More and more companies are looking to grow their business by utilizing Mobile Marketing, so what is Mobile Marketing? The best available definition to date comes from the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA), “Mobile Marketing is a set of practices that enables organizations to communicate and engage with their audience in an interactive and relevant manner through any mobile device or network.” The definition seems simple enough, but it all boils down to developing an effective strategy.
There are a number of options available for businesses to effectively engage their audience, it may be creating a mobile site, developing a mobile application, utilizing social networks and lets not forget about SMS (text messaging) campaigns. To effectively reach a target audience it may require using a combination of these things, one of the most important ingredients in the recipe for Mobile Marketing success is the SMS campaign. Many businesses often overlook this resource, as they would rather create mobile sites and mobile applications since the emergence of the smartphone.
As recently as November 2011, ComScore estimated that 5.3 billion people worldwide own a mobile device, 234 million Americans ages 13 and older. The CTIA (International Association for the Wireless Telecommunications Industry) reported that 3-5 billion text messages are sent and received each year and 97% of those messages are opened. So while mobile applications and websites get all the hype, the SMS campaign may be the best resource in reaching a target audience. Of course mobile sites and applications are great resources, but once again it’s all about choosing the right ingredients in the recipe for Mobile Marketing success.