Mobile Marketing

The next wave in intenet marketing will be be through mobile marketing via mobile optimized websites, sms marketing, QR Codes and Geo Tagging.

In New Zealand we have always paid to much for mobile phone calls and mobile phones.

Due to increased competition and more choice for the consumer the price of making mobile calls is becoming cheaper.

Not so long ago you could pay as much as $1500 for a smart phone where as now you can get them for free if you sign up for  a 24 month plan.

If you look at the three main mobile phone providers, Telecom, Vodafone and 2 Degrees you will see what we mean.

As more and more Kiwis have smartphones you will need some form of mobile marketing to tap into this valuable customer base.

According to recent statistics in mobile marketing in New Zealand the first quarter of 2012  44% of the population owned a smartphone and the fact prices are coming down it won’t be long before we all have one.

46% of smartphone owners use their device to access the internet – either to look for local business, compare prices, download music or watch videos and this will only increase.

It is predicted that this year,  2013 – 2014 global smartphone usuage will out perform desk tops for internet searches .

Although mobile marketing is still a new concept in New Zealand, overseas especially in USA and Europe it is taking off.

Lets face it, we all have our mobile phones either with us during the day or within arms reach.

And as a small business owner you need to take note of mobile marketing as this will be the next step in communicating with your new customers and existing customers.

The first step inMobile Marketingis to ensure your current website is compatible with a smart phone.

What does this mean?

Well most websites have been designed to operate via a P.C. and when a consumer uses a smart phone to access your website it needs to be able to shrink to the size of the phone the consumer is using.

It can be very frustrating to read a P.C. version of your website using a smart phone and if your competitors have an optimized mobile website then you are potentially losing business.

You basically have about 5 seconds to capture the customers interest and if they are downloading your existing desktop website you can guarantee they will be off to one of your competitors.

Indications from the USA are that one in three local searchers are being used by a consumer using a smart phone.

Sure we are not the USA, however we might lag behind them by 12 – 18 months but this is certainly the mobile marketing trend going forward.

So lets take the first step in  mobile marketing   and get your current desktop website…mobilized!