Is Social Mobile Media Marketing The Future?

by Mike - July 28, 2011

Mobile Media Marketing

Mobile media marketing has achieved worldwide fame in the beginning of the 2000s, the time when short messaging service system or SMS started to flourish in countries across Europe, North America, and Asia. Since then, many businesses performed the same marketing tactic they had done in the then-successful email marketing campaigns. They would collect mobile phone numbers like they were email addresses, and then blast off different SMS advertisements to numerous recipients.

In 2005, just five years after SMS became an essential mobile communication tool, advertising products and services through text messages became a legitimate form of marketing in the United States and Canada and many countries worldwide. Organizations that could regulate mobile marketing practices and set rules and guidelines for businesses were immediately founded. These same organizations too would launch and are still launching several campaigns aiming to evangelize businesses to utilize the power of mobile communications.

If you’re a business owner planning to channel a part of your marketing budget to mobile advertising and promotions, don’t be afraid to jump into the bandwagon as SMS marketing is continuously and unstoppably expanding. As you read this article, hundreds or perhaps thousands of text messages are being sent by different companies to their prospective consumers, facilitating direct, personal, and interactive communication between brands and buyers.

One issue that needs to be addressed in mobile media marketing is the misconception that sending promotional text messages is plain spamming. This may be true a few years ago, but not anymore today. In the early years of mobile marketing, there were still no rules in terms of how, when, and who to send promotional messages to. Today however, given the presence of national and international bodies that police mobile business communications, people who receive promotional messages from businesses are able to do so because they are willing to accept such messages. Mobile phone service companies too are now punishable by law if they are proven to sell personal and contact information of their subscribers to third party firms.

Phone service companies are also working hard to develop programs which can help small and medium business owners utilize different mobile marketing techniques. Short codes—the four to six digit numbers that many businesses use to represent their official mobile number—are becoming cheaper and cheaper so they can be more accessible small business owners. These short codes are rented every month for a certain fee and can freely be utilized to create innovative mobile campaigns and provide consumer services.

As mentioned, there are also mobile media marketing organizations and associations that regularly provide free seminars, training sessions, and conferences to boost the development of the mobile marketing and advertising industry. These groups can give business owners a general overview on the local, national, and international status of mobile marketing and consultations on how to start off the utilization of mobile advertising and promotions in certain types of business. Because this type of marketing practice is still expanding, businesses are basically given a huge, unexplored terrain wherein they can discover and craft creative and innovative practices and techniques to engage with their target consumers more efficiently.

Social Media Technology Advancements

The media has penetrated the hemispheres of today’s society by implanting itself into the framework of television, mobile devices, business interactions and other elements that shape our culture. There are a number of technologies that adapt quickly to the hyper-connectedness and transparency of social media such as MySpace, twitter, YouTube, blogging, and Face book.

Social Media Technology Advancements

With advancements and hi-fi technology in mobile revolution, mobile ads such as the Smartphone is a great tool to get people closer to modern communication. Today, the Smartphone is integrating social media claims and having mobile browsers that permit people the ability to use social media channels anytime, anywhere. In January 2010, 30.8 % of Smartphone users accessed social networking sites through their mobile browser, which is an increase of 8.3 points from one year ago. Smartphones allow people to browse, tweet, and email, have video conferences, chat, and play online games with ease.

A recent study indicated that Facebook is the major channel that people utilize to share information such as videos, links, status updates, and news. Connectivity and software in western countries is allowing users to use these technologies with ease and developing countries such as India and China are rapidly catching up. Mobile phones today currently incorporate social media to be used directly with the aid of the integrate third party applications or the browser too.

Currently Facebook has over 500 users and is the most visited and attractive platform for business and consumers alike. Twitter, has also experienced significant growth in both PC-based and mobile visitors and in January it attracted 4.7 million mobile users. The average Smartphone has 22 apps, according to Nelsen.

Another segment of the population who use social media quite often is teens. With the use of texting for means of communication, Facebook is allowing teens to talk to whomever they want, maintain a photo album, and grow a farm.

Internet marketing and

mobile advertising
are great tools to use for your business needs, the following are some methods, and strategies cover a broad range of the following:

• SEM/SEO

• Blogging

• PPC

• E-mail

• Integrated and mixed strategies

• SEO optimized press releases

Through carefully monitored and planned internet marketing methods, your message can be spread and targeted to people that you are trying to reach.

The Mobile Movement: Understanding Smartphone Consumers –Study reveals the extent to which teenagers rely on social media and mobile technology

According to an ongoing survey compiled by the Pew Internet & American Life Project, social networking and texting are becoming the defining factor of this generation of teenagers and young people. The study began in 2006 with the focus on texting trends amongst teenagers, before going on to include social networking activity from 2007.

Many teenagers claim to be unable to live without some form of technological appendage to hand on which they can text, chat, post, listen to music, and swap photos and information. The study covers USA adolescents, but also applies to those of Western Europe as the percentages differ by 1 or 2 points.

Some of the main statistics revealed by the study included:

75% of teenagers own a mobile phone (including 58% of 12 year olds)

Almost 90% send and receive texts – half of whom send 50 or more texts daily, with 1 in 3 sending 100 per day.

73% of teens use social networking sites, with Facebook being the most popular.

Since 2006, Pew Internet & American Life have been documenting the way teenagers use their mobile phones. In 2007, they organisation began to look into the growing usage of social media by those aged between 12 – 17.

Although the high figures may leave some feeling that this generation of young people are wasting their time on computers, and sacrificing the benefits of physical contact and human interaction. However, one professor from Amsterdam, Professor Valkenburg of the Centre for Research on Children, Adolescents and the Media, believes that social networking can be extremely beneficial for adolescents going through what is generally deemed to be a pivotal and sometimes awkward period of life.

She reminds us that adolescence can be a particularly traumatising or embarrassing period of our lives, but it is also one in which we strive to express our identity to others on an unprecedented level, as well as participating in a process of self-disclosure in which we discuss intimate topics.

These processes are very important for our development according to Prof. Valkenburg, but they are also surrounded by copious amounts of self-consciousness and timorousness. Social networking and texting provides a solution to this problem, allowing teenagers to experience these processes, but to forego the awkwardness and embarrassment which is associated with them.

These technologies empower the user, and allow them to gain a greater level of control over their perceived identity. For teenagers it equates to a controllability over what you say and how you say it.

Secrets to PR and Branding with Mobile Marketing and Social Media

Marketing has changed. You don’t have to buy into the Web 2.0 hoopla, but you had better make some changes on how and where you engage customers. They want direct access and interaction with your business.

Creating a mobile or social media marketing strategy can be exactly the tipping point your business needs in 2009. Consumers are increasingly mobile and socially connected. Consumers are constantly connected with friends, family, and community–make sure that is how you connect too.

Mobile Marketing

The cell phone is the average American’s constant companion. So much so it seems more likely to walk out of the house without your pants than your mobile phone.

In fact a growing number of consumers are abandoning their home and office phone for a mobile only lifestyle. This builds great opportunity for smart mobile marketing strategies.

John Edwards used mobile marketing at political rallies you capture opt-in text messaging numbers. He would hold up his mobile phone and ask everyone to text a specific number to sign-up for campaign updates. That is just one of many emerging mobile marketing concepts engaging consumers:

* Sports networks are using it to update you on your favorite team

* T-shirt and bumper stickers are displaying text codes for promos

* Realtors are using it on For Sale Signs

* Cable news networks are using it to take real-time surveys and polls

Getting in the mobile marketing game is critical to your business, regardless of the size.

Social Media

Like mobile marketing, social media is becoming a required tool in your marketing kit. The Internet is becoming a seamless part of not only our workflow, but also our lifestream. Every moment of many of the most attractive consumer segments are spent connected. Connect not only to the Internet, but also to their social networks.

Like the Clue Train Manifesto, a prophetic book about the coming of Web 2.0, predicted markets are becoming conversations. If you are not in these conversations you are losing opportunities.

Your marketing plan need to include social networking and social media. Building an audience is important. You need to meet and activate your community where they are–Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Putting it Together for PR & Branding

Of course mobile marketing and social media are unlikely to give you results without a plan–objectives that build your PR and branding. Start by planning your core messages and perceptions you want to build in the market. Then you can fully leverage these emerging marketing opportunities.

The Google+ project: Huddle
Miranda introduces Huddle with a few thoughts on getting everyone together. Check out some ways we´ve been rethinking real-life sharing for the web at plus.google.com.

The Google+ project: Instant Upload
Jon introduces Instant Upload with a few thoughts on how we remember the things that matter. Check out some ways we´ve been rethinking real-life sharing for the web at plus.google.com

If you are looking for

Mobile Media Marketing

take a look at our services here

Social Media Management- Should I Outsource or Do the work In-house?

by Mike - June 22, 2011

Should I Outsource My Social Media Management or Do the work In-house?

Social Media, Social Media Marketing, Social Media Monitoring, Social Media Training, Social Networking What to do.

The Social Media Management dilemma is whether to outsource or do the work In-house?

Each business has to make the tough decision whether they should you administer their social media themselves or should you hire a Social media manager? This is the question of the hour that a lot of Folks have, especially as their business is growing and they discover their attention is being split between 20 different numerous things.

Occasionally the decision is pretty straightforward because the business does not have a marketing budget, or do not have the energy or time to deal with their social media needs themselves.

This may or may not be the case for you.

Here are 51 ways to know whether you might need social media management or not.

You still wonder if social media is a craze/fad
You simply tweet one time a week
You tweet, but you in no way read what everybody else says
You develop the greatest results from your Twitter as you are on a layover and can only work from your smart phone
You put out of your mind that you even have a Twitter account
Folks ask you for your Twitter handle, and you don’t know
Folks ask about your business on the different social media platforms and you don’t see the them.
You maintain 10,000 followers and yet not one individual clicks to your site
ROI and ROR are expressions that don’t seem to apply to your social media
Facebook is something you simply do from your phone or hootsuite
You can’t remember the very last time you logged into facebook
Your places page on Facebook has only your address from 2 moves previously
Twitter keeps asking if you wish for the tour of the “New” Twitter…that was announced in the Fall of 2010
Facebook keeps trying to give you tours of their new features from 6 months ago
The last wall post was thanking the public for birthday wishes from last year
Your last tweet is celebrating an anniversary
People think you are a bot
The Public are flagging you for spam
You still don’t know how to post on the wall of a fan page
The phrase, use Facebook as your fan page, means nothing to you
Your niece who is 16 does nearly everyone of your posts
Your wall is covered in spam posts from folks trying to make you learn foreign languages
You don’t know what a hashtag is
You don’t really know how to do any posts on your social media platforms
Your profile image still shows as an egg
No one follows you back
Your biggest fan is a part of #TeamFollowBack
All you do is post news stories that are unrelated to your business
No one can figure out what it is that you do
Your Facebook posts to your Twitter account
Your foursquare automatically posts to both your Facebook and Twitter
All your updates are the same on Twitter, Facebook Youtube and LinkedIn
The most interesting thing you posted on your wall was about your lunch
You don’t know the difference between Facebook and LinkedIn
Each who tweets you is speaking a different language
Everybody that tweets you has an Egg avatar
You have know idea what an “Egg avatar” is
You don’t know why having an Egg avatar is a bad thing
You post links to you website and no one clicks the link….ever
You don’t know how to create a 140 character post so your tweets are continually linked to “con’t…”
You only have a discussions about your kids and pets
Your only updated posts are your horoscope
You still think that Paper.li isn’t spam
You tweet the same tweet every day
You can’t think of something to post…ever
You still can’t figure out how to follow somebody
You are wildly successful and don’t have the time to tweet, post or submit any content
You would like your Twitter to help with your sales and customer service
You wish for another way to communicate with your clients
You wish to bring your social media efforts to the next level
You wish to put into action a social media strategy that will give you business a significant boost

Hopefully this has started you to think of where you are at in your current social media management needs.

But whether you outsource or not is really probably not the question you should be asking.

I believe that the TRUE question you should be asking is, will your social media needs be better off with a expert that focuses 100% there time on social media for you? And the second question you should really ask Is, keeping it in-house the right thing to do?

Let’s explore the outsource-in-house dilemma from different points of views based on your size and type of business situation to see if we can find the answer for you.

1. The Brand New ‘I recently Discovered Social Media’ Business

There are a lot of advantages and disadvantages to outsourcing or keeping it in-house. For the company that has only recently realized they should be doing social media marketing, hiring a qualified/professional company is the right thing to do.

This is because the chances of somebody in your company knowing how to actually design and put into action a successful social media strategy are virtually zero. Most of them won’t even know how to set up a Facebook business page.

Save yourself months of struggle, frustration and a massive learning curve, and hire a qualified social media company or manager. The one thing to remember is It doesn’t have to be permanent, but in that ‘year’ you can have one of your employee get some proper social media training. Then you can do it in-house yourself. Make sure it is an employee that is going to be around for awhile.

2. The Tech Savvy Company With No Social Media Experience

If you work in a technology related field, your employees might find social media marketing appealing, and are equipped to learn it immediately. In this case you should think about waiting for awhile prior to rushing out and hiring a social media company to handle your campaigns.

If your employees have the time and the willingness to learn, then sign them up for social media strategy classes so that they can eventually grow to be your social media administrator. If your employees simply have no time, or no interest in learning – then go with a social media company. Many of the best SM companies develop your social campaigns just as well as a staff member would.

3. The Medium-Large Business That Needs Social Media Marketing Now

Most medium to large sized companies can afford a comprehensive marketing budget. In this case, it’s always a good idea to either hire your own social media manager, or outsource to an expert social media management company or manager.

With each project they handle, these companies learn the best ways to control social media for your business. They are always ahead of the curve, and stay abreast of the newest trends in social media. If you have the money to spare, you won’t get better returns than from a company that works to making you money from social media.

4.Your Personal to Small Business Needs

At the end of the day you need to ask yourself the tough questions. Here are some questions to get you started. However be honest with yourself, if you aren’t you might make the wrong decision and regret it later!

Are your employees skillful enough to carryout a social media campaign right now?
Does somebody in your company have experience with social media marketing?
Do your employees have the capacity to study social media marketing?
Do you or your employees have the time needed to run a campaign?
Do you have the money to hire a social media manager or business?

Think hard about the answers to these questions. Imagining that a particular person can run a successful social media campaign, is not the same as them actually doing it with a good ROI. Consider your goals, and what you want from your social media – this will help you pick what’s best for your business. A great social media strategy will help establish you as a thought leader, a bad one will lose you time and money.

Let us show you how we are your true source for all of your Social Media Management needs by allowing us to do a FREE Social Media Written Audit, Click here to contact us.

Social Media Management- Should I Outsource or Do the work In-house?

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