August 15, 2011
By Peter Hewitt
SoLoMo is currently talked about by many industry insiders as a handle to represent the future of mobile connectivity and engagement with customers, 1:1 marketing, integration with social networks, and geo-targeting of brand messages and daily deal coupons and promotions.
These existing, cost-effective systems drive social connections with target audiences for local businesses and retail outlets, through mobile and email delivery of advertising and content initiated by SMS, QR codes and location-based services.
So much more
It is interesting that many marketers and pundits are SoLoMo as shorthand for social, local advertising and mobile – it is creating a future category handle that will predictably tier into multiple categories as it comes into more focus down the road.
Different interpretations for the terminology and multichannel application alternatives will drive adoption and usage for these evolving technology solutions.
Today, however, we already have in place several types of these SoLoMo solutions.
One example is the category of do-it-yourself (DIY) SMS text messaging + email systems.
These systems are the fastest, easiest on-ramps to mobile marketing campaigns as vehicles to communicate brand messages, promotions, and engagement with customers and prospects. And they are affordable, helping business owners and marketers generate greater leads and better measurability for advertising campaign effectiveness.
Small to midsized businesses and local retailers can add mobile marketing to their marketing mix today in a matter of minutes. They can then publish their keyword-to-short code as a call-to-action in their local advertising and marketing materials.
Automated responses triggering more information and using promotions and special offers can be developed, measured, altered, and re-implemented to help develop social connections with customers and prospects through uncluttered mobile channels.
Beginner’s look
There is much for marketers to learn about different sectors of mobile marketing.
Developing mobile sites, mobile applications, mobile advertising and SMS text messaging campaigns, and other location-based services are all available today.
The best way to begin is to:
• Start off with a simple SMS text campaign
• Measure the response through analytics
• Refine the response content to test different incentives
• Change the offers for more information
• Incorporate video links
• Add an option to respond with email address
• After a double opt-in, automatically respond with your brand message to the texter’s email inbox to be searched at a later time
Strategies will vary. Experimentation is inevitable. The vertical sector of SMS text messaging and advertising in the mobile marketing space brings simplicity, affordability and pure utility as a powerful ingredient to the marketing mix.
Go ahead, do not be afraid, give it a go, jump in and get in the game.
Peter Hewitt is president and chief operating officer of TXT2GET Inc., San Francisco. Reach him at peter.hewitt@txt2get.com.
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