Mobile Payments and Marketing
The Internet has transformed the way we do business. In many ways, it’s leveled the playing field. It’s easier than ever for small businesses to snap up significant amounts of business.
After all, they’re no longer restricted to selling to people in their local areas, and they no longer need to spend small fortunes on traditional, direct mail campaigns or telemarketing.
The right website or e-commerce site can make a significant difference – and used to be enough. The proliferation of mobile devices is changing that, though.
People are even more connected than ever, and businesses that don’t stay on top of mobile technology are sure to slip behind the competition.
It Pays to be Accessible
In years past, many businesses could stay afloat simply because they had captive audiences. If you owned the only hardware store in town, for instance, locals had to make do with whatever you had to offer. Today, they can order from your competitors online and have what they need quickly.
With these points in mind, it’s crucial to make your business as accessible as possible. Having a website is an excellent start, but 821 million tablets and smartphones were sold in 2012 alone, and the number is expected be significantly higher in 2013.
If mobile users can’t access your store on
their devices, it might as well be invisible.
Anyone who owns a brick-and-mortar store knows how important it is to answer the phone whenever it rings. After all, the person calling could be looking to spend huge amounts of money. Allowing it to go unanswered is like turning up your nose at those potential profits.
The same thing is true about not making your business accessible to mobile users. They’re out there on their smartphones and tablets, and they’re eager to buy. They’re not going to go out of their way to give you their money, though.
Your competition has already embraced the mobile revolution, and they’re sure to nab a lot of that business if you don’t act quickly.
Acquiring Customers versus Retaining Them
It’s natural to spend significant amounts of time and money trying to drum up new business. After all, new customers are the lifeblood of any successful business.
However, new customers aren’t going to cut it if they don’t stick around. Besides, generating new business is a lot more expensive than earning repeat business.
It pays to take steps to keep the same people coming back again and again.
One of the best ways to generate repeat business is by offering people incentives to come back. Loyalty programs are tried-and-true ways to do so.
Humans naturally like to feel like they are a part of something special. Exclusivity is very alluring. The simple act of handing a customer a card that makes them a member of a special club can significantly increase the odds of earning their business in the future.
What’s even better is that creating these programs is easy. The only thing to keep in mind is that you need to actually reward the members of your loyalty club.
The average household has 18 loyalty club cards but only uses about eight of them regularly. You can bet your bottom dollar that the ones that are used provide tangible benefits for members.
People Want to Give You Their Money, So Make it Easy
As long as you have quality goods and services, there are people out there who are willing to buy them. They are eager to give you their money, but they don’t want to have to jump through a bunch of hoops to do so.
Incredibly, 55 percent of businesses don’t accept credit cards, which translates into about $100 billion in lost revenue per year.
In addition to accepting credit cards, you should accept PayPal.
A great way to take advantage of mobile technology is by also accepting smartphone payments via NFC, or near field communication. It is estimated that 285 million NFC-enabled mobile devices will be sold in 2013.
How many of those devices will end up in the hands of people who want what you’re selling? By allowing them to pay you with this advanced technology, you’ll cast a much wider net and draw in a lot more business.
Click image to read full size version
Embrace Mobile Marketing
821 million tablets and smartphones were sold in 2012, and more than a billion are expected to be sold in 2013. People love their mobile devices and use them often, so it pays to reach out to them through this exciting platform.
If your website isn’t mobile friendly yet, make it happen as quickly as possible. Mobile advertising is expected to grow by 400 percent in the next four years, and more than $1 trillion in mobile purchases are expected to be made by 2017, so it’s crucial to get serious about mobile marketing it now.
Attract and Retain Customers with Mobile Technology
With mobile marketing, you can attract more customers. By staying on top of emerging technologies like smartphone payments via NFC, you can retain a significant percentage of them.
If you’re serious about running a successful business in today’s highly competitive business world, establishing a mobile presence and integrating mobile technology are crucial steps that should be taken immediately.
