Top 10 Mobile Marketing Tips

1.Give the Finger

Yes, that’s right, give your users the finger. If you can read and interact with your pages using just one finger, you’re in good shape. That means there’s no required pinching or other multi-finger gestures to distract or dismay. Yes, you can use a full-size website in a mobile browser, but, it’s a lot of work. And most users avoid work like the plague. Keep them from avoiding you — eliminate the work.

2. Keep it Simple

Get ready to edit mercilessly. Each page in your user experience needs to be as concise as it can possibly be. And then more so. People are willing to scroll down, or flick through pages — but not if the content is superfluous or irrelevant. And not if the object of their intent is buried beneath a pile of boring. Keep your message and imagery short, sweet and on point. K.I.S.S. is the most overused acronym in marketing — but in this case, you must.

3. Be Bold

The mobile web is not a boring place. The old-school web has wide swaths of tired, redundant content — long pages, verbose pontifications and blah, blah, blah. Not so on the mobile web. That sort of thing is chucked to the curb like a rancid milkshake on a hot afternoon. You have to be interesting to be in control. You have to be focused. And you have to be confident enough to be up front and direct in your propositions. Skip the hype. Be true and be strong to command attention.

4. Keep it On Purpose

Mobile users have purpose and intent. Most aren’t casually browsing — they’re on a mission. The sooner you can determine their mission, the faster you can address it. When you can direct your message at their intent early in the experience, you have a much better chance of getting them engaged and converted. User-directed, behavioral segmentation finds a perfect stable mate in uncovering intent — fast. Present two or three alternatives on the first page of your landing experience and let your users take control and tell you what they want. Then, give it to them.

5. Match Tightly

Matching the message of your ad to the message of your landing experience is post-click marketing 101. It’s amplified in mobile. In order for #4 above to work, you need to already be speaking directly to the reason your user came to you in the first place. Then you can use segmentation to more finely target your message and get at your user’s intent. Go even longer tail with your messaging and see how specificity breeds conversion success. Sure it means a lot of pages for a lot of messages, but when the upside is a lot more revenue, it’s worth the effort. And if you have the right tool (wink, wink—check out LiveBall by ion), it’s not so hard.

6. Be Advanced

Most websites stink — in part because they are designed for lowest-common-denominator browsers — some of which are almost 10 years old. The mobile web is much younger and the defined standard much more advanced. Your landing experiences need to take full advantage of that potential. When a user turns their screen from vertical to horizontal, your pages should shine. Your mobile experience should reflect your true brand standards — typeface included — instead of watered-down web standards. Mobile should look and feel much better than your website. Anything less is beneath the market. This isn’t your father’s web.

7. Be Compatible

Your Flash-based video delivery network won’t cut it here. In fact, Flash is out on the street entirely. But smartphone mobile browsing is fast, so video is on the list of good things. That means aligning yourself with video or other rich content providers that deliver mobile-compatible versions of your best stuff. The good ones won’t even require that you do anything. It should just work. And that’s the big message here — everything should just work — flawlessly and consistently, across Palm, Apple, Android and BlackBerry. If it doesn’t work, don’t bother.

8. Consider the Source

Whether you’re B2B, B2P or B2C, mobile smartphone users are likely your best prospects. They’re affluent, engaged, progressive opinion leaders who (should) matter a lot to you. These are not only the people you want to sell to, they’re also the people you want to impress. They’re going to spread the word about your brand. You need that word to be good. All marketing should be focused on its target, but in this case — for now at least — this target has unifying characteristics that you can confidently appeal to. Speak to them, and they’ll speak on your behalf.

9. Handle the Peaches with Care

Mobile user experience shouldn’t be bruiser experience. It should be easy and friendly. Sense for your user’s device and seamlessly give them the best experience. Then let them opt out of your mobile-optimized pages for your full-size website if they want to. Let them be in charge and don’t beat them up about it. It’s your job as an online marketer to put them in the best environment you can — to make it as likely as possible that they convert. That doesn’t mean you force them to experience the web your way. Handle with care, reduce your bounce rate and give yourself the best possible shot at conversion.

10. Test, Test, Test

In this way, mobile conversion optimization is no different than any other kind. You must get started, get testing and get results you can rely on. Test early segmentation against simple landing pages. Test microsites against conversion paths. Test messaging. Test imagery. Always be testing. Consistent testing turns into consistent learning and consistent improvement. Marketing efficiency is about generating more revenue from less spend. Testing makes that happen.

Getting Started with Mobile Marketing

Optimizing your mobile marketing begins with identifying the campaigns that attract the most smartphones and focusing on those first. Then you need to create mobile-targeted experiences for those smartphone users. It’s really not that hard and you can start small — with your one or two most mobile campaigns. Once you gain some traction, look at testing alternatives within your high-volume campaigns or at adding other, longer-tail campaigns to your mobile optimization efforts. Remember, web usage is going mobile. Any delay in optimizing for mobile is sacrificing positive branding, conversions and revenue.