5 Important Benefits of Mobile Marketing

1. Mobile marketing is measurable, delivering a high return on investment with low capital outlay
Because delivery of SMS text messages can be tracked, campaigns can be monitored in real-time. With two-way messaging capability, organizations can judge consumer response immediately and change strategy if need be. Campaign costs can also be recouped through premium-rated SMS campaigns such as 'text to win' contests or mobile voting campaigns. Clickatell's Interactive Campaign Manager allows you to verify the progress of the campaign and intervene if need be. Premium-rated SMS also enables companies to offer subscription-based services to users who do not have access to credit cards or online banking facilities.Additional revenue for the organization can be generated through the use of premium-rated SMS messages. Companies can offer information services such as news, weather, tourism or business location information or offer mobile services that would be of benefit to consumers. These services can include insurance flight or quotations, virtual gifts, auction bidding, discount vouchers and coupons etc. There are many ways in which to maximize the potential of mobile message marketing in your industry. You can sell product such as ringtones, wallpapers and mobile phone downloads directly from a mobile platform or use the medium to drive consumers to a real store or accept orders for your products and services through SMS text message.

2. Mobile marketing is extremely effective
The very nature of mobile marketing makes it effective; consumers need to opt-in to receive marketing messages; they trust you as a messaging source and this makes them highly qualified sales prospects and more likely to respond to your message. Because your mobile marketing message is permission based, consumers are far more likely to read the message and therefore to respond. Most people read a SMS within 15 minutes of receiving and respond within 60 minutes - this is a very high response rate.
Mobile marketing messages are sent instantaneously to consumer's most personal communication device, their mobile phones and in a non-intrusive manner, they can read it at their convenience. And with Clickatell, the reach is global; anywhere there is mobile coverage in over 220 countries through more than 790 network operators. All mobile phones support the use of SMS messaging and consumers trust SMS technology.
   
3. Mobile marketing is cost-effective and affordable This is one of the most cost-effective marketing mediums available with targeted mobile marketing campaigns. Mobile messaging radically reduces the production and distribution cost of marketing messages.
 
4. Mobile marketing can open up new markets in innovative and interactive ways
Because mobile messaging crosses all demographic, location and handset limitations, the potential for reaching new markets is great. In emerging economies such as South Africa, mobile phone ownership is nearly 100% of the population, far more than those who have access to television or Internet access. Read more about South African mobile marketing here. Recent studies in the US show that fully one third of 18-29 year olds only use a mobile phone. Marketers who are not reaching their target audience through traditional means need to take advantage of mobile marketing.
 
How to build your mobile database:

• Ensure your website has a mobile sign-up box as well as email ones.
• Advertise your new SMS service in print and radio mediums through one of the campaign ideas given below.
• Use your packaging, till receipts to posters and billboards to let your customers know that you have gone mobile and ask them to text in for inclusion in a prize draw or to support a particular campaign.
• Use promotional specials to ask customers in-store or online to sign up to your mobile services to receive the discount.
• Offer a VIP service through SMS alerts with exclusive news.
• Competitions - run "text-to-win" competitions whereby customers reply to SMS questions. This mechanism can also be used for customer profiling.

5. Mobile marketing is great for customer retention and added-value service
The benefits of using mobile marketing in customer retention campaigns far outweigh the costs. Just some of the ways in which you can add value to your existing offering is to allow customers to SMS for after-hours assistance, to offer a SMS call-back service to cut time spent in phone queues and to offer a SMS service to deal with complaints and refund requests. Notification alerts such as booking confirmations, mobile tickets, appointment reminders and collection notifications offer invaluable service to your customers. Allowing customers to interact directly with your company through SMS polls on their favorite products or market research gives a strong basis for understanding customer needs better enhancing your ability to service your target market. Customers that have lapsed can also be lured back to using your services or products through special incentives offering via mobile text message marketing.
Just by building a relationship with your customers, you will radically increase their loyalty to your brand as well as the advertising spend that you currently receive from them. SMS messaging can be used for cross-selling, up-selling and direct selling.

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