SMS marketing is tricky, though, as you've got to walk a fine line between providing information people need or want and actually bothering them. If you're careful, though, it's more than doable.
So don't stay in the mobile dark ages in 2014. Use the new year as a catalyst for change, and be sure you're working with the right developers!
Photo Credit: Mobile Presence/shutterstock