Easy Mobile Marketing for Every Business

Mike Phillips — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 20:45:00 GMT

According to new data from comScore, people accessing email via mobile devices increased an impressive 36 percent, from November 2009 to November 2010. More than 70 million people accessed email on their mobile devices in the month.

In this age where “mobile” is so often equated with apps – and their astronomical development costs – this study is excellent news and a steadfast reminder that every business can be “mobile” without breaking the bank. All you need is an email list – which you should already have and, if not, get on it – and a few tips on optimizing messages for the best possible mobile user experience. That’s where we come in.

Let’s take a look at some mobile email, using an iPhone as an example. Devices vary somewhat, but this gives a good picture of the mobile email experience on a standard smartphone.

In all cases, rigorously test mobile email messages across several devices before executing a campaign.

Before Opening the Message

Who is the sender? The sender display name is limited to 16 characters. Good usage of the sender field are company names, individual names,

The subject line. The viewable subject line is somewhere around 35 characters, including spaces. Keep in mind that a Forward (Fw:) and a Reply (Re:) will take up five characters each. It is vital to make the subject line compelling enough for the user to open the email and not delete it with one swipe of a finger.

Content at a glance. The first few lines of content make up about 75 characters, including spaces. Again, be careful of a Forward, as the entire first line could be taken up. Often, I receive emails that begin with “Message not displaying correctly?” or “This is a post-only message. Please do not respond” and so on. That’s wasted space and a very good reason for your message to be ignored.

The first 10 or so words of your message’s content need to give the recipient an explicit reason to click the message to read more – be it an offer, discount, request for a reply or whatever motivates your users.

Optimizing Mobile Email Content

Continue the action. Once a user has clicked on the message, the call-to-action must be immediately clear and reinforce the first few lines the user has already seen. Tell the reader exactly what to do next – click a link or forward the message to a friend, for example. Remember, these are users largely on-the-go, so be succinct and actionable.

Users can be sent just about anywhere from a mobile email, but good options are mobile-optimized pages of your website and social destinations, where the user can spread your message. Recipients can be directed to Facebook Places, Foursquare or even Google Maps. Coupons are a good idea, along with the store’s location, conveniently linked to an interactive map.

Using images. Debate swirls around using images in mobile email. Some devices will have trouble displaying the image but today’s smartphones are well fairly well adapted. If your audience is tech-savvy, you might have more flexibility. However, images should be well-planned.

For example, text on an image can be difficult to read, particularly on a small screen. Oftentimes, I receive virtual flyers in an email. The images dominate and the text is tiny. I am forced to zoom in to see the message, and that is not ideal. If you plan to use images, do so responsibly and make sure the success of the email does not rely solely on the image. An image can make a nice addition to making mobile email more interesting but it should be used to support the message.

Selling product. Mobile commerce is still relatively new but that does not make it impossible. There are mobile payment solutions, including PayPal, and the mobile space is ripe for impulse buys. It is unlikely that people will buy major products through their phones but ringtones, music, e-books, etc.? That’s doable.

Video email. As email becomes increasingly mobile (and smartphones and tablets flood the market), it’s important to remember some different ways mobile email is used. For example, in an airport, at a café, on the couch, in the park… that means users have a potential need for entertainment. Therefore, don’t be afraid to include video. The best course of action is to use a YouTube link, as those videos do not require Flash and are viewable across devices.

Lose, Falter & Fail at Launch

Pete Prestipino — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 14:50:00 GMT

There are millions of websites and businesses that show you (or try to show you) how to succeed. But few detail how companies and websites might lose, falter and fail at the launch of their product or service. Website Magazine has been fortunate in the past five years to watch thousands of companies go through the launch process – some with great success and others suffering epic failures. That experience has honed our ability to separate the future winners from the losers. The following is a list of reasons and corporate traits that will be most detrimental to your website or product launch. Ignore them at your own peril.

Customer Development: Whether building software, creating a Web destination or selling products on the Internet, customers (clients and users) are always the engine drives revenue growth and your ultimate success. Often, those seeking press coverage from Website Magazine do not have customer stories about the usage of their products – an immediate indication they don’t take customers seriously. Having a stable of users and early adopters prior to launch will offer input on your product or service and a head-start on new customers and brand awareness.

Street Credibility: Even if your launch is months or years away it will be well served if your reputation is already established in certain circles. For example, say you are in the product development phase of a new and innovative electronic gadget. If you’ve spent time building up some followers (see the viral component section below) your opinions and beliefs are going to be respected and trusted. When you are ready to launch, the job of building trust in your new product or service will be far easier with established credibility. To earn some street credibility, create your own weblog and promote it anywhere that is relevant, offer up advice and expertise, and find a following.

Viral Components: In the age of sharing and social media there is no excuse for Web businesses not to have a “presence” and account for users’ willingness to spread something they like or appreciate. The benefit of doing so is that it dramatically increases the potential of message frequency (how often messages will be seen by others) – something that proves very valuable during a launch. It’s not uncommon for users (and those of us in the media) to simply ignore something until it can no longer be ignored; becoming too “big” not to consider. Adding in viral social and sharing components (Facebook Pages, share buttons on blog posts, etc.) pre-launch will ensure an optimal response.

Viral components don’t just stop at sharing and social, however. Affiliate and partner programs can provide a much needed boost and the savviest among them (should you make the effort to recruit them) will be excited to get in on the virtual land rush – scooping up all those early adopters. Build a second- or third-tier into your partner offering and you’ll get street credibility of which your competitors will envy.

Product and service launches are tense and tough times. Being customer-focused (supporting an environment where customers are valued and trusted), having a cache of credibility that you can leverage in the future, and giving the Web as a whole an opportunity to share and extend your brand message are basic but key steps in launch success. Otherwise, welcome to the dead pool.

'Net Features : best practices

Easy Mobile Marketing for Every Business

Lose, Falter & Fail at Launch