By Ivan Serrano
The mobile market has grown at an astonishing rate and yet many businesses still have not budgeted for mobile marketing. While the overall mobile marketing budget has increased 17.5 percent, many companies still put their money into other digital and print marketing strategies. It might produce some results in the near future, but mobile is quickly dominating the digital landscape. Since 2014, mobile usage has surpassed desktops with the majority of the time spent browsing the web, checking email or accessing content. Besides the growing number of smartphones, there are plenty of other reasons you should increase your mobile marketing budget.
Mobile Gets You Closer To Your Audience
There is no other device that gives you more access to your audience than mobile devices. It’s no exaggeration to say that people have their smartphones on them almost all day. In fact, research suggests 79 percent of smartphone owners have their device on them 22 hours out of the day. The main reason smartphones have been successful is the ability for users to personalize it. The smartphone today is more than just a simple phone and Internet browser; it has become deeply integrated into people’s lives. The catchphrase “There’s an app for that” rings true, as there is an app for every aspect of a person’s life. For example, in one day a single person will use their smartphone to:
- Make a to-do list
- Get directions to a store
- Listen and add new music to his/her playlist
- Find a recipe
- Play a game
- Track their running speed and time
These everyday moments present brands with the incredible opportunity to truly connect with the right audience at the right time. It will allow you to personalize your message in a way that was not possible in the past, which ultimately leads to higher conversions.
Mobile Gives You More Traffic
Smartphone and tablet traffic account for 60 percent of total online traffic, with 51 percent driven by mobile apps. With billions of mobile devices worldwide, having a mobile-second mindset will only limit your reach. All of your campaigns should be seen through the lens of mobile. Is your site mobile friendly? Can visitors easily find information? Is your email campaign and website easy to navigate? Don’t be afraid to redesign your site. Businesses that can adapt to the changing times are more likely to succeed.
Mobile Consumers Are Action-Oriented
Mobile search makes up 28 percent of total search traffic and the majority of these are local in nature. After the search, 50 percent of consumers visit a store within a day of the search with 18 percent leading to sales within the day. Why the quick turnaround? In general, mobile users are already on the go and they are looking for information they can act on immediately. If you have a physical location, focusing your efforts on local SEO will increase your conversion rates. This includes utilizing long-tail keywords, maintaining a consistent name, address and phone number across all directories and improving your customer reviews. All of these aspects are factored into Google’s mobile algorithm so the more you work on your local SEO the better your page rank.
Be Mobile First
The age of mobile isn’t in the future; it is already upon us, and if it isn’t a marketing priority then you are already lagging behind the competition. Rearrange your budget to put the majority of it into mobile marketing and watch as your traffic increases. Of course, desktop marketing will still be important, and luckily you can apply many of the same tactics you use for mobile for desktop.
Ivan Serrano is a freelance journalist with a focus on social media, marketing and business.
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