Mobile advertising is virtually unstoppable. Some 25 percent of American smartphone users between the ages of 18 and 44 couldn't remember the last time they didn't have their device within reach. They're using their phones and tablets to research new businesses, connect with the brands they already love, and find ways to be entertained, all of which present companies with countless opportunities to create new customers and generate sales. All in all, mobile marketing appears to be in the position to make – or break – your business. Here are 5 reasons why:
People Love Their Mobile Devices
In real estate, the mantra is "location, location, location," meaning that the success or selling point of any given property hinges on where that property is located. In advertising, things aren't really all that different. If you want to make sales, you go where the people are, and people these days are on their mobile phones. A typical adult in the United States spends an average of 2 hours and 51 minutes on his or her phone every day; that translates to just under 3 hours companies have to capture consumer's interest and convert it into a sale.
Text Messages are Practically Immediate
Still think that text messages are just for teenagers? Think again. SMS messaging can be a great way to deliver everything from blog updates to coupons and deal alerts to consumers, especially as 90 percent of text messages are opened and read in under 3 minutes. In a matter of minutes, your latest company news can be in consumers' hands. For restaurants looking to deliver happy hour specials, concert venues hoping to fill a few empty seats, or retail stores looking to remind customers of that night's new store grand opening celebration, that kind of immediate is practically invaluable.
Your Mobile Site is Your New Storefront
You wouldn't let the front of your brick-and-mortar business get run down and tattered, would you? That same attention to detail and image-conscious outlook should be applied to your website, too. 57 percent of consumers won't recommend a business that has a sub-standard mobile site. If your site loads slowly, has plug-ins that aren't compatible with mobile devices, or has content that can't be properly read on a smartphone or tablet, you and your business may be in trouble. When searching the web on their mobile device, 40 percent of users will ditch a less than mobile-friendly result in favor of one that works better. You'll never get another chance to make a first impression, so make sure your digital storefront – meaning your mobile ads, search listing details such as your meta description, and your actual homepage – are practically perfect in every way.
Even Email is Better on Mobile
Email marketing campaigns are almost unbelievably effective, yielding an average 4,300-percent return on what is typically a pretty negligible investment: for every $1 a business spends on email marketing, they can expect to see an average return of just over $44. It's clear that email marketing is generating an impressive bang for relatively little bucks, but even more important is the fact that 64 percent of so-called "decision makers" read emails on their mobile device. If email in general is a valuable tool, then ensuring that your emails are optimized for mobile devices – meaning sized appropriately for reading on smaller smartphone screens, easy to open, and quick to load, among other things – is equally essential, if not even more so.
Mobile Searches Mean Mega Business
Google isn't just about gathering information. Mobile searches convert into sales nearly three times more often than the same searches conducted on personal computers, with 70 percent resulting in action – be it a website click or even a purchase – within one hour. People looking for businesses on their smartphones are looking to spend money, and your web presence may just bring you a new customer in 60 minutes or less.
One final fact: while there are about 2.4 billion web users in the world, there are almost 7 billion mobile subscribers globally. Which audience would you rather spend your time catering to? There may be a lot of tech-driven ways to boost your business, but ultimately the best thing you can do for your bottom line is to embrace the power of mobile marketing.