The Big Boy Mobile Marketing Series – Mobile will be big this holiday season

Another Big Boy post, this post is a validation of how the big boys feel about mobile from a big boy consulting firm Deliotte. In case you don't know Deliotte, they are an international accounting and consulting firm with office around the world and influence in a wide variety of industrys. 

ALong with their accounting work, Deliotte conducts research in industry's of interest and they recently conducted research on the impact of mobile on thise years holiday season and SURPRISE, the research proved

“We expect mobile to play a significant role in this year’s holiday shopping,” said Alison Paul, retail sector lead at Deloitte, Chicago. “We have seen a real uptick in mobile usage and expect this trajectory to continue.”

Here as some of the ways consumers are using their mobile phones;

  • Comparison shopping. Consumers re using mobile phones to check on prices at stores before they go to the store. They are also checking item availability.
  • Mobile commerce and ecommerce are expected to increase this holiday season.

By reaching out to holiday shoppers using digital marketing, social networks and mobile applications, retailers may be able to add to brand awareness and build store traffic and sales this holiday season.

How Can You Use Mobile This Holiday Season in Your Business.

Start planning a mobile marketing strategy now for the holiday. What products can you feature? What offers can you make to bring consumers to your store or website? Is you site mobile ready? Have you built a customer list with mobile phone numbers? 

Develop your mobile marketing strategy today for bigger profits this holiday season.

 

Want  help developing a mobile marketing plan. Schedule a FREE STRATEGY SESSION by clicking here.

Social Networking Is All About Mobile, So Why Aren’t You All About Mobile?

 

Over the last few posts it has become obvious that customers are using mobile phones for a variety of reasons and one of the biggest is social networking. 

When you look at the various social networks almost all of them require a smart mobile phone. If you check in on Foursquare.com, Gowalla.com, Where, Facebook Places or Yelp.com you have to use a mobile phone. Each site uses mobile phone location services to tell if you are close to where you want to check in and you typically can't check in if you aren't close to the location.

 

The point is

Social Networking is all about Mobile, So Why Aren't You All About Mobile?

Aren't you already mobile? You most likely own a smart phone like an Android or iPhone. You are probably like most smart phone users, you use the phone to play games, send or answer text messages, look for stores and restaurants, check the weather and you probably have downloaded the PayPal app and you shop on your phone. (Somebody is shopping, Paypal expects to close 2010 with $500 million in mobile payments).

So the question is, Why haven't you started a mobile strategy for your business? If your spending thousand of dollars and hours of time on social networks, social networking marketing.

If you've hired a social network guru, why havn't you include mobile marketing in you business marketing plan. 

It's time to start NOW

 

Want  help developing a mobile marketing plan.

Schedule a FREE STRATEGY SESSION  click here.

The Big Boy Mobile Marketing Series – Macy’s Prepares for Holidays By Ramping Up Mobile

Mobile ShopperSuccess leaves clues and if you are a small business owner that is looking to have a great holiday season it may be time to take your cue from the big boys.

Macy's has ramped up its mobile strategy according to Mobile Commerce Daily, Macy's has revamped it's mobile website to ensure that pictures are sharp and bigger and has optimized it's websites to recognize the various types of mobile devices .

Both Macy's and Bloomingdale's sites have been upgraded, the company has also upgraded and relaunched it's iPhone app.  The new iPhone app lets  consumers  browse merchandise, place and track orders, explore gift guides, read product reviews, find stores and get information on special events and campaigns.

The company also has a promotion on Foursquare.com, when a customers checks in at a store on Foursquare before September 30, they are entered in a contest to win a trip to New York City.

How an you use mobile to boost your business's holiday season?

Copy some of the things Macy's has done. I

  • Check to see how your business site performs on mobile phones. If necessary create promotions with custom designed mobile landing pages instead of a complete mobile website.
  • Initiate an SMS campaign, so you can send offers to customers on their phones
  • Make sure your business is on all of the social media sites and design campaigns for those sites.
  • Claim all of your online business real estate
  • Partner with FourSquare.com, Gowalla..com, Where.com nd reward customers that check in.
  • Encourage customers to follow you on Twitter, Facebook and other sites
  • Reward customers for allowing you to communicate with them on their mobile devices.

By initiating these strategies you can take advantage of your customers most intimate comunication device and enjoy a profitable holiday season.

Want  help developing a mobile marketing plan. Schedule a FREE STRATEGY SESSION by clicking here.

Your Business Uses Mobile or Your Business is Bust

I know, bold statement but the facts are the facts. Here are some reasons why from an Adage

Mobile is now even bigger than desktop use, and data/video usage exceeds voice calls.

  • 80% of the U.S. population will have a mobile phone by 2010.

  • 35% of American adults are using their mobile devices for wireless Internet access.
  • The average iPhone user only spends 45% of his on-device time making voice calls – the rest is spent browsing the web or using applications.
  • Video accounts for 69% of mobile data traffic.

Access to the web and applications via mobile is growing and will soon be universal.

  • Smartphone usage of both browser and applications has increased more than 110% in the last year.

  • By 2011, 99% of mobile phones will be data-capable devices – at minimum they can do basics like sending and receiving SMS text messages.

Consumer use of mobile devices is growing exponentially – much faster than PC or Internet use grew – but U.S. businesses have been slow to take advantage of endless opportunities to optimize stakeholders’ mobile interactions with the brand.

Possibilities for interacting with consumers via mobile go beyond delivering content and enabling transactions. Location-based targeting, real-time comparison shopping and QR codes allow businesses to interact with customers in novel ways.

Consumer use of mobile payments is growing according to recent survey

A recent survey by AT&T's Sterling Commerce and ecommerce service provider DemandWare Inc found that consumers are increasingly using mobile phones to make payments. The study found that 15% of consumers have used mobile phones to make purchases but the same consumers are concerned about security and ease of use. As expected, 25-34 year olds use mobile phones for purchases the most at 21%. Read more here